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SAP BTP Licensing Models: Pay-as-You-Go, Subscription, and CPEA Explained

SAP BTP Licensing Models

SAP BTP Services Licensing Models: Pay‑as‑You‑Go vs Subscription vs CPEA

SAP’s Business Technology Platform (BTP) offers three distinct licensing models – Pay-As-You-Go, Subscription, and the CPEA credit-based consumption model. Each model strikes a unique balance between cost, commitment, and flexibility.

CIOs and CTOs must evaluate their organization’s usage patterns and strategic needs to choose the optimal model.

In this advisory, we explain each option, compare their financial implications, and provide guidance on selecting and negotiating the right SAP BTP licensing model for your enterprise.

SAP BTP Licensing Options

SAP BTP is a cloud platform with 90+ services for application development, integration, data management, and more.

To accommodate varying customer needs, SAP provides multiple commercial models for BTP services.

These models fall into two broad categories – subscription-based (fixed upfront contracts) and consumption-based (pay-per-use) licensing.

In practice, you have three options to access SAP BTP services:

  • Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) – A zero-commitment, purely consumption-based model where you pay only for what you use each month, at standard list prices.
  • Consumption-based Credits (CPEA) – The Cloud Platform Enterprise Agreement is a credit pre-purchase model (commit-to-consume). You commit an upfront spend for credits (typically annually) and draw down those credits as you activate and use BTP services.
  • Subscription – A traditional software-as-a-service subscription for specific BTP services or packages. You pay a fixed fee (usually annual) for a defined capacity or usage tier of a given service over a 1– to 3–year term.

Each model has pros and cons.

Before diving deeper, note that SAP allows a hybrid approach in many cases: an enterprise might run a BTP global account on a consumption model (PayG or CPEA) while still having certain high-use services on separate subscriptions.

This mix-and-match flexibility can optimize costs if used wisely.

Read Negotiating BTP in Your SAP Deal: Securing Free or Discounted Credits with S/4HANA.

Pay‑As‑You‑Go Model: Flexibility at a Premium

Pay-As-You-Go for SAP BTP provides maximum flexibility with no upfront cost or commitment.

You simply activate BTP services and get billed monthly in arrears for actual usage.

Key characteristics of PAYG include:

  • No Minimum Spend: You can start using BTP with $0 commitment. If a month goes by with no usage, you pay nothing. This drastically lowers the barrier to entry and is ideal for proof-of-concept projects, trials, or sporadic needs.
  • Full Service Access: A PayG BTP account gives access to the same broad catalog of ~85–90 services (including any free-tier plans) that a CPEA account would. You can experiment with various services without separate contracts.
  • Standard Pricing (No Discounts): Usage is charged at SAP’s list price for each service unit. There are no volume discounts or preferential rates in PAYG. SAP effectively charges a premium for on-demand convenience, similar to cloud providers’ on-demand vs reserved pricing. This means the per-unit cost is higher than under a committed enterprise agreement.
  • Monthly Billing & Simplicity: Bills are calculated monthly based on consumption (e.g., GB of database, number of integration messages, runtime hours). Contracts usually auto-renew for short periods (e.g., month-to-month or quarterly), and you can terminate PayG easily if needed.
  • Upgrade Path: As your BTP usage grows, SAP allows you to convert a Pay-As-You-Go account into a CPEA (or newer BTP Enterprise Agreement) contract later. Many organizations start with PayG to “dip a toe in the water” and then transition to a committed model once usage becomes significant and predictable.

When to use Pay-As-You-Go: This model shines for small-scale and unpredictable workloads. If you are building a pilot application or testing a new service, PayG ensures you only pay for what you consume, avoiding any upfront expenditure.

It also works well for organizations that want to evaluate BTP services in production gradually without a long-term commitment.

Drawbacks: The trade-off is the cost at scale. Per-unit pricing in PayG can be 10–30% higher than negotiated rates in enterprise agreements.

