Telecom IT: Software Roadmap & Vendor Negotiation

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Future-Proof
Telecommunications IT:
Navigating Enterprise Software
Roadmap Complexities
2024
Telecommunications
Edition

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Table of Contents
Introduction 3
The software support renewal trap (and how to avoid it) 4
Do you really need that software upgrade? 6
Audits: The vendor money machine 8
Infosec beyond patching: What vendors don’t want you to know 10
Take back control of your software estate 12
About Origina 13
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Telecommunication companies became
the unsung heroes of the 2020 pandemic
by making quick decisions that kept
us connected as the brunt of global
communications went virtual. Incumbents
were able to withstand unprecedented
surges in data usage and even make
considerable gains by accelerating pre-
pandemic digital transformation plans,
often speeding up implementation
schedules from years to months.
As those stressful months proved,
businesses modernize best when
their current technological strengths
form the foundation for ongoing digital
transformation plans.
Because of this, telecom IT leaders have
begun reconsidering the maintenance
and support agreements they have signed
with the large vendors providing their
software, a move that frees businesses
to make their current software a part of
long-term technology planning and saves
millions that can be reinvested into further
innovation.
Unfortunately, software megavendors
serving the telecom industry have
a financial interest in holding on to
customers, and the tactics they deploy
can keep telecoms overspending and
overcommitted.
This e-book explores challenges the
telecommunications industry faces
in navigating vendor relationships
and outlines proven strategies to
simultaneously kickstart innovation and
decrease software spend. It also exposes
the less-than-friendly business practices
companies face when negotiating
renewals with OEM software vendors
and offers expert guidance on how to
counteract them.
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Introduction
1“A blueprint for telecom’s critical reinvention.” Zakir Gaibi et. al, McKinsey and Company, April 2021.

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According to Gartner, businesses spend 90%
of their IT budgets keeping the lights on,
leaving only 10% for digital transformation.
If the customer chooses not to purchase
new software or doesn’t want to leap into a
new licensing model, stand-alone support
renewal costs can come with steep increases
– provided the vendor selling the software
makes support options available, which is not
always the case.
In the short term, agreeing to an unnecessary
software bundle or surrendering perpetual
licenses might look like the best choice,
compared to vastly overpaying for the same
support levels or losing access to support
altogether. But this same combination of
factors can sideline long-term technology
plans by forcing companies to pile on
purchases, recurring payments, and version
upgrades they don’t need just to keep using
the software they rely on.
In other circumstances, large vendors like
VMware have simply stopped offering
support renewals for perpetually licensed,
on-premises software, telling customers they
must surrender their perpetual licenses for
subscription-based alternatives if they wish to
keep the products supported.
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The software support renewal trap
(and how to avoid it)
2 “IT Key Metrics Data 2024: Overview,” Gartner, December 2023.
To keep customers locked in,
software vendors like IBM offer
bundled deals that include lower
support costs if customers make
new software purchases at the
same time. These bundled services
and products typically come
with multiyear enterprise license
agreements (ELAs).

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OEM software maintenance is not the only option,
or even the best one, for most telecommunication
industry use cases. Independent software
maintenance vendors offer flexible contract terms
and support fees that cost up to 50% less than
IBM® Software Subscription and Support (S&S)
renewals, or SnS, in the case of VMware.
As you plan your ongoing IT strategy, talking to
an independent software maintenance expert can
save your roadmap from years of unnecessary
purchases and free up funds that can be reinvested
into innovations that work alongside the new
technologies you integrate.
Support and maintain your
investments without vendor
interference
“[Third-party software support]
provides specialized services
to support customized code,
modifications and unique product-
specific requirements as well as oer,
in some instances, improved SLAs.”
— Gartner’s “Market Guide for Independent
Third-Party Software Support for Megavendors”
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