Acresso Extends Software Usage Monitoring and Reporting Capabilities to Virtually Any Enterprise Application

SCHAUMBURG, IL--(Marketwire - January 6, 2009) - Acresso Software today announced FLEXnet Manager software usage monitoring capabilities have been extended to include enterprise applications and back-office software, such as Oracle databases, giving enterprise IT a far more accurate picture of their organizations' use. Part of the FLEXnet Manager Suite, additional key features include improved reporting through Cognos-based analytics, enabling organizations to make more informed allocation, planning and purchasing decisions. With these powerful tools, FLEXnet Manager users have recognized a savings of upwards of 30% through better management of software license use and also avoided costly audits and unexpected bills by monitoring compliance with vendor agreements.

A recent report from Gartner reinforces the importance of a license optimization solution. "A holistic approach to ITAM that will yield short- and long-term savings, as well as cost avoidance, necessitates a strategy that includes a software usage tool. Enterprises that implement software usage monitoring capabilities will achieve savings of five to twenty-five percent in the first year. After the first full cycle of contract renegotiations, the savings will likely stabilize at two to three percent in subsequent years," notes Patricia Adams in Gartner's report titled "Cost Cutting by Effectively Using Existing Software," published in early 2008.

For example, an IT organization that is spending $10 million in software licenses and maintenance annually could save between $3.6 and $13.4 million over a five-year period by not having to purchase new licenses or renegotiating maintenance to reflect the lower usage count.

However, many companies have yet to manage their application and datacenter spending on actual usage. The 2008 Key Trends in Software Pricing and Licensing study* revealed that enterprise IT organizations report a low level of certainty about the software they are entitled to use -- 45% of enterprises indicated there is some level of license over-use, revealing non-compliance, and 78% indicated there is some level of application under-use, exposing the issue of shelfware. The survey further reported slow progress on behalf of these enterprises to successfully manage and track license usage information.

To view the complete survey results, please visit: www.acresso.com/2008survey.

"As the survey results show, companies are becoming aware of the options to reduce overspending and manage future spending more carefully," said Roger Bottum, senior vice president of marketing for Acresso. "Without a solution like FLEXnet Manager, the effort required to better manage complex entitlements outweighs the benefits -- so many enterprises instead continue to renew inefficient contracts and end up spending much more than they need."

FLEXnet Manager is the only solution to offer the flexibility to monitor, manage, and report on the usage of a broad range of high-value software investments. To date, FLEXnet Manager Suite has monitored license usage for thousands of applications, including SAP and most PLM and EDA applications, across key business segments. In fact, eight of the world's top 10 aerospace and defense providers, half of the top 12 semiconductor manufacturers and half of the world's top ten oil and gas companies use FLEXnet Manager. With 20 years of experience as the makers of FLEXnet -- the licensing technology embedded in 8,000 applications -- Acresso is uniquely capable of providing organizations access to the most complete and meaningful insight into FLEXenabled software usage.

About Acresso Software

Acresso Software provides solutions that power the business of software for multiple customer segments, including hardware and software producers, engineers and developers, helping them uncover revenue opportunities, streamline their infrastructure and reduce costs. The company's proven solutions, including the FLEXnet and InstallShield product lines, have been simplifying the business relationship between software producers and hardware manufacturers and their enterprise and government customers for more than 20 years. Acresso maximizes the value of the software the world develops and uses. For more information, please go to: http://www.acresso.com/.

* The survey was conducted by Acresso with SoftSummit, the Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA), the Centralized Electronic Licensing User Group (CELUG) and Electronic Design and Automation Council (EDAC).

Contact Information: For more information, contact: Acresso Eastwick Communications (650) 480-4040 acresso@eastwick.com