Over time, a heavy workload can accumulate substantial expenses. There’s also no cost predictability beyond month-to-month usage, which can make budgeting difficult for larger projects.

In short, PayG is low risk to start, but it can potentially be high cost if usage increases significantly.

Most enterprises should treat PayG as a stepping stone – great for initial agility, but plan to move to a committed model if BTP becomes core to your business.

CPEA Consumption Credits: Commitment with Flexibility

Under the Cloud Platform Enterprise Agreement (CPEA) model, you purchase a pool of cloud credits upfront – think of it as loading money onto a prepaid card specifically for BTP services.

You then draw down those credits as you use services over time.

This is a commit-to-consume model, offering volume discounts and broad flexibility in service usage.

Key features of CPEA:

  • Upfront Cloud Credit Purchase: You commit to spending a certain amount (e.g., $ 100,000 per year) on BTP. SAP converts this into cloud credits (often one credit = $1 at the list price, although the conversion can vary). Minimum commitments are typically in the low five figures annually (SAP has set entry points around $10,000–€ 10,000 per year in recent years for BTP Enterprise Agreement contracts).
  • Universal Spending Pool: Those credits can be spent on any eligible BTP service. Your global account gets entitlements to all services in the consumption catalog. Need more database storage this quarter and fewer AI calls next quarter? No problem – the credits cover whatever mix of services you use. This one-contract-for-many-services approach eliminates the need to buy individual service licenses upfront. It’s highly flexible, accommodating changes in your needs over time or allowing you to try new services.
  • Discounted Unit Rates: In exchange for a committed spend, SAP offers discounted pricing compared to pay-as-you-go rates. The more you commit, the larger the discount typically. For example, a service that costs $1 per unit on PayG might effectively cost ~$0.80 per unit under a sizable CPEA deal (meaning your credits stretch further than they would at list price). Enterprise agreements lower your effective cost at scale.
  • Consumption Tracking: As you use services, credits are deducted. SAP provides monthly consumption reports showing credit usage by service (e.g., “Integration Suite consumed 500 credits, HANA Cloud 300 credits, etc.”). You can monitor usage in real-time via the BTP cockpit’s cost analysis tools to avoid surprises.
  • “Use It or Lose It”: Credits are typically valid for the duration of the contract term (often one year, unless otherwise specified). Unused credits expire at the end of the year; they typically do not roll over. This means right-sizing your commitment is critical: if you over-commit and only use 50% of your credits, the rest is wasted budget. Conversely, suppose you under-commit and run out of credits early. In that case, you’ll incur overage charges at full list price for any consumption beyond your prepaid amount (unless you top up by purchasing additional credits).
  • Contract Term and Renewal: CPEA contracts commonly run 1–3 years. You might commit, say, $300k over 3 years, allocated annually. At renewal, you can adjust the commitment based on past usage and future needs. Some customers negotiate terms such as flexible top-ups or carryover, but these must be agreed upon in the contract. (SAP’s standard is no rollover, so it requires negotiation to alter.)

When to use CPEA: The credit model is best for organizations planning significant or steadily growing BTP usage, especially across multiple services.

If you have several projects (integration, extensions, analytics, etc.) tapping into BTP, a CPEA provides cost efficiency and simplifies procurement (one agreement instead of many licenses).

It’s also well-suited if you value flexibility to try new cloud services as they emerge – since the credits cover “all you can eat” in the BTP menu, you’re not locked into specific services.

Enterprises that want to standardize on BTP as a strategic platform often choose CPEA or its successor (SAP BTP Enterprise Agreement) to align with that long-term vision.

Drawbacks: The main challenges are the upfront commitment and planning required. You’re effectively pre-paying, so there’s a cash flow consideration and a need to accurately forecast usage. If you guess wrong, you could overpay (unused credits) or face unexpected costs (overages).

There’s also administrative effort to monitor consumption so you can course-correct (e.g., if you’re consuming credits too quickly, or not at all in some areas).

