The Pros And Cons Of Licensing Subscription-Based Software Through A Managed IT Provider

One of the big advantages of using managed IT services is the opportunity to license software through your provider. Especially for small businesses that use widely-adopted software, there can be an advantage in working with a managed IT company to license software. It's important, however, to understand the pros and cons, so let's take a look at them.

Pro: Reduced Initial Costs

The managed IT services firm pays for bulk licensing from the software's owner, and they usually can get a reduced price. Most systems of this sort are set up with monthly fees, and these are much cheaper than forking over money for several expensive licenses. For example, you might pay tens of thousands of dollars to get several single-seat licenses for a major piece of software like Adobe Premiere. With a bulk setup, the cost might be less than a hundred dollars a month for the same number of licenses.

Con: Continuing Costs

Especially if you have a system that you don't need to see changed, the continuing costs can be an imposition. If you're sure you'll never need an upgrade, such as for the software that handles print jobs, it might be better in the long run to pay the more expensive price upfront.

Pro: Regular Updates

In a subscription-based model, you can expect to get the freshest updates all of the time. This includes upgrades to newer versions. Rather than getting left behind with software that could be years out of date and vulnerable to hacking, everything will always be recently patched and running the newest code with the best new features.

Con: The Software Isn't an Asset

Once your agreement ends with the managed IT firm, you'll lose the right to use the software. Likewise, if the software is sent through the end-of-life process by the company that created it, there's nothing you can do to keep running it if you can't lay your hands on a physical copy.

Pro: Diverse Options

Most managed IT services providers offer many major pieces of software. If you need to run Microsoft Word, Excel, and Power BI, for example, you'll have an easy time getting all the software you need up and running. You might also need to add on a couple of licenses for Adobe Photoshop so your graphics department can do their work. The diversity of available options can make a big difference for a small business that can't always invest in setting up 10 separate software packages at once.