OpSource Squashes Hefty Licensing Fees With Pay-As-You-Go Cloud Software Play

According to OpSource, Cloud Software gives organizations software such as Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft SharePoint and other database and middleware platforms on a pay-per-use basis as opposed to requiring large licensing fees. The software is available on demand and priced hourly or monthly.

OpSource is the wholly-owned cloud and managed hosting business of global systems integrator Dimension Data.

The idea behind OpSource Cloud Software is to enable testing and development without requiring companies to commit to an annual licensing fee, said OpSource Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Keao Caindec. Caindec added that consuming software in an on-demand fashion can dramatically cut costs.

"This remedies the inefficiency of buying a perpetual license," he said. "Perpetual licensing is for companies that want to use software on a server for a long period."

Caindec said OpSource Cloud Software is loaded onto the cloud server as an image that incurs additional charges, and it can be installed as an OS image or it can be part of the OS image itself.

For Software-as-a-Service ISVs and mid-sized businesses, OpSource Cloud Software enables lower cost application testing and development and the ability to launch new application initiatives without higher cost hindrances. It is also ideal for break-fix and for app and Web hosting, Caindec added.

"This is the beginning of a new category," Caindec said, adding that OpSource already offers Cloud Server, Cloud Storage and Cloud Network.

Cloud Software is priced per server or per CPU. Per server pricing incurs a specific rate per hour when a server is running and a specific rate per hour when it is stopped. That rate is the same regardless of the number of CPUs configured on the server. The per CPU model incurs a specific rate per hour per CPU when a server is running and a specific rate per hour per CPU when a server is stopped. In the CPU model, the overall cost varies based on the number of CPUs associated with the server.

While OpSource Cloud Software is kicking off with Microsoft and Oracle support, Caindec said support for software from other vendors will come based on client demand and integration testing. Currently, OpSource Cloud Software available includes Microsoft SQL Server R2 2008 and SharePoint; and Oracle for hybrid environments, including applications like Database, WebLogic Server and Internet Application Server.

"This will become a channel for cloud vendors and for ISVs," he said.