Additionally, while CPEA covers most BTP services, please note that a few niche services or SaaS offerings may not be available under generic credits and may still require separate licenses.

Finally, SAP’s newer BTP Enterprise Agreement (BTPEA), introduced in 2024, is an evolution of CPEA, focusing exclusively on BTP services with similar principles.

Existing CPEA customers can remain on CPEA or migrate to BTPEA at renewal to access the latest services (for instance, some new SAP Analytics Cloud options are only in BTPEA).

This indicates SAP’s push toward consumption models, but also means keeping an eye on service catalog differences between CPEA and BTPEA.

Subscription Model: Predictable Costs for Known Needs

In the subscription model, you license a specific BTP service (or bundle) with a fixed capacity for a fixed term.

This is the classic SaaS licensing approach that SAP used historically for cloud services.

Key aspects of subscription licensing:

  • Fixed Entitlements: You purchase a defined service plan – for example, SAP Integration Suite Standard Edition with 1 production tenant and up to N messages per month, or SAP HANA Cloud with X GB of memory and storage. That capacity is contractually yours to use, regardless of whether you fully utilize it or not.
  • Predictable Costs: You pay a predefined fee (usually annual) for the subscription term (often 1, 2, or 3 years). This cost remains the same even if your actual usage fluctuates (as long as you stay within the included quota). It offers budget certainty – great for planning, since you know the cost upfront. If you use less than the quota, you’re still paying for the full amount (so avoid over-sizing your subscriptions). If you need more than the contracted amount, you typically must upgrade your subscription or purchase an add-on; overage usage beyond the contract isn’t automatically allowed.
  • Term Commitments: You are generally locked in for the term. If you sign a 3-year subscription, you’re committing to pay that for 3 years regardless of actual usage. There is usually no early termination without penalty. At the end of the term, you can renew, renegotiate, or decide to switch models.
  • Limited Flexibility: Subscription funds are tied to one service (or a fixed bundle). You can’t reallocate that money to another service if priorities change. For instance, if you subscribed to Data Warehouse Cloud and later decide to focus on a different database service, that subscription spend is not transferable – you’d need a new contract for the other service. This rigidity means that subscriptions work best when you’re very confident about your usage needs and won’t need to make any changes.
  • Potentially Favorable Pricing: Because SAP is assured of your business for the term, subscriptions often come at a discounted rate for that service (compared to pure pay-by-use). In some cases, SAP bundles BTP services with other software deals – e.g., they might include an Integration Suite subscription at a low cost if you’re also purchasing a large S/4HANA or SuccessFactors deal. These bundled subscriptions can be attractive, but they typically have scope limits (only certain services or fixed sizes) and do not cover anything beyond that scope.

When to use Subscription:

If you have a stable, well-understood use case with consistent demand, a subscription can yield the lowest cost and simplest management.

For example, if you know you need a production integration platform that handles a steady volume of messages each month, subscribing to SAP Integration Suite might be a cost-effective and easier option to budget for.

Subscriptions are also common for complementary BTP services included in larger contracts (such as RISE with SAP deals, which often include some BTP credits or subscriptions).

Additionally, some organizations prefer subscriptions to avoid the “cloud spend uncertainty” – they’d rather pay a fixed amount than worry about monthly variations, even if it means occasionally paying for unused capacity.

Drawbacks:

The lack of flexibility is the big one. In a dynamic project, you might not foresee that six months later you need a different service – with a subscription, you’d have to go back and amend contracts or procure new licenses, which can slow down innovation.

Also, if your actual usage comes in way under the subscribed level, you end up with “shelfware” in the cloud (wasted capacity). And if usage exceeds the subscription, you risk being constrained or forced into a larger, expensive contract mid-term.

In fact, for very high-volume services, sometimes multiple subscriptions or an enterprise agreement may be more suitable to avoid constantly resizing contracts.

Finally, note that SAP’s current strategy heavily emphasizes consumption models – some new services or free-tier offerings are only available via consumption (PayG/CPEA) and not offered as a subscription at all.

