Reselling Used Software: What Should You Check?

What should you check before reselling used software?

Whether you are a CIO or an IT Asset Manager, digital transformation today involves optimizing the budget. Especially since the advent of the cloud, nearly 79% of companies admit to wasting a quarter of their spending on obsolete or unused solutions. In the crosshairs of IT decision-makers, the on-premise application portfolio has become a major concern: aging perpetual software licenses or those left aside... whose resale once prohibited by publishers can now be very profitable. Those who have taken advantage of this legal opportunity have hit the jackpot. Beyond optimizing their existing application assets, they have been able to boost their amortization capacity and use the proceeds from the sale for strategic investments. If the financial opportunity is worth it and opens a market that appears as an El Dorado, a resale operation nevertheless requires anticipation and verification of essential details.

The 3 major advantages of reselling used software

Do you want to resell your unused or surplus software licenses on the used market? Here are the 3 main benefits:

1- You stay as close as possible to your needs and reduce waste

35%. This is the average share of companies' IT budget. Not to mention many hidden costs: maintenance, security, updates, integrated options, etc. The bill can then reach several tens or even hundreds of thousands of euros! Reselling used software licenses will allow you to rationalize your software assets and optimize your performance.

2- You increase your cash flow to support your company's transformation with relevance

“Over-licensing,” that is, the surplus of inactive licenses, inevitably generates costs associated with maintenance. When you engage in a used software resale, you are obliged to transfer all rights and obligations related to the license, including the maintenance contract if it is ongoing. An opportunity to reduce software maintenance costs by up to 50%.

3- You generate cash to invest in the cloud

Investments in the cloud have become essential for most companies. 70% of them plan to increase their remote storage services by 2024. SaaS will then represent nearly 39% of the market. Faced with pressure from publishers and users, companies have every interest in switching to a subscription model as quickly as possible. The money recovered from the resale of over-licensed used software will allow them to cushion this transition to as-a-service solutions. And to foster a virtuous cycle.

What are the key points to check before reselling?

“The very strong economic impact of the used market makes it a strategic subject for companies (...) The used license must become a reflex,” notes a large French company in the telecommunications sector.

While it promises numerous benefits, reselling used software is subject to strict eligibility conditions. Anticipate regulatory aspects rigorously.

Reselling used software: the 5 conditions to be eligible

Here are the 5 conditions to engage in the resale of your used licenses.

1- Your licenses must be perpetual and subscriptions are excluded

2- Your licenses initially acquired in bulk must be resold in bulk

3- Your licenses must have been acquired, downloaded, or installed from the outset in a European Union country

4- You must provide proof of full ownership of your licenses (authenticity and traceability documents)

5- You must delete the copy of the software sold by uninstalling it or removing it from your servers and/or computers.

Your checklist for reselling

Softcorner encourages you to use its platform as a monitoring tool to create a wide pipeline of offers and save time. We also commit to guaranteeing the anonymity of negotiations, secure payment, and insurance once the transaction is finalized.

On your side, remember to provide the buyer with the following documents:

proof of purchase: initial acquisition invoice and update invoices explicitly mentioning the resold license

renewal justifications: if the version sold is different from the one mentioned on the title deed, you will need to provide maintenance invoices

the license agreement and any subsequent amendment that may have modified its content