Newsletter Archive
2026
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
January 2026
- Consulting Independence: A Note from our CEO
- The IBM - Confluent Collision: A NET(net) Survival Guide
- The Quantum Apocalypse Isn't Coming: It's Already Here
- Z17 Shackles: The IBM Mainframe Negotiation Playbook
November 2025
- A Thanksgiving Message from Kellsey Le - CEO
- Fiscal Year End Squeeze from IBM, SAP, Workday, SF and Rackspace
- Microsoft Overhauls AI Agent Foundry - More Consumption Traps
October 2025
- Record Cloud Scale in 2025: Usage Running Wild
- Outsmarting Suppliers at Year End
- The Analyst Illusion: How Big Analyst Firms Keep You Chasing Ghosts
September 2025
Dissecting Workday's New AI Credit Model
Navigating the Wild West of Enterprise AI Spending
Taming the IT Beast: How CFOs and CIOs are Taming Costs in Economic Storms
August 2025
Microsoft's Cynical Pricing Overhaul for Subscription Agreements
Hard Dollar IT Cost Reductions: Battle Tested Strategies
July 2025
A Message from our CEO, Kellsey Le
Salesforce, ServiceNow and Others are Perfecting the Art of Lock-In
The Disruptive Surge in Infrastructure Managed Services
Top 10 Must Have Clauses to Crush Your MSP Negotiatians
June 2025
IBS's Acquisition of Datastax
Mastering OpenAI Deals
Navigating Emerging Tech Suppliers: Quantum, 5G and Spatial
May 2025
Salesforce Acquisition of Informatica
Breaking Free from Contract Lock-In
Navigating the High Cost of Akamai
12 Mistakes to Avoid with New Supplier Relationships
April 2025
Fight Tableau's SaaS Squeeze
Microsoft Calling: SPLA Changes Coming Soon
Dave Young Retires from NET(net)
Broadcom and VMware Guide
March 2025
Time is Now for IT Leaders to Act Boldly in Strategic IT Agreements
European Tech Leaders Mitigating Geopolitical Risk
NET(net) Welcome's New Member of Team
January 2025
SAP Extension of ECC Support to 2033
Breaking the JAVA Monopoly
AI Hype a Menace to IT Leaders
October 2024
Cybersecurity Threats and Ransomware Attacks: A Growing Menace
Workday Sentiment Analysis
Revolution or Obsolescence: Tech Vendors are Redefining Industry
September 2024
SaaS Subscription Squeeze
The Insidious Mask of the IT Channel
Top 5 Ways to Expose Traps and Hidden Costs in IT
August 2024
Five9s Five Alarm Fire
Teradata Surviving on Tyranny and Mysticism
Surviving the Broadcom Takeover of Carbon Black
July 2024
4 Part Series on Current State of Supplier Price Gouging:
Part 1 - Supplier Sneaky Tactics to Jack Up Costs
Part 2 - Money Grab - Newly Invented and Outrageous Fees
Part 3 - Value Grab Report - Scorecards on Value Draining Suppliers
Part 4 - The Worst IT Suppliers of 2024
June 2024
AI Hype - Back to Reality?
NetSuite's Trojan Horse for Mid-Market Customers
How QAD Stacks Up
May 2024
Are Citrix Subscriptions Burning Bridges?
Veeva - Pirating the Seas of Life Sciences
Azure Optimization Challenges
Gen Digital: Potential Competitive Alternative?
April 2024
Market Alert: Oracle Fiscal Year End May 31st
Portfolio Management Software Optimization
Salesforce Shows Hand in Growing Market for Data Integration Needs by Targeting Informatica
HashiCorp - an Open Source Darling or IBM's Next Disaster
March 2024
Top 5 Ways to Slash TIBCO Costs
Internal Developer Portals (IDPs) Market
VMware Infographic - Prepare to Pay More
February 2024
Workday Customer Blues
NET(net) Launches Mobile App
Salesforce in 2024: Innovation Fatigue, Rising Costs, and Your Negotiation Playbook
IBM: Top 5 Strategies to Minimize Your Dependency Without Derailing Your Business
January 2024
Top 5 Concerns and Countermeasures: Broadcom's Acquisition of VMware
Digital Transformation Strategies to Unlock for Prosperity in 2024
Digital Transformation: Procure to Pay with AP Automation
December 2023
The January 10 Infographic
Saving on Mainframe - Part 10 of 10
NET(net)'s Best of 2023 Summary
November 2023
Broadcom Completes its Acquisition of VMware...Now What?