This means an all-subscription approach could limit access to certain innovations. Many clients, therefore, maintain at least a small consumption account for flexibility, even if they use subscriptions for core predictable workloads.

Comparing BTP Licensing Models

Each model presents a different balance of cost predictability vs flexibility.

Below is a comparison of Pay-As-You-Go, CPEA (credits), and Subscription models across key dimensions:

ModelUpfront CommitmentPricing & DiscountsIdeal Use CasesPrimary BenefitsKey Drawbacks
Pay-As-You-GoNone (zero commitment)Pay per use at standard list prices (no discounts)– Small-scale apps and POC/pilot projects
– Unpredictable or spiky usage patterns
No upfront cost or risk if usage is low
All services available to try on-demand
– Can start/stop easily (no lock-in)
– Highest unit cost at scale (premium pricing)
– Monthly spend can spike, less budget certainty
CPEA (Cloud Credits)Commit to spend a fixed amount (e.g. annual credits)Prepaid cloud credits with volume discounts off list price. Larger commits = better $/unit rates.Multiple projects or expanding usage across BTP
Flexible needs across various services
– Strategic long-term BTP adoption
Flexible use of any service as needed
Lower per-unit costs (discounted rates)
– Single contract simplifies multi-service access
– Requires accurate forecasting of needs
– Unused credit = wasted spend (expires annually)
– Overcommit or undercommit can incur losses or overage costs
SubscriptionFixed service contract (1–3 year term for specific capacity)Fixed fee for defined capacity (often cheaper per-unit if fully used)Steady, known usage of a particular service
– Need for strict budget predictability
– When service is included in a bundle deal
Predictable cost (no surprise overages)
– Potentially lowest cost if usage exactly matches contract
– Simple to understand and plan per service
Inflexible: tied to specific service & quota
– Changing needs require new contracts
– Can lead to underutilization (paid for unused capacity)

As shown above, no single model excels in all areas. PayG offers agility but can become pricey; CPEA offers flexibility and savings but demands commitment; subscriptions offer certainty but lack adaptability.

Many enterprises use a combination – for example, subscribe to a known heavy-use service (to lock in a good price) while using CPEA credits for everything else, and perhaps start new experimental workloads in PayG until they justify a larger commitment.

Cost Scenarios and Examples

To illustrate the cost dynamics, consider a simple scenario of an enterprise’s annual BTP usage (for example, compute hours, messages, or any unit of service).

Below is a hypothetical comparison of how costs might accumulate under each model for different usage levels:

Illustrative comparison of annual costs under Pay-As-You-Go (blue), CPEA with upfront credits (green), and Subscription (red) for a given service. In this example, the subscription is purchased for a fixed capacity (red line) – it costs a flat $90 up to the contracted usage limit, then requires doubling the subscription (jumping to $180) if usage exceeds that limit.

The CPEA model (green line) offers a discounted rate (e.g., $80 for the equivalent of 100 units) but requires an upfront investment; beyond the prepaid credits, costs rise at the list price. Pay-As-You-Go (blue line) has no initial cost but a higher slope (full list price per unit).

As shown, at very low usage, PayG is cheapest (you pay only for a few units). At medium usage (~100 units), the prepaid model yields a better effective cost.

At very high usage, a subscription can be economical if you size it correctly; however, exceeding the limit results in increased costs.

This underscores the importance of aligning your license model to your usage profile.

Let’s translate this into a real-world example:

  • A midsize company wants to deploy an SAP integration flow with moderate traffic. SAP quotes an SAP Integration Suite subscription at $5,500 per month for a standard package (which includes a certain volume of messages and one tenant). Over the course of a year, that’s $66,000 for a guaranteed capacity. However, if the company expects to use only 20% of that capacity initially, a Pay-As-You-Go approach might cost, say, $1,000 per month (or $12,000 per year), based on actual message volume—a fraction of the subscription cost. In this case, PayG saves money (80% less) while usage is low.
  • On the other hand, a large enterprise running multiple BTP services (databases, integration, analytics) might easily project $500,000 in annual BTP consumption. If they opt for pure PayG, they pay list prices for everything. With a CPEA deal of $500,000 per year, they could potentially negotiate a 15–20% discount on unit rates, effectively securing $600,000+ worth of capacity for their $500,000 spend. That could be vital savings. Plus, they can distribute those credits across any services, ensuring no single service subscription becomes a limiting factor. The risk, of course, is if they only use $300k worth of services, the remaining $200k is lost at year’s end – so they would plan carefully and perhaps start with a lower commitment (or negotiate flexibility to adjust annually).
  • A company with a mission-critical application extension might opt for a subscription for peace of mind. For example, if they run an SAP HANA Cloud instance that requires a minimum of X GB of capacity at all times, they might subscribe to that capacity so they know it’s covered. They trade off some cost efficiency for the guarantee that the capacity and cost are fixed. Meanwhile, for their more exploratory projects on BTP, they utilize consumption credits, allowing them to spin up and down various services without requiring separate purchase orders each time.

These scenarios show that the “right” model depends on scale and certainty. It’s common to start with PayG or a small CPEA commitment in the initial phases, then increase the commitment as confidence grows.

Conversely, if you lock into a big subscription or CPEA and find your needs shrink or shift, you could overspend – so build in flexibility in contracts and keep an eye on usage trends.

Choosing the Right Model & Contract Considerations

Selecting a BTP licensing model is a strategic decision that should involve both IT and finance stakeholders. Here are some key considerations to guide the choice:

  • Assess Usage Predictability: How well can you estimate your BTP service consumption? If the answer is “not at all” or you’re in uncharted territory, lean towards PayG initially, or a modest CPEA commitment, rather than a large fixed subscription. For highly predictable, steady workloads, a subscription or sizable CPEA can be justified.
  • Scope of BTP Adoption: If you plan to use many different BTP services across projects, a consumption model (CPEA/BTPEA) will simplify your life. It eliminates the need to license each component separately and enables innovation by allowing new services to be tried under the same agreement. If instead you have one specific service you need (and little else), a targeted subscription for that service might be sufficient and cost-effective.
  • Budget Flexibility vs. Certainty: Determine whether your priority is the lowest unit cost or predictable spending. CFOs might prefer the budget certainty of a fixed annual subscription (no surprises), whereas CIOs might value the lower effective rates and flexibility of credits. Often, a compromise is to start with consumption-based and then identify stable usage that can be carved out into subscriptions later (for cost certainty on that portion).
  • Total Cost of Ownership: Look beyond just per-unit costs. Consider operational overhead – managing multiple subscriptions and contracts can be cumbersome if you’re using a wide array of services. Also factor in the value of SAP’s free tier: with a PayG or CPEA account, you get access to free-tier service plans (limited free usage on many services for development/testing). Subscription accounts don’t offer free tier benefits. Utilizing free tiers in non-production environments can significantly reduce costs, making it a compelling reason to have at least a consumption-based account in your landscape.
  • Negotiation Opportunities: As an enterprise customer, negotiate with SAP. If you’re committing to CPEA, discuss volume discount levels and whether SAP can provide additional credits or price locks if you exceed the commitment (so overages aren’t penalized at full list price). For subscriptions, consider negotiating features such as including growth headroom or combining multiple services into a discounted bundle. If you’re a RISE with SAP customer, understand what BTP entitlements are included in your RISE contract (often a certain amount of CPEA credits) and ensure you size any additional BTP licensing accordingly.
  • Hybrid Approach: Don’t think of the models as mutually exclusive. Many organizations run a hybrid licensing model for BTP: for example, maintain a small PayG account for ad-hoc experimentation, a CPEA for broad use in production, and perhaps a subscription for a specific large workload that is cheaper that way. SAP BTP’s account model allows subscriptions and consumption to coexist (the BTP cockpit will just apply consumption charges for any service not covered by a subscription). This way, you can optimize each part of your usage.

Ultimately, the goal is to align the licensing model with your usage volume, variability, and value. If you foresee BTP becoming a cornerstone of your digital platform, investing in an enterprise agreement with SAP (and negotiating favorable terms) will pay off.

If BTP is a niche or trial component for you, keep the commitments light and focus on learning your usage patterns first.

Recommendations

  • Start Small, Then Scale: Begin with Pay-As-You-Go or a minimal credit commitment for new BTP initiatives. This lets your team gather real usage data. Only scale up to larger CPEA commits or long-term subscriptions once you have confidence in the demand.
  • Right-Size Your Commitments: If opting for CPEA, commit an amount that you are reasonably sure you will consume within the year. Analyze expected projects and build in a buffer (but don’t drastically over-commit). Negotiate for mid-year top-up options rather than overcommitting upfront, to avoid unused credits.
  • Leverage SAP’s Free Tier: Use the free service plans available under consumption models for development and testing environments. This can significantly cut costs. For example, develop POCs on free-tier plans in a PayG account, then scale to paid plans when moving to production.
  • Consider Hybrid Licensing: Mix models to get the best of each. Subscribe to well-established high-volume services where you need fixed pricing or have bundle discounts (e.g., core integration or database), but use a CPEA for everything else to maintain flexibility. This minimizes cost while avoiding lock-in where it matters.
  • Monitor and Optimize Usage: Set up cost monitoring in the BTP cockpit (or use SAP’s cost analysis tools) to track your consumption. Identify trends early – if one service’s usage is skyrocketing, consider switching it to a subscription at the next opportunity. Alternatively, if credits are used faster than expected, consider adjusting consumption or negotiating a more favorable agreement. Optimization is an ongoing process.
  • Negotiate Protective Clauses: Collaborate with SAP to incorporate safeguards into your contract to ensure optimal protection. For instance, try to obtain agreement that any overage beyond your CPEA credits can be purchased at the same discounted rate (or at least capped at list price increases). If you’re signing a large multi-year deal, ensure service pricing (credit value) is locked or capped to avoid price hikes mid-term.
  • Stay Informed on Licensing Changes: SAP’s cloud licensing is evolving (e.g., introduction of BTPEA, changes to service catalogs). Keep in touch with your SAP account team or an independent licensing advisor each year to understand new options that could benefit you (or deprecations that might affect your current model). Adjust your strategy as needed – for example, transitioning from CPEA to BTPEA to gain access to the latest BTP services or offers.
  • Align with Business Value: Tie your BTP spend to clear business outcomes. This can help justify the model you choose. If using consumption credits, allocate them to projects and track ROI. If a subscription is underutilized, question whether that capability is delivering value or if it should be scaled down. Using a licensing model that best aligns costs with the value delivered will make your CFO happy and prevent shelfware.
  • Plan for Growth and Contingency: If you expect rapid growth in BTP usage (e.g., due to a new large project or rollout), discuss a scaling plan with SAP. You might consider negotiating pricing tiers so that if you double your usage, you receive better discounts or an easy way to increase your credit pool mid-term. Also consider contingency for unplanned needs – having a PayG account as a backup or a small reserve of credits can cover spikes without breaking contract terms.

FAQ

Q1: Is Pay-As-You-Go more expensive than CPEA or Subscription?
A: In terms of unit pricing, yes. PayG uses standard list prices, so you don’t get the volume discounts of a CPEA or the lower rates often baked into a subscription. For small workloads, the absolute cost can still be low (since you’re only paying for a tiny usage). But as usage grows, PayG often becomes the most expensive option overall. A CPEA with a decent commitment can reduce unit costs significantly (often by 10–30%). A well-utilized subscription can also have a lower effective unit cost than PayG. In short, PayG is cheapest for short-term or low-volume needs, but for large, steady usage, committed models will save money.

