Software Maintenance allows you to keep your software up-to-date by providing access to, and the right deploy, the latest Program versions or releases and it helps you ensure that your users are kept up and running by providing your IS support personnel access to remote technical software support features such as electronic and voice support.
"Software Maintenance is the most cost effective way to protect your software investment and gain the greatest value from IBM technology solutions." Jospeph Rodriguez - President
Software Maintenance
Software Maintenance (upgrade protection and Technical Support) is included with each IBM distributed software license (including WebSphere, DB2 Information Management, Lotus and Tivoli software) sold through the Passport Advantage and Passport Advantage Express programs. Each license includes 12 full months of coverage and entitles you to access the latest versions and releases of software and technical support for your IT Staff.
- STRATEGY 7 Extends IBM Passport Advantage Benefits
- Includes a full twelve months of software maintenance with each license.
- Provides comprehensive and flexible upgrade coverage.
- Protects technology investments.
- Simplifies and improves software asset management.
- Reduces acquisition and administration costs.
- Streamlines budgeting for software upgrade and migration costs.
- Provides immediate support coverage on newly acquired products during installation phase and for life cycle of product.
- Incorporates flexible, easy-to-access, responsive, cross-platform customer support from IBM, worldwide.
- Provides access to IBM software technical support for all of a customer's designated IT staff.
- Simplifies acquisition and renewal of cross-platform customer support.
- Enhances overall expected response time of two hours or less during normal business hours.
- Provides 24x7 access to support resources for business-critical outages.
- Increases self help via the Internet.
- STRATEGY 7 Exclusive Advantage for IBM Passport Customers
- Included with all license acquisitions
- Provides authorization to use all new product releases
- Provides authorization to use all new product versions
- Access to Passport Advantage Software Maintenance download page for immediate product updates as soon as they are available
- Periodic media delivery of new releases/versions
- Access to IBM software technical support by anyone within customer's IT organization (not end users)
- Customer specifies an individual at each Site to manage access authorization to IBM voice support
- Web-accessible registration database to enable IT technical staff to be authorized by the customer for each Site (self-service)
- STRATEGY 7 Passport Advantage Recommendations
Each license acquired under Passport Advantage and Passport Advantage Express includes 12 full months of Software Maintenance. Thereafter it is renewable at your anniversary date in the Passport Advantage program. In the Passport Advantage Express program, each transaction has its own anniversary date that occurs 12 full months after purchase.
We strongly recommend that customers continuously renew their Software Maintenance coverage because it will provide them with unbroken access to all new releases and versions of their covered IBM software, as well as to IBM's technical support staff, databases, and other resources. The cost of renewing Software Maintenance after it has lapsed is greater than keeping current.
Customers will be notified of any pending Software Maintenance renewals approximately 75 days before the Anniversary date and a quote will be sent to them. Software Maintenance renewals can then be purchased either directly from IBM or through the customer's preferred IBM reseller. Customers also have a choice in how to place their renewal order - it can either be placed the "traditional" way, or can be reviewed and reconciled through the Passport Advantage Online's Maintenance Renewal tool and then ordered directly from IBM or be forwarded to the customer's reseller for fulfillment. Note: This facility may not be currently available in all countries.
The renewal order must be placed by the customer and received by IBM before the Anniversary date. This will ensure that Software Maintenance coverage is not interrupted, and the customer avoids the additional costs of having to buy "Software Maintenance Reinstatement," a requirement if Software Maintenance coverage lapses and needs to be re-established.
IBM Passport Advantage Software Maintenance
Passport Advantage includes a maintenance feature that complements your IBM software purchases. It includes both product upgrades and technical support, and fosters successful software deployments. With product upgrades, you get complete upgrade and cross-platform migration coverage for most commercially available IBM distributed software—Lotus, WebSphere, Tivoli, DB2 Information Management, and Rational Software.
You can upgrade to new releases and new versions as the needs of your business dictate. Technical Support helps keep your users up and running wherever they're working in the world. This is our way of making sure you're covered with the tech support you need. This is your way of getting an increased return on your IBM investment of a total software solution.
