The University of Tennessee provides access to many types of centrally funded research software. Centrally funded software is available for educational and non-commercial academic research purposes only and should not be used for commercial research. When students, faculty, and staff download centrally funded research software, each user agrees to the terms of service and acceptable use outlined in the master license agreement, which is summarized in the installation documentation and in the online software descriptions.

Academic research generally means that the research is being conducted by enrolled degree-seeking students, faculty, and staff, where the results of such research are performed in support of academic publications, theses, and dissertations. The results of non-commercial academic research are not intended primarily for the benefit of a third party. 

Commercial research generally refers to research that is commissioned as part of a consultancy for which any fee is received, that uses proprietary data from a commercial entity or is conducted as part of a service for which a fee is charged. Generally, the commercial research sponsor owns any results. The only exceptions to this rule are federal agencies whose only purpose is to fund scientific research for publication, such as NSF or NIH.

If you are conducting commercial research, you have a couple of options. One is to use open-source software packages, such as R, Python, and BlueSky. The other option is to purchase a commercial license. Commercial licenses are purchased directly from the software vendor by the researcher and often cost between $500 and $15,000.

For more information on how specific research software can be used, visit the OIT Research software webpage. If you have questions or are uncertain if your research falls within acceptable use, contact the OIT HelpDesk online or by phone at 865-974-9900.