Frustration among users of business software is increasing – ZDNet.de

Markus Strehlitz at 25th April 2016 , 05:45

The German software users in companies are dissatisfied. In a survey, the enterprises the pricing of providers give consistently bad grades. They also complain about the complexity and lack of transparency. The user groups share the criticism.

For the manufacturers, the result is not very creditable. The Federation of IT users VOICE surveyed its members how satisfied they are (completely satisfied) with the license pricing and policies of the major software vendors on a scale of 0 (completely dissatisfied) to 10th And all manufacturers performed poorly. The majority is taken between three and four index points. In the study, customers of SAP, Microsoft , Oracle and IBM to their estimate of topics such as ERP software, business intelligence / data warehouse databases and Security befragt.

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in the survey 63 user companies involved. Overall VOICE counts more than 400 member companies. The association sees itself both as a network and exchange platform for the IT users and secondly as a product-neutral overarching advocacy. At the license pricing software provider he particularly criticized the complexity. The license models are hard to see through, says Patrick Quellmalz, of the Service derives in VOICE. “The license prices vary greatly from user to user and from country to country,” said Quellmalz. On top of that are very different, the metrics between the different software providers.

Andreas Oczko is in the German-speaking SAP user group (DSAG) as head of the topics Operations, service and Support responsible (image: DSAG).

Andreas Oczko has recently criticized the complexity of license management for SAP in a ZDNet article. So there license packages for specific applications, named-user licenses for different user groups and database licenses and reporting licenses about Business Objects. “In 2001 there was felt at about the 50 to 60 license materials. Today we are alone in the on-premise sector in 1000, “Oczko, the (DSAG) is in the German-speaking SAP user group responsible as a board for topics Operations, Service and Support reported.

” And to understand the price list, it would sometimes be helpful to have a doctorate, “Oczko adds. The users expect little so that the situation will change. In the VOICE survey, 84 percent believe that the complexity in the coming years will even increase.

Transparency and communication behavior deficient

Another point of criticism Enterprise users is the lack of transparency. “If something changes in the price or license design, this is not communicated to the users generally,” says Quellmalz. And changes are very common. Quellmalz reports a software provider who performed 500 adjustments one year

Also, this allegation can sign DSAG spokesman Oczko:. “. As an SAP customer you learn of changes only through specific demand” He criticized also that SAP strengthened to tend to tie up various software programs to packages together. So one must mitbezahlen for modules that are not really needed.

In the VOICE federation of IT users eV first created this year “satisfaction index” cut the major software vendors in License pricing consistently not good (chart: VOICE).

the feeling to pay too much, other users, for example, the SAP rival Oracle know. “The procedure for the named user licenses is incomprehensible,” says Dietmar Neugebauer, CEO of Deutsche Oracle User Group (DOAG). “A company has to license all potential Oracle users – those who could work with the system at some point.” The same applies to devices such as printers or scanners

Also, the increasing availability of cloud services. the license jungle not made manageable. “Basically, apply to the cloud services of big providers SAP, Oracle, IBM and Microsoft licensing models similar as for the on-premise sector,” said Quellmalz. Of greater flexibility could be no question. “The services are charged per month and there is a one-year notice period,” said Quellmalz. Previously also offer none of the major vendors, a pay-per-use concept.

For the company, the complex and non-transparent licensing policy is not only annoying. They also cost human resources. According Quellmalz all teams are busy to take care of license management in many companies. An employee often suffices for

Dietmar Neugebauer, CEO of Deutsche Oracle user group (image: DOAG)

impotence in Germany it to change

the opportunities of German companies something, but are low. “The German branch of the US software providers have in this matter no own decision-making power,” explains Quellmalz. “For example, therefore, a company with its requests for changes at Microsoft Germany achieve little.” This problem also knows DOAG man Neugebauer: “Oracle Germany is mainly responsible for the sales. Our influence in this country are therefore very low. “The users of products from Walldorf feel the same way now. “SAP is subject now global regulations,” said Oczko. “. SAP is listed on the US stock exchange and frequently acts therefore as a US company”

Also, the degrees of freedom of the sales people on the SAP side are not as big as before, says Oczko: “You can hardly decide anything arbitrarily. “In addition to the decision-making power but they lack experience also. “Often the salespeople speak the wrong people in the company,” says Oczko. The reason is his opinion that the market is rapidly anwachse and are therefore needed in a short time more sales specialists. “And the need to care for increasingly more customers and overlook a strongly growing product portfolio.”

Competition not for the benefit of the user companies

This issue will probably will not be so easy to solve. With regard to the other issues raised in the survey subjects voice, however, has a clear vision towards the software vendors. “We call for simple and transparent license agreements and metrics,” says Quellmalz. In addition, users should be involved in the discussion of new licensing models. As a further point VOICE requires better documentation and the free provision of detailed license information.

The interest in improvements in the subject licenses is large. According VOICE give 70 percent of corporate users 10 to 30 percent of their IT budgets on software licenses. In almost half of the companies surveyed (45 percent), this IT budget 2-49 million euros.

“While rising IT budgets this year moderate,” reports Quelmalz. “But when you consider how great addition to personnel and equipment Aufwänden the fixed costs block, have to bear the user annually, leaves little room for innovation. The cost of the applications already used can users hardly room to move. “

One reason for the often opaque licensing provides Quellmalz competitive behavior. “Often it is the software vendors to enforcing its own new products by customers and demarcate their own ecosystem against the competition.” In a region where the change of the competition for the customer a considerable effort and during the migration phase also brings a substantial risk that seems to work.