Organisations using Java face a licence fee hike after Oracle’s introduction of subscription pricing for Java SE.

Analyst Forrester has previously written that the move to what Oracle calls the Java SE Universal Subscription promises to eliminate the burden of tracking installations. However, as Forrester points out, the cost may be steep.

“You’ll need to identify all Java installations and, if possible, the associated agreement. You’ll want to be sure to enforce oversight on new Java installations. Now, as much as or possibly more than ever, pay attention and maintain good Oracle software asset management practices. Doing so could save you from a big unbudgeted licensing fee surprise,” the analyst firm said.

IT departments need to use IT asset management tools to check that the Java software running in their organisations is licensed correctly.

In 2023, Gartner reported that in the 12-month period leading up to 31 December 2022, 52% of the Oracle software compliance and audit-related interactions focused on Oracle Java. This is an ongoing concern because Java is almost 30 years old and is embedded in applications across enterprise IT.

Are you aware of Microsoft’s latest licensing changes? Microsoft is undergoing a series of licensing changes aimed at improving partner engagement and customer experience, with added AI advancements. Here’s what you need to know to ensure you’re managing costs, staying compliant, and aligning with your business strategy.

It is said that the only constant is change, which is abundantly clear with the licensing of Oracle Java. Since 2018, with the introduction of a new OpenJDK release cadence and specific long-term support (LTS) versions, we’ve seen four significant modifications to both the license conditions and pricing which have had an impact on enterprises using Java within their organizations.

Initially, we saw the introduction of the Oracle Technology Network License Agreement (OTNLA). Prior to this, everyone had considered the Java platform to be free, including maintenance in the form of regular updates. (Technically, the field of use restriction meant you would need to pay a license fee if you used Java for embedded or single-use applications.)

The OTNLA is much more restrictive. Unless you are using the Oracle JDK for personal use (like playing Minecraft), development, testing, Oracle-approved applications, or in the Oracle Cloud, you will need to pay to buy a Java SE Subscription. The OTNLA applied to Oracle JDK 8 update 211 and later, as well as Oracle JDK 11.

When the next LTS version of Java, JDK 17, was released in September 2021, Oracle introduced another significant revision to their license policy—the No Fee Terms and Conditions (NFTC). On the surface, this appeared less restrictive and states that you can use the Oracle JDK:

Broadcom has made a lot of changes to VMware since closing its acquisition of the company in November – and now, VMware has admitted that these changes are worrying customers. With customers mulling alternatives and partners complaining, VMware is trying to do damage control and convince people that change is good.

Not surprisingly, the plea comes from a VMware marketing executive: Prashanth Shenoy, VP of product and technical marketing for the Cloud, Infrastructure, Platforms, and Solutions group at VMware. In Wednesday’s announcement, Shenoy admitted that VMware “has been all about change” since being swooped up for $61 billion. This has resulted in “many questions and concerns” as customers “evaluate how to maximize value from” VMware products.

Among these changes is VMware ending perpetual license sales in favor of a subscription-based business model. VMware had a history of relying on perpetual licensing; VMware called the model its “most renowned” a year ago.

Shenoy’s blog sought to provide reasoning for the change, with the executive writing that “all major enterprise software providers are on [subscription models] today.”

However, the idea that ‘”everyone’s doing it” has done little to ameliorate impacted customers who prefer paying for something once and owning it indefinitely (while paying for associated support costs). Customers are also dealing with budget concerns with already paid-for licenses set to lose support and the only alternative being a monthly fee.

Shenoy’s blog, though, focused on license portability. “This means you will be able to deploy on-premises and then take your subscription at any time to a supported Hyperscaler or VMware Cloud Services Provider environment as desired. You retain your license subscription as you move,” Shenoy wrote, noting new Google Cloud VMware Engine license portability support for VMware Cloud Foundation.

Further, Shenoy claimed the discontinuation of VMware products so that Broadcom could focus on VMware Cloud Foundation and vSphere Foundation would be beneficial, because “offering a few offerings that are lower in price on the high end and are packed with more value for the same or less cost on the lower end makes business sense for customers, partners, and VMware.”

This week, Broadcom axed the free version of vSphere Hypervisor, ESXi. The offering was useful for enthusiasts “who wanted to run multipurpose home servers or to split a system’s time between Windows and one or more Linux distributions without the headaches of dual booting” or who wanted to familiarize themselves with vSphere Hypervisor without having to pay for licensing. The removal of ESXi could contribute to an eventual VMware skills gap, ServeTheHome suggested.