The pricing of Java’s new licensing model could drive up costs two to fivefold, warns Gartner. However, there is a back door.

Oracle introduced a new licensing model for Java at the end of January. The monthly subscription price is now calculated based on the number of employees within the organization and no longer based on the number of editors. This can drive up prices significantly, up to five times higher than under the old licensing model, Gartner calculated in a research note.

The analysis agency also sees that Oracle is increasingly pushing companies to adopt a new licensing model. Gartner warns that one in five companies can expect to be audited by Oracle within three years. Those who do not comply with the new license terms risk additional “unbudgeted non-compliance compensation”.

loophole

There are certain ways to escape the new licensing model. Gartner lists a few scenarios for this. A first option is to continue working with an old Java version, which is not desirable for security reasons. The transfer of all Java applications to the OpenJDK open source platform would also go beyond the scope for many organizations.

The most likely scenario, according to Gartner, is that Java users turn to third-party Java products Azul, Amazon Coretto, Eclipse Temurun, and IBM Semuru. Gartner predicts that by 2026, up to eighty percent of all Java applications could be hosted by such a third party and Java workloads that do not incur license costs will continue to run on Oracle’s infrastructure. A final option for businesses is to comply with Oracle’s new terms and conditions.