Pavel LazarevIt is always challenging to start something from scratch, especially when it comes to delivering competitive and technically complex software solutions for the web. Startup businesses in the IT industry frequently fail because of issues with financing and technical implementation of their products.
The current unstable political and economic situation around the globe undoubtedly aggravates these problems. But many providers of software development tools consider such hard times as an excellent opportunity to help young businesses and at the same time promote their own products via special programs and offers for startups.
In this article, we will consider lucrative deals on popular JavaScript libraries and other web development tools that will allow startups to speed up the development process and worry less about financial expenses.
Startup deals on popular JavaScript libraries and UI widgets
Startup teams often experience difficulties with implementing some complex functionalities or standard UI with necessary feature sets in their web projects. If the same applies to you, here are some good deals from vendors specialized in solving such issues.
Best DHTMLX products with a big discount
DHTMLX is a well-known provider of JavaScript components designed for implementing advanced functionalities in enterprise web and mobile apps. With DHTMLX, you can solve complex coding tasks related to project management, data analysis, content management, and common UI elements much faster.
The company’s new discount program for startups gives an opportunity to add top DHTMLX products to your app with a huge discount and make the most of their capabilities at a much lower cost.
The program is intended for pre-revenue startups and small teams launching web and cloud-based solutions. To apply for this program, you’ll have to pass the qualification process by filling in a short questionnaire.
Key benefits of the program:
70% discount for DHTMLX Gantt, Scheduler, and Suite libraries,
1-year license for up to 3 developers,
tech support from DHTMLX specialists,
possibility to use the offered libraries in SaaS projects,
large base of support materials (code snippets, samples, demos, and guides).
With all these things at your disposal, you can complement a startup project with advanced tools for project management such as a Gantt chart and scheduler as well as feature-packed UI elements (grids, charts, forms, layouts, etc.) highly requested in web apps.
Webix IT startup support programme
If you need a comprehensive package of UI widgets for a web startup, you should probably consider Webix and its IT startup support programme. Webix is a JavaScript UI library that includes a collection of JavaScript widgets (including complex ones) and HTML5 controls for productive web development.
This program may be interesting for junior developers, non-profit organizations, and startups looking for opportunities to quickly create a prototype of their future software solutions.
Key benefits of the Webix support program:
access to Webix Pro tools without any limitations,
free usage period is up to 6 months,
marketing and promotional support from the Webix team.
Webix also provides additional instruments to ensure more effective working with the widgets and controls. They are 5 responsive design skins, Webix Jet framework for SPA development, and free online tools (UI Designer, Form Builder, Skin Builder).
The program does not require monetary payments but marketing commitments to Webix. To be more precise, it is expected that you will be ready to mention Webix on your web resources, make social media posts about the use of Webix tools, create public references and testimonials, write non-biased feedback on Webix products, share and publish case studies.
AnyChart Next Unicorn SaaS license
When data visualization is a core part of your startup project, you should probably consider JavaScript tools focused on this aspect of web development such as AnyChart. Here you get a collection of JavaScript libraries for various data visualization needs.
Developers usually resort to AnyChart for embedding interactive charts and dashboards into web apps. The list of AnyChart licensing options includes the Next Unicorn license for startup businesses.
Key benefits of the Next Unicorn license:
purchasing any tool from the AnyChart product family (AnyChart, AnyStock, AnyMap, AnyGantt) at a significantly reduced price - $49/product,
1-year license for up to 2 developers,
access to current versions of purchased products and updates during the license period (1 year only),
2 hours of AnyChart support (an extra support package can be added).
According to AnyChart, this license suits well for pre-revenue startups planning to build a hosted website that will require users to log in to access the software solution or services. To use the AnyChart products as part of your startup project (software or service), you are required to register the domain at the time of purchase.
Suncfusion Community License for startups
There are plenty of web technologies that can become the foundation for a startup project. If you prefer something different from pure JavaScript for front-end development (React, Angular, ASP.NET Core, etc.), you may need native UI components that can be smoothly integrated with these technologies.
That is where Syncfusion’s diverse product portfolio for cross-platform development may come in handy. All Syncfiosion UI components are available for startups via the Community License.
Key benefits of the Syncfusion Community License:
free access to all products available in Essential Studio Enterprise Edition (1800+ UI components),
license for up to 5 developers,
included tech support and updates,
allowed for usage in open-source and commercial projects.
This license is available free of charge for businesses and individuals with less than $1 million USD in annual gross revenue. You can claim the license via a Syncfusion account.
In return, you will be asked to spread the message about the Syncfusion brand via social networks (Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn).
Sencha Ext JS Community Edition
Sencha’s Ext JS is one more solution designed to cover a wide range of web development needs. It is mainly designed to facilitate the delivery of data-intensive enterprise web applications. The Ext JS Community Edition allows startup teams to take advantage of this JavaScript-based framework free of charge.
The Ext JS Community Edition is a suitable option for startups with small budgets (up to $10,000 USD).
Key benefits of the Ext JS Community Edition:
1-year commercial Ext JS license for up to 5 developers,
collection of modern UI components (140+),
npm-based open tooling,
tutorials and guides,
Stencils – Sencha’s design toolkit.
However, this free edition of Ext JS offers fewer features for Ext JS than commercial licenses and has limited commercial use.
Startup deals on other popular development tools
Now that you have more than enough options for adding various functionalities to your web project, it is time to think about how to facilitate other core phases of the web development life cycle. There are plenty of software solutions for such purposes provided on favorable terms.
