The importance of legal aspects in software asset management and licensing is growing. Business practices and the license portfolio are often not in accordance with each other. Furthermore, complex clauses in licensing agreements may be misunderstood by the customer and lead to profound controversies with the software company, e.g. in the course of an inhouse software audit. We provide specialized legal advice already during the preparation of a software purchase, during the negotiation of the licensing agreements and with regard to all possible legal implications of an audit process. Our goal is to protect your rights and make sure that your contractual partner is respecting all applicable laws and not abusing its market position.

Track Records

– Successful court case against SAP Germany concerning certain licensing conditions in 2013/2014 (in particular referring to the possibility of distribution of software and the obligation to purchase additional licenses if a customer is incompliant);

– SAP contract analysis and risk assessment in audit situations and for additional purchase contracts (e.g. for a German DAX company, several big industry companies in Germany, the UK, the US, Switzerland, and Denmark).

– Extensive legal assessments on the SAP indirect usage/access topic including e.g. 100 pages Legal Opinion based on German law and EU law.

– Contract drafting and negotiations for SAP customers.

– Partner law firm to support a competition law procedure at the German Federal Cartel Authority.

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Development

We develop with you the appropriate license model:

  • Evaluation of the different licensing options
  • Consideration and assessment of different licensing models and license metrics
  • Assessment of the risks arising from third-party software components (databases, open source software) and recommendations for the licensing models
  • Development of the ideal licensing strategy and the appropriate license model
  • Communication with customers about the key issues of management contract negotiations.
  • Collaboration with consultancies and IT specialists with regard to the technical implementation of appropriate protective measures

Purchase

We support you in the frame of purchasing on-premise and cloud licenses:

  • Advise to all business units with regard to software license agreements and all corresponding legal aspects of software licensing
  • Analysis, evaluation and explanation of complex legal questions arising from a software purchase and providing the best solutions
  • Preparation and supervision of software audits
  • Counsel with regard to other internal software compliance processes (e.g. data protection and data security)
  • Analysis, evaluation and explanation of general licensing conditions (including third party software components, e.g. open source)
  • Communication and negotiation with the contractual partner
  • Cooperation with business consultants and technical IT specialists concerning possible changes in the software portfolio

Audit

Book our special consulting services for the preparation of software audits and measurements:

  • Drafting and negotiation of side agreements for setting a specified legal frame for the audit.
  • Legal evaluation of audit results and recommendations how to deal with asserted under-licensing and respective claims.
  • Communication with the software vendor regarding all claims arising from software audits and appropriate defense against such claims.
  • If necessary: initiation of formal legal proceedings against the vendor.
  • Cooperation with business consultants and technical IT specialists in the frame of the preparation and assessment of an audit

License Optimization

We offer you a substantive analysis of your license portfolio with the aim of an optimization of your current and future contracts:

  • Interdisciplinary approach: cooperation with technical IT specialists and vendor-experienced business/sales consultants. Our common goal is your success.
  • Legal approach: Our legal team supports you with the contractual drafting and negotiations.
  • Technical approach: Our technical partners offer you assistance with the technical aspects of the measurement and technical possibilities to optimize your system environment.
  • Business approach: Our business consultants analyze your software portfolio and give advice concerning the best product choice and possible savings/discount options.
  • Read more about our license optimization services: