BECTA to review Microsoft edusoftware licensing
Becta (British Educational Communications and Technology Agency), the Government’s agency leading the development and implementation of the Department for Education and Skills e-Strategy has today (6 January 2006) announced it is to undertake a value for money review of Microsoft’s educational licensing programmes and their impact in the UK.
The review will include the range, scope and cost of academic licensing models available, covering the degree to which they meet the needs of UK schools and colleges and represent value for money.
The review will pay particular attention to Microsoft’s subscription licensing models and the risks associated with non-perpetual licences. It will examine the total costs of exiting those licence agreements and the corresponding risks of ‘lock-in’. If risks are found, the report will seek to identify mechanisms whereby schools and colleges could mitigate those risks and protect their investment.
More at The Register, Silicon.com and The National Grid for Learning.