Do You Really Need a Microsoft 'CoPilot'?
Top 10 Ways to Save on Mainframe #9
October 2023
The Technology Sales Cartel
Top 10 Ways to Save on Fortinet
Top 10 Ways to Save on Mainframe - #8
September 2023
How Your PC Refresh Cycle Affects Your Microsoft Licensing Costs (and a better way to look at it)
Cisco Acquisition of Splunk and What It Will Mean for Customers
Top 10 Ways to Save on Mainframe: Part 7 of 10 in Series
HashiCorp Starts Charging for Previously Free Open Source CodeExecutive Moves Roundup: Disney, Omni Resorts, Eversana, Rite Aid, BJ's and more...
August 2023
Top 10 Ways to Save on Mainframe: Part 6 of 10 in Series
Five Ways to Save on Atlassian
Top 5 Ways to Save on Bloomberg
Q3-Q4 Market Update on SAP, Adobe, Oracle and Salesforce
Executive Moves Roundup: News, Moves and Changes in the C-Suite
July 2023
Disrupting Disruptive Behavior
Top 5 Ways to Save on Crowdstrike
Top 5 Ways to Save on Datadog
Oracle on the Hunt for New Money
April 2023
Debunking Microsoft Part 2: Licensing Terms
Top 10 Ways to Save on Mainframe - Part 2: Minimize MIPS!
Oracle's JAVA Pricing and Licensing Changes
Top Ways to Save on Cloud - Part 3: Repatriating Workloads from the Cloud
MAY-JUNE
Top 8 Reasons Cloud Optimization Will Improve Over Time
2023 Forecast: A Little Less Cloudy
Top 5 Ways to Save on ServiceNow, Microsoft and Cisco
Mainframe Cost Optimization Series: Part 4 of 10 Part Series
March 2023
Series: Top 10 Ways to Save on Mainframe
Debunking Microsoft Part 1: FUD Around BYO License to Cloud
Top 5 Workloads Not Well Suited to the Cloud - 3 Part Series
Oracle 3rd Quarter Results and Your Spend Considerations
February 2023
Time to Re-do Your IT Services Contracts
Top 5 Ways to Save on Kyndryl
Top 10 Ways to Save on Mainframe
Price Shock of Cloud Cost Series
SAP Benchmark Calculator
January 2023
2023 Market Disruption
Major IT Suppliers with Fiscal Year End - Time to Act Now
Docusign Analysis
Crowdstrike and Veeva Fiscal Year End
December 2022
Is There a Crack in the Rock That is Workday?
Stop Overpaying for Salesforce
VMware and Broadcom Acquisition
Coupa Acquired
Okta and Anaplan Fiscal Year End
November 2022
Taking the Spin out of Oracle's Growth and What it Really Costs You
Calling all Mid-market Organizations Challenged with Reducing IT Spend, Learn How to Save on IT Like the F500 Do
Oracle Cerner Merger 6 Months Later and NET(net)'s Predictions
October 2022
6 Questions with Microsoft Practice Leader, Scott Braden
Oracle's War in Rimini Street, third Party Support, and What it Means for You
NET(net) Announces Relationship with ASUG = Americas SAP User Group
September 2022
Be Skeptical of IT Suppliers Raising Prices with Inflation Excuses
Healthcare Industry Financial Systems Worsen; But a Cure is Available
What is Your Cloud Migration Readiness?
