Symantec Revamps Software Licensing Program

The program has two volume discount options: Value and Elite.

The Value program is a single-purchase plan geared toward SMBs that operate in one country, said Allyson Seelinger, vice president of channel sales at Symantec, in a CRN exclusive interview. It offers incentives for small orders, such as 10 desktop licenses, and allows companies to mix and match product purchases to earn larger discounts, Seelinger said.

The Elite program is generally intended for larger companies and those that operate globally, Seelinger said. It provides two purchase options: Commit and Forecast. Customers can either buy products up front or minimize their initial capital outlay by making a 25 percent up-front purchase based on a two-year forecast of their product needs, she said.

The options under the Elite program "help customers buy the way they want to buy, according to their budget cycles," Seelinger said. A channel partner handling an account that chooses to buy under the Elite program would likely play a key role in tracking licensing needs under the Forecast option, she said.

Symantec, based here, retooled its licensing program because its product portfolio has grown dramatically over the past 18 months, Seelinger said. The bulk of that growth came from the company's purchase of Axent Technologies in 2000.

Symantec is making the right changes, said Chris Ellerman, vice president of professional services at Meridian IT Solutions, Schaumburg, Ill.

"It's a continued integration of the legacy Axent products into the overall Symantec program," he said. "Partners and Symantec reps can treat products from the two companies in the same fashion."