Software licenses: they pounce on the opportunity – Les Echos Business

Until 2012, prior to the authorized sale of used software decision of a Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), companies, and individuals, must acquire a license for the use of software, but once they did need, they could not sell it. Suddenly, a whole software suites sometimes left abandoned on their servers. With the authorization of the sale of used software, companies have been able to separate from software they had no use. This is also a new market that opened: online platforms kinds of Le Bon Coin Software, have emerged to put in relation sellers and buyers of used softwares. Their names: Softcorner, UsedSoft or Soft & amp; Cloud.

25% of unused licenses in companies

“Today, about 25% of licenses are not used in business. With European inflection of 2012, you can buy and resell the software as one does with a car, “says Xavier Bown, marketing director of SoftCorner, first French company to have launched on the used software market . A market which today represents about 15 billion euros.

Faced with this new market, software companies do not all have the same reaction. “If it is a monopoly, the publisher will be afraid of cannibalisation. However, if the challenger, he will see the opportunity to expand its customer base, as users will be attracted by low prices, “says Xavier Brown. Especially in France, the landscape of software companies is sparse: there are 4,000 to 5,000 businesses in the area, facing the international giants like Microsoft, Oracle or IBM. Best-sellers of used software is still to be sought in the Microsoft Office software package or as a result of the most famous publishers.

“I happen to have 1,500 business people who wish to renew their Microsoft Software Park. I do not mind them not have the latest version or older: they seek the lowest price, “ says Jean-François Esperet, manager of FirstWan, a company specializing in telecoms and selling Used software. If Germany already seen some of its administrations to equip themselves with software used, due to the presence of an older second hand market, France is not left since, according to Jean-François Esperet, more and more companies convert to it, small SMEs to listed company

A hazard. cloud

While it France represents only 8-12% of the market, a new kid begins to worry the companies that have used the software bet from 2012. Its name: the cloud , which is getting stronger in software vendors. Indeed, who said physical disappearance of disappearance also says software licenses, for a shift to a subscription system to the card. “For us, the concept of used software is meaningless. Except for software that is no longer on the market, “said Guillaume Roques, EMEA marketing director at Salesforce. But if the spread of cloud weighs like a sword of Damocles over the leaders of the used software market, it only remains to them to develop their business plan, says Guillaume Roques: “Some players already offer cloud to auction some of their unused spaces. Those who bet on the used software could be inspired. ”