SAP users disrupt conference over support costs

Software maker refuses to budge as spat with user group turns nasty

SAP is accused of implementing a 'one-size-fits-all strategy' for support

SAP's World Tour 2008 event in London last week gave customers another opportunity to voice concerns about the mandatory rise in support costs they will pay from January next year.

The concerns follow the UK SAP User Group's failure to successfully oppose the plan, which will involve major price increases for many customers.

The user group had argued that SAP was implementing "a one-size-fits-all strategy for support", and that many customers would not use the extensive package for which they would be paying nearly 30 per cent more.

The rise in costs "stinks", according to Mark Lowther, ICT director at the Forensic Science Service, a government-owned organisation with 2,000 employees that provides forensic services to the UK police. "A lot is offered in the package that I simply do not need," he added.

Lowther interrupted keynote sessions at the London event, and appealed to SAP managing director Steve Rogers on the issue of the increased costs. But Rogers was quick to silence his concerns, suggesting that they could be addressed later in the day.

SAP intends to use a graduated pricing plan to transition customers on Standard Support contracts or SAP Premium Support over to Enterprise Support, whether they like it or not.

Customers will then have access to a more comprehensive level of support, according to the company, such as guidance on how business processes can be improved and how a service-oriented architecture can be successfully delivered.

When users first caught wind of the expensive support change, the SAP User Group launched a formal complaint to the company.

User group chairman Alan Bowling highlighted the "hugely negative feedback" from SAP customers, and argued that the new support offering had "yet to be fully proven".

But SAP confirmed in July that it would not accommodate the group's concerns, even if it meant customers paying for services they did not need.

Lowther said that the Forensic Science Service had bought all of SAP's applications, apart from the CRM offering.

He warned that the lack of attention SAP had given to customer complaints would cause him to consider other vendors that deliver CRM services. " Salesforce is an interesting option," he said.