The Licens.io Name

What’s in a name, you say? If you ask Shakespeare’s Juliet, not much. This post, however, a-rose to convince you otherwise when it comes to Licens.io. So, let’s get smelling and we’ll see whether you think our company would be just as sweet with any other name.

First, the obvious question: how are you supposed to pronounce it? The short answer is, as if you spoke Spanish in Latin America – lee-sen-see-oh.  The embedded pronunciation from Forvo below should give you an idea. If you’re feeling particularly daring and want to add a touch of flare, you can pretend that you’re from Spain, Italy, or Portugal; we won’t mind. Just please, don’t call us license-dot-eye-oh.

Forvo Pronunciation:

(remember: we have an -oh at the end)

Second, the next most obvious question after pronunciation: did you pick the name just to get on the .io TLD and make #FirstPostFriday jokes? Could there be something deeper implied by the name Licens.io? In this case, there are actually two answers to the single question, both of which are intimately tied to what we do.  In a nutshell, licens is the present participle of the Latin word licet, and the dual meanings behind this word’s Proto-Indo-European root perfectly summarize what we do.

Meaning 1 – Compliance

According to Lewis and Short’s Latin Dictionary, licet, a specific form of the verb behind licens, has the first meaning: “it is lawful, it is allowed or permitted; […]”

Translation: Compliance is about ensuring that the activities of an organization meet both external standards, i.e., laws and rules, and internal standards, such as policies and procedures. As a provider of training and technology for compliance in software and data, this meaning is a perfect fit.

Meaning 2 – Risk Management and Valuation

According to Lewis and Short again, liceo, the base verb behind licens, has the meanings: “to be for sale; to have a price put upon it, to be valued, esteemed at so much […]”

Translation: Risk management is about putting a value on things – events, assets, or, when they’re for sale, even entire companies. As a company that provides risk management tools, due diligence automation, and valuation support, few words could better capture our identity.

So, there you have it – licens.io is about compliance, risk management, and valuation in the very core of its name.  While the origin story is boring old Latin, we’ve spiced it up with a modern pronunciation.  But, you might ask, what risk is there to manage in the world of software and data? What laws and rules govern it? In our next post, we’ll outline what types of risk you might face as a builder, buyer, or seller of software and data, from licenses, trademarks, and copyright to information security and reliability. Stay tuned!