The RaaP Podcast, Featuring Mike Welsh
August 2022
Qualtrics: SAP's Latest Deal 'Stalking Horse'
NET(net)'s Proprietary SAP Calculator
Europe's Growing Energy Crisis and the Impact to Your Cloud Capacity and Pricing
July 2022
What is a Cloud Cost Audit? How Can it Shield Your Organization from Economic Pressures?
Using IT Savings to Boos Productivity and Mitigate Recession Risks
Your Cyber Security Stack May Become Irrelevant Thanks to Quantum Computing
June 2022
NET(net) in the Private Equity Industry
Six Things You Haven't Done to Optimize Microsoft Costs
State of the HCM Market - Where's the Money Going?
May 2022
IT Cost Reduction: You Don't Need Another Superhero
CEOs: #1 Action You Can Take to Protect Your Organization from the Looming Recession
Don't Let Microsoft Surprise You at Year-End
April 2022
Memo to CFOs: 6 Things IT Didn't Tell You About Microsoft Spend
Is Your Digital Strategy 5G Ready
WIN(win) Client Dashboards
Reduce Cloud Computing Spend
March 2022
Oracle Innovation: Costing Customers More While Getting Less
Netsuite in the Modern Enterprise
Guide to Selecting the Right Microsoft LSP
Top 5 Reasons the IBM Mainframe Empire Will Strike Back
February 2022
4 Part Series on IT Services Suppliers
Oracle Planning and Resources
Breaking! Mainframe is not dead!
January 2022
Insight on FYE deals for Salesforce, Workday, VMware, Splunk, and more
Our Top 5 Technology Research Firms for 2022
Watson: IBM's Healthcare Moonshot Flatlines
December 2021
NET(net)'s Most Read Articles of 2021
NET(net)'s Most Used Vendor Tools for 2021
Oracle Acquires Cerner: Healthcare Customers Are About To Shed Blood
November 2021
Microsoft Still the Audit Leader
Microsoft Evolution from Disruptor to Dominator
CRM and Marketing Platform Opportunities Post-Pandemic
October 2021
Calling All Budget Heroes: Seven Major Suppliers and Strategies for Extracting Year-End Value (SAP, Microsoft, Oracle and more)
5 Q4 Strategies Suppliers Use Against You
12 for '21 Cloud Optimization Series
September 2021
International 2022 Budget Planning: Like a Bad Hangover, Did You Wake Up and Wonder Where Your Money Was Spent?
Negotiating Cloud Infrastructure Agreements
Microsoft Price Increases and Term Changes
August 2021
Cloud Lock-In: A Risk to be Avoided
Is 'Overspend' Culture Impeding Your Transformation Efforts?
12 for '21 Cloud Optimization Tips: Number Eight: Elastic IPs
July 2021
Oracle's Latest Rebate/Credit Scheme That Will Ultimately Cost More
HCM/HRMS: UKG - Kronos and Ultimate Software Merger One Year Later - What You Should Know
Cyber Security: Punching Above Your Weight with MSP/MSSPs
June 2021
Bloomberg: Top 5 Reasons Why the Bloomberg Empire Will Fall
Hidden Costs in Your IT Agreements: Beware the "I" Word
Our Top Cyber Security Firms for 2021
12 for '21 Cloud Savings Tips: #6 and #7
Financial Services Series: How Lemonade is Disrupting the Insurance Industry
May 2021
Microsoft as Your Security Solutions Provider...Do You Really Want That?
eBook Guide to Savings Big with Cloud Cost Optimization
Oracle: A Culture of Fear at Oracle Infrastructure Unit?
12 for '21 Cloud Savings Tips
April 2021
12 for '21 Cloud Tips #3: Demand Management
Top 4 Technology Review Platforms (Out of 100!)
Migrating Oracle Workloads to AWS or Oracle Cloud: Size Matters
Veeva Systems: Key Advice Before Your Next Deal is Signed
Top HCM HRMS Suppliers of 2021 - A Review
March 2021
Can the Bloomberg Ghouls be Stopped?
