OpSource, Inc., Dimension Data’s wholly-owned enterprise cloud and managed hosting business, today announced OpSource Cloud Software, a commercial software solution that enables organizations to consume enterprise products such as Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft SharePoint and leading database and middleware platforms on a pay-for-use basis. Available on demand and priced hourly and monthly, OpSource Cloud Software has been tested by OpSource and is enterprise-ready, making it ideal for testing and development as well as production environments. Because this new offering enables organizations to more efficiently consume software, companies are able to realize a level of cost savings previously only attained with cloud-based infrastructure services.

“To date, organizations that want to take advantage of the productivity gains and cost reductions associated with cloud-based services have only benefited from half of the equation,” said Treb Ryan, CEO of OpSource. “Cloud computing infrastructure as a service has made a big impact on reducing IT expense, but the full savings cannot be realized as long as companies are still paying full licensing fees for temporary workloads. With Cloud Software, businesses can consume software the same way they consumer infrastructure – conveniently while paying for only what is needed.”

Cloud Software is ideal for SaaS ISVs and mid-sized businesses that want to reduce software licensing costs for temporary application testing and development as well as launching new application initiatives. Available in two different pricing models, Cloud Software is enterprise-ready, offering organizations the security, flexibility and proven support typically associated with OpSource’s cloud-based offerings.

OpSource’s Cloud Software is available for popular commercial software including, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2, Microsoft SharePoint 2010 and leading enterprise database and middleware platforms. OpSource is able to support monthly and hourly pricing models to accommodate software that is priced per server or per CPU:

* Per Server priced Cloud Software incurs a specific rate per hour when a server is running and a specific rate per hour when a server is stopped. This hourly rate is the same regardless of the number of CPUs configured on the server.

* Per CPU priced Cloud Software incurs a specific rate per hour per CPU when a server is running and a specific rate per hour per CPU when a server is stopped. In this case, the overall rate varies based on the number of CPU associated with the server

“OpSource continuing to innovate in Cloud offerings,” said Charlie Burns, vice president, Saugatuck, an IT research and advisory firm specializing in SaaS and cloud infrastructure. “The reality is that not all commercial software is available with ‘on-demand’ licensing and pricing. Conventional software licensing fees can easily exceed the cost of Cloud computing resources. OpSource has recognized this and is striving to better align the economics of software licensing and Cloud infrastructure.”OpSource will continue to add Cloud Software from other vendors based on client demand and successful integration testing.