GitHub for Startups
It's hard for software developers to imagine life without GitHub. It is the most widely used development platform and code-sharing system trusted by millions of developers and this number will surely grow thanks to the GitHub for Startups program.
The main goal of this initiative is to provide early-stage startups with the GitHub tools required to go from a promising idea to unicorn status.
Key benefits of the GitHub for Startups program:
free 1-year license,
up to 20 seats of GitHub Enterprise,
support and guidance from GitHub technical experts.
GitHub Enterprise provides a range of products to improve the entire software development lifecycle.
In order to apply for the program, potential candidates should have outside funding (up to Series A), be new to GitHub Enterprise, and have no previously received credits for GitHub Enterprise.
GitHub also encourages investors, accelerators, and startup support organizations to become a GitHub for Startups partner and contribute to the growth of program participants. Partners of the program will receive some resources from GitHub. Startups associated with program partners are eligible for additional discounts and benefits.
GitLab for Startups program
GitLab is another noteworthy repository management software. It is considered by many professional developers as a viable alternative to GitHub with a stronger focus on DevOps and CI/CD. If these aspects are essential for your startup project, you should take a look at GitLab’s Program for Startups.
The program is currently available for startups with external funding. New participants are divided into two groups depending on their funding and receive various sets of benefits:
- seed stage startups (up to $5 million in external funding) get:
free GitLab Ultimate license (SaaS or self-managed) and up to 20 seats during 1st year,
50% discount on any license with up to 20 users during the 2nd year.
- early stage startups (up to $20 million in external funding) get:
50% discount on any license and up to 20 users during the 1st year,
25% discount on any license and up to 20 users during the 2nd year.
Interestingly, the GitLab team does not provide any support as a part of the startup program, claiming that GitLab is designed to be easy to use from the start. But you can enjoy the possibility to deploy to any environment or cloud service, built-in security, strong collaboration capabilities, and more.
All participants of the program are subject to the GitLab Subscription Agreement. Potential applicants to the program may be asked to provide extra information for eligibility confirmation.
JetBrains startup program
JetBrains is a software vendor known for its development tools. After making their way from a small startup launched back in 2000 to a serious player in the industry JetBrains certainly knows what startups need to be more productive.
To give a helping hand to new businesses at the early stages of their work, the company offers a special startup program with a discount for JetBrains products, including IDEs, .NET and Visual Studio, team tools, etc.
Key benefits of the JetBrains startup program:
50% off on JetBrains products,
up to 10 discounted licenses at any time during a 5-year period.
JetBrains products cover the entire software development pipeline. To take part in the program, startups should be privately held, be established less than 5 years ago, and have a website or existing public references on the internet.
JetBrains also offers a partner program for startup incubators and accelerators as well as some benefits for incubator-led startups.
Auth0 for startups
Modern web apps often become targets of various malicious attacks. Therefore, it is necessary to pay much attention to properly implementing vital information security processes such as authentication and authorization. This task becomes easier with the Auth0 platform designed to cover the main identity management needs during app development. And as you can guess, Auth0 also has an attractive offer for startups.
Key benefits of the startup program:
free 1-year license,
up to 100,000 monthly active users and 5 enterprise connections,
multiple built-in features such as multi-factor authentication (MFA), single sign-on (SSO), etc.
This case study explains how the Auth0 program helped the crypto startup named Permission.io.
The offer does not apply to current Auth0 customers and previous participants of the program. Startups should also meet some financial requirements (less than $5M in venture funding and less than $1M in annual recurring revenue) and be no older than 2 years since their foundation.
Salesforce for startups
Salesforce is a big name in cloud computing thanks to its top CRM system as well as many other services and product packages for businesses of any scale. Application development also has a place in the rich Salesforce ecosystem. The company provides exciting offerings to aid small businesses and startups grow with Salesforce.
Salesforce initiatives that can be useful for startups:
Salesforce Accelerate - a three-month virtual program launched to help startups go along with Salesforce and facilitate their experience with Salesforce AppExchange.
Appexchange Program - a partner program that enables you to build new apps with Salesforce tools and sell them on Salesforce AppExchange.
Salesforce Ventures - a corporate venture capital arm of Salesforce launched in 2009 to invest in next-gen tech startups and accelerate their growth.
Salesforce Pledge 1% - a 1-1-1 philanthropy model for startups.
Similarly to GitHub and JetBrains, Salesforce has a partner program for incubators, accelerators, and VC firms.
Salesforce also provides a comprehensive resource center that will help you to use the platform’s capabilities more effectively.
Ready-Made Software Solutions for Work Management
And lastly, you should not forget about organizing the workflow within your startup team. Effective teamwork and collaboration in the workplace are critically important for delivering a successful startup project. Therefore, it is great for dev teams to have software systems to foster effective work management.
If you need a similar tool to keep track of all activities in your startup project, you can consider lucrative deals on the following software solutions:
These platforms will help you to coordinate the efforts of the whole startup team, manage and prioritize tasks, and adhere to the project schedule.
Wrapping Up
A tight budget is always a big headache for many startups. But as you can see from the material provided above, there are many opportunities for startups to equip their technology stacks with great tools at acceptable prices or even for free. Using such deals, you get enough time and technical capabilities to realize your ideas in a web project and bring it to the market faster.
The article was originally published on Medium.
