I am a technology attorney in Texas specializing in software license transactions and disputes with the major software publishers including Microsoft, Adobe, Oracle and IBM. I represent some of the world’s largest corporations in enterprise software license transactions. I have been involved in more than 600 software license disputes in the last 10 years and…
The Services Provider License Agreement (SPLA) is Microsoft’s preferred licensing option for businesses wanting to use Microsoft products in support of hosted software solutions made available to end users over the Internet. For many companies, SPLA is a good fit, in that it incorporates a monthly reporting mechanism, rather than an up-front license purchase, and…
One venerable software license model that many companies have utilized in the past has been the license upgrade, under which a licensee could acquire the right to deploy the newest version of a product at a much-reduced price, provided that the licensee also owns a full license for a qualifying, earlier version of the same…
As the year comes to a close, many software publishers and trade associations with calendar year accounting are resolving as many outstanding software audits as possible. Companies currently engaged in a software audit may be able to negotiate favorable resolutions to their audit matters. The following are a few tips to reach an amicable resolution…
Software publisher Adobe Systems Inc. actively investigates its existing customers to determine whether each customer has properly licensed Adobe software, or is committing copyright infringement. Adobe often pursues its customers directly, but sometimes grants a power of attorney for BSA| The Software Alliance to pursue copyright infringement claims on its behalf. In each instance, Adobe…
In May 2013, Adobe announced that CS6 would be the last version of its Creative Suite software product line that would be available under traditional, stand-alone, perpetual licenses. Instead, all releases of Creative Suite products since then have been available exclusively through Adobe’s Creative Cloud solution, with users paying a monthly subscription fee to access…
Independent software vendors and other companies that distribute third-party software products as part of their proprietary solutions often are predictably good at capturing core business terms in their customer agreements, carefully defining the products and scope of services to be delivered. Unfortunately, far fewer are as reliable about including required, third-party license terms in those…
Businesses deploying software published by Attachmate Corporation should strongly consider making an effort now to review their license-compliance status. Attachmate is a major player in markets for various IT-infrastructure software solutions, and it has demonstrated its willingness to pursue litigation in support of its copyright-enforcement interests. For example, in April 2008, Attachmate pursued and reached…
In many software audits, the auditing entity like the Business Software Alliance or the Software & Information Industry Association requires a dated proof of purchase to demonstrate when a license for a software product was acquired. However, in audits initiated by Autodesk, the serial number can play a crucial role in demonstrating ownership. Autodesk products…
On July 22, 2010, software publisher AccuSoft sued Northrop Grumman Systems in federal court for breach of contract, copyright infringement and trademark infringement related to Northrop’s use of AccuSoft’s ImageGear and ImageTransport software. Northrop allegedly used and integrated AccuSoft’s products in the development of a paperless records information system it developed for the U.S. military….