Top 10 Suppliers to Watch for 2021
TMS (Treasury Management Systems) Landscape and Options
Cloud Optimization Series: 12 for '21
February 2021
AWS Update and 2021 Market Forecast
IBM's Diminishing Role in the Enterprise
Time to Extract Value from VMware
Will SAP's Rise Be Your Downfall?
January 2021
Oracle Audits the World
Microsoft: Opportunity in Chaos
12 for 21 Cloud Optimization Series: Shut it Off
December 2020
Industry Megatrends 2021 eBook
SolarWinds Hack and What You Need to Know
Four Ways to Find Savings and Reduce Opex
November 2020
AWS Outages are a Warning to Plan Ahead
Salesforce 2020: Updated eBook, 'An Inside Look at Salesforce
Free Pricing Benchmark Tools for Salesforce, VMWare, and AWS
October 2020
Microsoft Security and Compliance Driving Consolidation (and cost)
Oracle Sales Silos and How They Can Work Against You
Cloud Resource Center
September 2020
Cloud Benefits: Diminished or Eliminated Without Governance
Cloud Cost Optimization: Moving Mountains with Shovels
Microsoft Alert: SLAs and Outages
NET(net) Case Studies
August 2020
Five Ways Your Cloud Gets Wasted
NET(net) Announces New Board of Advisors Appointment
Multicloud: A Definitive Guide
July 2020
SAP: Time to go Back to School on Licensing Changes
Ways to Terminate Your IT Services Agreement
Beware Cloud Vendor Pricing Calculators
SAP Resources
June 2020
Cisco in Focus: Time for Bold Action
Financial Services: Biggest Risk - Reputation Loss
Cisco Resources
May 2020
Cloud Cost and Related Myths That Can Cost Millions
DaaS - Considering Desktop as a Service?
Beware Supplier Offers During Pandemic
April 2020
Java: Like Being Free, But Oracle Instead
Look That Gift Horse in the Mouth
HCM Customers: Three Warning Signs to Look Out For from Your Provider
Rundown of COVID-19 Content
March 2020
Free Software Offers for Business During Pandemic
Managing IT Spend in a Pandemic
4 Tips to Save with Microsoft
January 2020
Countdown of Oracle's Most Egregious Terms and Conditions: Part I - Audit Clause
Kill the AWS Zombies!
Oracle 2020 Series: Audit Outlook
C-Suite on the Move
February 2020
IBM's Ginny Rometty: Sinking Ship
SOC (Security Operations Center) Outsourcing
NET(net)'s Savings Cloud
November 2019
Countdown of Oracle's Most Egregious Terms and Conditions: Part II - Auto Install
Financial Services: If You Read it in the Newspaper, It's Too Late
Multicloud Series Part III: Application Portability
C-Suite on the Move
October 2019
Oracle's 12 Most Egregious Terms and Conditions Part 3
MultiCloud Series Part II: Pricing and Product Transparency
Supplier Profits and Fiscal Year End Tactics They Use Against You
August 2019
Oracle's 12 Most Egregious Terms and Conditions #5
Cisco Enterprise Agreements: Where's the Beef
Oracle Directors Give Go Ahead for Shareholder Lawsuit
September 2019
Oracle's 12 Most Egregious Terms and Conditions #3
Multicloud Strategy Series: Part I
Funding Innovation by Unlocking Value from Current Spend
July 2019
Oracle's Most Egregious Terms and Conditions #6
Thrive Ultimatum Part II - Disruptive Technologies
How Deutsche Bank Plans to Cut Spending and Modernize Infrastructure
June 2019
Supplier Market Update: Huawei
Oracle's Most Egregious Terms and Conditions: #7
SAP Confusing Licensing re: HANA
April 2019
Oracle Series: 12 Most Egregious Terms, Number 11 and 12
Financial Services: A Journey to World Class IT Outsourcing
VMware Benchmark Tool
May 2019
Executive Announcement for LATAM
Oracle Series: 12 Most Egregious Terms, #9
Microsoft Fiscal Year End
March 2019
Blockchain Supplier Invoicing
Software License Dis-Entanglement in M&As
HCM Software: Breaking Down the Top 5
February 2019
Software Audits: Top 10 Audit Crazy Suppliers 2019
Oracle Getting Sued Again
WIN(win) Updates and Enhancements
January 2019
Digital Transformation for Financial Services: 'Winter is Coming'.
