The document discusses the challenges of licensing for different types of users in higher education. It notes that licensing has become increasingly complex with more diverse user types like students, staff, affiliates, and alumni. There are issues with insufficient distinction between user types and constant change. The document proposes simplifying licensing by focusing on usage rather than user types, allowing usage for research or education by partners. This could remove complexity through a simpler license not defining specific user categories and treating it similarly to commercial software licensing.

1. www.eduserv.org.uk
Licensing – the Teenage Years – Muddled,
Mucky and Misunderstood
Martyn Jansen, Contracts & Legal Manager
JIBS 2nd April 2014

6. IT Solutions
UK Access Management Federation
Scoped Affiliation Values
defined value notes
student undergraduate or postgraduate
staff uk term for all staff
faculty us term to distinguish teaching staff
employee other staff/faculty (eg contractor)
member comprises all the above
affiliate relationship short of full member
alum alumnus (graduate)
library-walk-in general library privileges

7. Aston University
– transforming online information access
Issues
• 9,500 students
• licensed access increasingly complex
• more diverse types of users
• students and staff spending more time working off campus
• the University expanding its international partnerships
Results
• vastly improved library services to students and staff
• user queries and complaints cut by up to 70%
• cuts time to access resources to seconds compared to minutes or
even not at all
• reduces time library staff spend fire fighting minor problems
• enables international partnerships, multiple user types are easy to
set up and manage

8. Licensing challenges – Other Authorised Users
• many different types
• insufficient distinction
• constant change
• lack of consistency
• no publisher consensus
• attempts to aggregate limited success

9. Licensing possibilities
• focus on number of users not type
• focus on usage not users
 no resell
 no sublicensing
 use for research or educational purposes
only, applies to partners

10. Licensing possibilities
• much simpler licence
• no definition/categorisation of different user
types
• similar to commercial software licensing

11. 2 Grant of Licence
2.1 Upon receipt of the Licensee’s purchase order(s) for the
Software and Service, the Licensor grants the Licensee a non-
exclusive, non-transferrable licence to load, install and use the
Software for the Licensee’s own internal business purposes for
an open-ended term, subject to the terms and conditions of this
Agreement and the Licensee hereby accepts such licence.
2.2 This licence is granted for unlimited instances on a single
server…

12. Licensing consequences
• remove granularity
• HE/FE community: payment by user volume
• publishers: confident of incremental revenue

13. complex problems require
complex solutions
thank-you
martyn.jansen@eduserv.org.uk