August 1, 2019
A Cognos Planning Analytics client recently asked Lodestar Solutions for a quote for a few more licenses. When their Cognos representative sent them the quote they asked, “Why is the quote for my IBM Cognos licenses higher than my renewal?” Lodestar Solutions get’s this question periodically so we thought we would share the answer with everyone!
Assumption
For the discussion below we are focusing on premise licenses, not cloud or SAAS licensing. If you are unfamiliar with the difference, please see our previous blog on this topic.
If you are uncertain what you own, email Lodestar at Renewals@lodestarsolutions.com and we can help you understand your current licensing.
The Renewal Quote
The renewal quote is just that a quote that covers just the support on the licenses you already purchased. By subscribing to IBM Cognos Support you are able to log cases, get patches and upgrade to the latest version of the software. The renewal or support price is always significantly lower than the cost of a new license. So, if you need to add additional users it will cost you more than the Cognos renewal cost. Here’s a blog on reducing your IBM support renewal costs.
You also might like to check out more information on IBM Support.
The New Cognos User Quote
If you need additional IBM Cognos licenses and you are using on-premise software, you will typically want to buy the “perpetual” IBM Cognos license. The new IBM Cognos license includes the cost of the licenses and it includes 1 year of support for the new Cognos licenses. Therefore, the cost of buying new IBM Cognos licenses is more expensive than just the renewal or support subscription. The new Cognos license is technically an asset/capex to the organization whereas the support is typically an operating expense.
Perpetual License
You may be unfamiliar with the term perpetual software license. A perpetual software license authorizes an individual to use a program indefinitely. Typically, software companies, like IBM will charge an annual support cost to get access to patches and upgrades. When you buy a perpetual license it’s an asset to your organization, you own it, even if you don’t pay support in future years. In theory, if for some reason, which we don’t recommend, you decided to not renew your IBM Cognos support on the licenses you own, you would have a legal right to still use the software for as long as you like. However, you would not have access to any new versions of Cognos or access to log a support ticket. Hypothetically, if Microsoft gave an update to Excel that broke a connection to Cognos TM1 or BI, you would be out of luck if you did not pay support. Renew support!
For the details of IBM licensing click here.
Conclusion
Now you know the answer to “Why is the quote for Cognos licenses higher than my renewal?” It’s because new licenses have the license and the renewal costs included. If you have questions on your specific licenses, reach out to Renewals@lodestarsolutions.com and we are happy to answer your questions or provide you a quote on new licenses.