Oracle: So, you think you know SIA? Think again.
Forbes: Top 10 Strategic CIO Priorities for 2019
Thrive Ultimatum 2019: Thrive Ultimatum - The Digital You Must Do
December 2018
NET(net) Year End Resource Guide:
Original 2018 Articles and Whitepapers
Video Series and Benchmarks
November 2018
SAP at Year End: Pitfalls and Opportunities
Salesforce: Stronger (and more expensive) than ever.
Steven Zolman: The Thrive Ultimatum - The Digital You Must Do
October 2018
Thrive Ultimatum Series Part I: The Digital You Must Do
NET(net) Client PRA Health Recognized by AHL Magazine
SAP Indirect Access Charge Legality Questioned in Germany
September 2018
5 Q4 Sales Strategies Suppliers Use Against You
Defending Yourself from an Oracle Audit
Salesforce Dreamforce 2018
August 2018
Microsoft Pricing Alert: Changes that take effect Oct 1, 2018
HCM 'Bewares': What to watch out for in sourcing HCM
ICYMI: NET(net) Named by CIOReview a Top Banking Tech Provider
July 2018
CIOReview Names NET(net) 2018 Most Promising Service Provider
Microsoft Pricing Updates
AWS Escalating Consumption Costs
May 2018
Financial Services: Enemies at the Gate
Whitepaper: Top 10 Ways to Defend Yourself from a Technology Supplier Audit
Hiring a CIO - What Companies Are Really Looking For
June 2018
5 Ways You Lose Technology Deals
Negotiating Cloud Agreements
How CIOs Can Last Longer Than 4.3 Years
April 2018
GDPR Opportunities
Oracle Fiscal Year End - What to do now?
Cloud Revenue Leaders
March 2018
SAP Maintenance and Support for the Zombie Hordes
Oracle Audits Will Get Worse in 2018
CFO Take on How to Make the CIO/CFO Relationship Work
February 2018
Optimizing IT Spend in Banks to Improve Efficiency and Fund Innovation
Can Oracle Compete in the Cloud Wars?
Video Series: Keeping Value in Your IT Investments
January 2018
Financial Services Nightmare: The Mainframe That Ate My P&L
As Predicted on 2017: NET(net) and the Impact of Tax Reform on Offshore Banks
Salesforce 2018: Benchmark Tool
November 2017
Microsoft: 4 Things You Need to Know
Lenta Partners with NET(net)
NET(net) Acquires Orange Procurement Consulting
October 2017
New NET(net) Website Launch
Banking Crisis: Part II Tax Reformation and Offshore Banks
Performance Benchmark Reports
September 2017
Greatest Threats to the Banking Industry: Part I
IT Security Spend: Not Secure
Oracle's Online Terms and Conditions
August 2017
Corporate Offshore Cash: Lessons from Microsoft
SAP Resources
Eurozone Banking Chief - Trouble Ahead?
July 2017
NET(net) 15 YEar Anniversary - Iceland
Infrastructure Spend - Significant Savings Replacing MPLS
Fortune: IBM - More Revenue Decline
June 2017
ITAM SAP Group: Spurious Indirect Claims
Microsoft: Resources
Fortune: Cyber Attack Traced to Software
May 2017
SAP Suing More Clients
Microsoft: Yes, you are paying too much
Fortune: Microsoft Ransomware – A Strategy?
January 2017
“Little Big Blue”, an IBM Article by Manager Magazin’ Quoting Steven Zolman, from NET(net)
Microsoft: What’s Free Today is Fee Tomorrow
Microsoft Product Knowledge Quiz
December 2016
An Open Letter from CEO, Kellsey Le
SAP and Oracle License Transfers: How can you beat free?
