At Arx3D we recognise that software usage goes in cycles – a specialised program such as tune3D may see little use for weeks, then suddenly it’s indispensable and everyone needs to use it at once. Alternatively a single user might need one copy on her workstation at the office, another on her PC at home and a third on the laptop she takes when she goes travelling.
Consequently Arx3D operates a novel licensing system. Instead of licensing programs as so many single copies with all the problems that entails, products are licensed by a licence block.
Here’s how it works. A single licence block entitles the user to run the program on a specified number of individual computers. The computers don’t have to be on a network but should belong to a single site. The customer supplies details of the workstations or PCs (the system is flexible enough that a licence block can easily be shared between different types of computers, even home PCs or laptops used in the field!). Arx3D then supplies a licence file that will allow the licensed product to run on all those machines, concurrently if necessary.
The size of the licence block for each product reflects the way the product is used. For example, the seismic tuning and AVO modelling application tune3D is a highly specialised tool. When it’s needed it’s indispensable and everyone wants to use it. But at other stages of a project it may be little used, so the licence block is large, 5 systems. This means a single tune3D licence entitles you to run tune3D on as many as 5 different workstations at a single location.
The seismic file dump utility sfd, on the other hand, is likely to be useful (and much used) at all stages of a seismic project, from verifying initial acquisition data to double-checking final archive tapes. Consequently the licence block is smaller – 2 in fact, meaning a single sfd licence entitles you to run sfd on only 2 different workstations.
This approach to licensing is fairer both to the customer and to Arx3D. On the one hand it allows you to use the products freely whenever they are needed, without the need to buy extra copies at times of peak demand. Plus, licensing is simplified and licence management is easier and more transparent. And from Arx3d’s point of view, of course, fair licensing and attractive discounts for multiple purchases are good for our customers and thus good for our business.
Arx3D operates a bulk discount scheme whereby the unit price is discounted 10% for the first extra licence block and by a further 10% for each subsequent licence block. Thus if the unit price is $1000, the cost of two licences would be $1900 ($1000 + $1000 x 90%), the cost of three licences would be $2700 ($1000 + $900 + $800) and so on.
The following table is based on a first unit price of $1000 (where the “unit” is a licence block, not a single copy):
| No. Licence Blocks | Cost |
|---|---|
| 1 | $1000 |
| 2 | $1900 |
| 3 | $2700 |
| 4 | $3400 |
| 5 | $4000 |
| 6 | $4500 |
| 7 | $4900 |
| 8 | $5200 |
| 9 | $5400 |
| 10 | $5500 |
Note that this implies purchasing 10 licences (at a cost of 5½ times the single licence cost) is equivalent to a corporate licence since further copies would be free.
All Arx3D products come with 90 days free maintenance and support. Beyond the initial warranty period, support, including free upgrades to the latest versions, is offered at a flat rate of 25% of the undiscounted unit price per unit per year.