Gartner Research

SAP Customers on Oracle Runtime DBMS: Accelerate Your Licensing Decisions as Prices Continue to Rise

Published: 16 August 2017

ID: G00337452

Analyst(s): Rob Wilkes , Bill Ryan , Roberto Sacco

Summary

SAP and Oracle have extended their reseller agreement through 2025. But, sourcing and vendor management leaders running SAP on the Oracle runtime DBMS have had to absorb another price hike, increasing the urgency for SAP customers to determine their optimal DBMS strategy.

Table Of Contents
  • Impacts

Analysis

  • Oracle Runtime DBMS License Costs for SAP Customers Continue to Increase as Competition Between the Two Providers Intensifies
  • SAP and Oracle Extended Their Reseller Agreement From Year-End 2017 to Year-End 2025

Impacts and Recommendations

  • Oracle runtime DBMS license pricing has increased to 25% of SAV, more than double what it was three years ago, forcing SAP customers on the Oracle runtime DBMS to develop proactive strategies to deal with ongoing cost uncertainty
    • Option 1: Do nothing and risk paying significantly higher prices on new Oracle runtime DBMS purchases
    • Option 2: Migrate to S/4HANA or to BSoH as an interim step
    • Option 3: Prebuy SAP licenses with embedded Oracle runtime DBMSs before SAP announces further price increases
    • Option 4: Buy DBMS licenses directly from Oracle, rather than through SAP
    • Option 5: Migrate to alternative DBMS providers (including SAP)
    • Complementary Option 6: Consider third-party support for SAP and Oracle licenses
  • SAP customers now have more time to determine their DBMS strategy, but Oracle will be targeting them with incentives, persuading them to consider alternative licensing scenarios
    • Plan to engage with Oracle to explore alternative options, but carefully, to avoid a costly mistake
    • The decision to buy licenses directly from Oracle must be evaluated in the context of its long-term cost and impact on licensing, not any short-term avoidance of increased licensing costs

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