(Last Modified on December 29, 2010)

The University System Office receives requests for the addition of third party software packages into the suite of centrally supported software. Central support is made practical when the software is utilized by a significant number of the 32 centrally supported sites. This generally results in costs lower than the cost of each institution providing their own support.

Institutions may individually procure third party software packages as long as the proper notifications and approvals are received, as noted in Section 13.1 of this manual. Specifically, any third party product that interfaces with USG supported software, regardless of cost, requires prior approval of the Vice Chancellor for Fiscal Affairs and the Vice Chancellor and Chief Information Officer.

Additionally, such software may be interfaced with centrally supported systems only if:

1. The design and specifications of the interface are submitted to and approved by Information Technology Services (ITS); and,
2. The development of the interface is accomplished by the institution or the third party vendor. Neither the USO nor ITS will develop interfaces for third party software in this situation.

A group of institutions may request that ITS assist in selecting and negotiating with a vendor the best site license for a third party software package. If at least 50% of the centrally supported institutions participate in the purchase, they may request that ITS provide central support for the package. The participating institutions will share the costs of purchasing and supporting the third party software package.

In this situation, interface(s) between the third party software and centrally supported systems may be developed by ITS if such an interface is deemed practical and institutions support the cost of development. The software support agreement between the ITS and the participating institutions must document the circumstances that may cause the termination of central support; e.g., withdrawal of participating institutions, termination of support from the vendor, etc.