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Research published earlier this week by FAST Corporate Services and asset discovery vendor, Centennial Software, identifies software licensing as the number one issue for organizations in 2005. This indicates a move away from security as the traditional top priority in recent years.

Twenty-nine percent of respondents cited software licensing as the most important IT issue faced by their organization, compared with 27 percent for risk management/business continuity and 18 percent for IT security.

Centennial Software chief executive, Andy Burton, wasn't surprised by the results: "The need to take control of software assets is more compelling than ever," he said. "Whether it's fines for non-compliance, over-spending on unnecessary applications or badly-negotiated support deals, the financial and business risks of not having 100 percent visibility of your software can have a dramatic impact on the bottom line."

Fifty-three percent of respondents said they believed that a proactive IT Asset Management strategy delivered 'improved business performance', with 50 percent citing the number one financial benefit as being the reduction in spend on new licenses and support renewals.

The research highlighted a need for a greater focus on bottom-line savings among IT managers. Eighty-seven per cent of those questioned were confident that taking stock of their IT assets had reduced costs, but only 20 percent were able to quantify this saving. Fifteen percent of these respondents made a saving of up to 20 percent, with five percent making a saving of up to 35 percent.

Respondents also recognized that improved IT asset management generated a number of less quantifiable but equally important business benefits such as improved peace of mind (50 per cent) and greater staff productivity (30 per cent).

Survey Methodology

This survey, conducted jointly by Centennial Software and FAST Corporate Services was completed by delegates to the FAST 2004 Annual Conferences held in Birmingham, Reading and Manchester. Respondents included a wide range of IT professionals from 'C'-level executives to network, security and audit managers.

About FAST Corporate Services

FAST Corporate Services (FCS) provides an education program to the corporate end-user on how to achieve excellence in software management. It assists organizations to identify and eliminate risks relating to software management, helping them to get the most from IT assets, set up purchasing and installation procedures, and educate staff. FCS' Standard for Software Compliance is widely recognized as the 'mark of excellence' in the software management arena and it currently has 3,000 members. For more information visit www.fastcorporateservices.com.

About Centennial Software

Centennial Software (www.centennial-software.com) is the fastest growing dedicated developer of network discovery and IT asset tracking software. The company's flagship product, Centennial DiscoveryR, powers the solutions of OEMs across the globe and is an ideal solution for IT professionals that need to quickly and easily ensure software licensing compliance, mitigate network security risks, improve helpdesk efficiency and optimize IT network assets. Working closely with its OEM and reseller partners, Centennial Software has already sold more than 4 million licenses of its software to blue-chip organizations around the world. The company maintains sales offices in the USA, UK and Australia, and has an extensive partner network to ensure its solutions are sold and supported in all major markets worldwide.