Q2: Can we use all three models simultaneously?
A: Yes, you can mix models based on needs. SAP BTP’s global account structure allows you to run a consumption-based account (PayG or CPEA) and still attach specific subscriptions. For example, you might have a subscription for an SAP Analytics Cloud tenant (if that made sense for your analytics team) while all your custom app services and integrations consume credits from CPEA in the same landscape. The platform will account for the subscription usage separately and only charge credits for things not covered by a subscription. Many enterprises adopt this hybrid approach to optimize cost and flexibility.

Q3: What happens if we don’t use all our CPEA credits by year-end?
A: Generally, unused CPEA credits expire at the end of the contract period (usually annually). It’s a “use it or lose it” system – leftover credit value is forfeited and cannot be carried into the next period. This is why it’s important to size your commitment wisely. Some customers negotiate a rollover of a small portion or an extension in special cases, but that is not standard. If you’re approaching year-end with excess credits, consider accelerating some planned consumption (e.g., performing necessary system tests, loading data, etc.) so that the credits are at least put to good use. But ideally, avoid overcommitting in the first place.

Q4: How easy is it to switch from Pay-As-You-Go to a CPEA or Subscription later on?
A: Switching models is fairly straightforward, especially from PayG to an enterprise agreement. SAP often positions PayG as a path to CPEA/BTPEA – you can convert your PayG account to a CPEA contract without having to rebuild everything. The services and subaccounts you set up remain, but now you start drawing from credits instead of being billed per use. Transitioning from consumption to subscription for a specific service may require provisioning that service under a new subscription contract; however, operationally, it’s simply a change in how it’s billed. The main consideration is timing and contract alignment: typically, you’d time a switch at the end of a quarter or year. Work with your SAP representative – they’re usually happy to upgrade you to a committed model and can guide you through the process. Just ensure you review the terms (e.g., any credits remaining when switching, how entitlements change, etc.).

Q5: What are some negotiation tips to get the best deal on SAP BTP?
A: When negotiating BTP licensing, leverage the following:

  • Bundling and Volume: If BTP is part of a larger SAP purchase or renewal, bundle it in. SAP may offer additional discounts or complimentary credits if you’re also investing in S/4HANA, etc. Showing a bigger overall spend can improve your leverage.
  • Benchmark Usage: Comes with data. If you’ve run PayG for 6 months, use that usage data to argue for a certain discount level (“we expect X credits/year, we need a Y% discount to make this viable compared to alternatives”).
  • Overage Protections: Cap overage charges. For example, consider negotiating that if you exceed CPEA credits, you can purchase additional credits at the contracted rate (rather than defaulting to the list price). Or have a clause to true-up at year-end at the same discount.
  • Future Service Inclusion: Ensure the contract language allows access to new BTP services under your model. SAP continually adds services; you don’t want to be stuck because you didn’t receive an innovation that existed when your contract was signed. BTPEA (the new agreement) is meant to cover new services, but double-check.
  • Services Not in Catalog: If there’s a particular service you need that isn’t available in CPEA yet (or a subscription-only service), address it. Sometimes, SAP will make exceptions or provide a complimentary subscription if it’s not included in the consumption catalog.
  • Renewal Flexibility: Set expectations for renewal. For instance, consider negotiating a price lock or cap on annual increases for credit unit rates in the next term, especially if you increase the commitment. You can also seek termination for convenience at yearly intervals in a multi-year contract (if you’re unsure about long-term needs – this is a tough request, but worth discussing).

Negotiating with SAP can be complex, so involve your procurement and licensing experts. The key is to align the deal with your usage outlook and ensure you have escape hatches or flexibility if reality diverges from forecasts.

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  • Fredrik Filipsson has 20 years of experience in Oracle license management, including nine years working at Oracle and 11 years as a consultant, assisting major global clients with complex Oracle licensing issues. Before his work in Oracle licensing, he gained valuable expertise in IBM, SAP, and Salesforce licensing through his time at IBM. In addition, Fredrik has played a leading role in AI initiatives and is a successful entrepreneur, co-founding Redress Compliance and several other companies.

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