Here’s what I’ve learned after being in the Oracle food-chain for 15 years and advising 100s of clients on Oracle software licensing: license what you need, when you need it, when Oracle is ready to negotiate.
Said differently, it’s hard to out-Oracle Oracle. The reality is that large vendors such as Oracle employ highly-paid smart people to mitigate risk and maximize earnings. The temptation to buy more, buy forward, etc., is based on the potentially irrational belief that there is such a thing as a once-in-a-lifetime deal.
This is, of course, a wild simplification of concepts within architecture and design, software asset management and vendor negotiation, but it’s worth keeping in mind as a general principle.
On that note, Happy Thanksgiving!