Salesforce Resources: Benchmark, Whitepaper, Articles and more..
November 2016
The Salesforce Benchmark: Don’t Procrastinate – Know What You Should Be Paying
In the News: 2016 Election’s Tech Impact
Research: SAP Fiscal Year End, Video: FMI – Federated Market Intelligence That Drives Benchmarking
October 2016
The Art of Successful Supplier Negotiations Part II
In the News: Technology Levels the Vendor Playing Field
Research: Salesforce Whitepaper Updated for 2016, Oracle Case Study
September 2016
The Art of Successful Supplier Negotiations Part 1
In the News: How Will Potential Purchase of Twitter by Disney, Salesforce or Google Change It?
Video Series: Getting Value in IT
August 2016
An Open Letter to CFOs: The First Step is Admitting You Have a Problem
In the News: Workday’s Earnings, Worry for SAP and Oracle
Video Series: The Importance of IT Market Knowledge
July 2016
Oracle Cloud: The King is Dead, Long Live the King
Microsoft Market Alert: Changes to Licensing Terms
In the News: Oracle to Buy Netsuite for $9.3B
Video Series: Importance of Federated Market Intelligence
June 2016
Top Questions to Ask Before You Take the Slow Road to SAP Hana
“Am I Paying Too Much?” Find Our on Oracle and SAP
5 Ways CIOs and IT Leaders Can Do More With Less
Video Series: The Technology Cartel, and Why You Overpay by 30-40%
May 2016
Learn how you can Benchmark Oracle using NET(net)’s newly launched, FMI on Demand™
Premium Content: Oracle Indentured Servitude
Infrastructure’s New World Order
In The News: Can Oracle Customers Play Hardball and Win?
April 2016
Top 5 Suppliers to Take Action With Now for Significant Value and Savings!
Infrastructure: The Market is Disrupting.. Know Your Opportunities and Risks
Market Alert: Salesforce.com ‘Lightening’ Pricing Change – Don’t Get Zapped!
In The News: CIO Reflects on “Trauma” of Oracle Re-licensing Deal
March 2016
Oracle Audit Money Tree – Are You at Risk?
WIN(win) Version 3.0 Released
Whitepaper: Top 10 Ways to Defend Yourself from an Oracle Audit
Microsoft Case Study
Preparing for License Reviews
February 2016
Microsoft SAM Reviews: Incmpentance or Deliberate Business Strategy?
Top 7 Ways You are Overpaying Microsoft
What does NET(net) do, and how do we do it?
Spotlight on the Subject Matter Expert: Michael Welsh
Whitepaper: Facing an Oracle Audit?
January 2016
The State of CRM 2015
Benchmarking Your Salesforce Agreement
IBM CEO: Ginny Rometty, Ouster Imminent
Spotlight on the Subject Matter Expert: Scott Braden
Whitepaper: An Inside Look at Salesforce?
December 2015
Technology Value at Year-End
Supplier Focus: SAP
Thought Leadership: Dell EMC Merger
NET(net) Announcements
Spotlight on the Subject Matter Expert
WIN(win) Supplier Portal
October 2015
Top 10 Audit Crazy Suppliers
Audit Defense Armor
WIN(win) Supplier Portal
Management Announcements
July 2015
7 Ways to Walk the Walk With Disruptive Technology
Salesforce Market Survey
Dexter Siglin, VP of Marketing and Business Development
NET(net)’s New Facebook Page
August 2015
Tame the Microsoft Gorilla, One Google at a Time
Don’t Overpay Microsoft
WIN(win) Platform Updates!
NET(net) Events and Speaking Engagements
June 2015
What’s Your Microsoft Licensing IQ
Punch Above Your Weight and Modernize Your Supply Chain
Our Top 5 BI Trends for 2015 – and Why You Should Care
April 2015
Top 5 Ways Oracle Makes you see Red
Defend Yourself from an Oracle Audit
Build Sustainable Value with Microsoft
Introducing WIN(win) 2.0