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The database and application company wanted to charge businesses a license fee for each processor on a system using its products.

Microsoft, Red Hat, and IBM don't count cores for software licensing, just physical chips. Oracle has had to move away partially from its plan to count cores, but only a little.

On its web site, Oracle says it will multiply the number of cores on a system by .75 when determining the terms for "programs licensed on a processor basis." The company should further detail if this is a new policy or simply a clarification when it holds a conference call today.

There seems to be a level of unfairness in Oracle's licensing. The biggest dual-core advocates are the ones that produce them, AMD and Intel, and neither claim dual-core processors double system performance.

Microsoft clarified their stance on dual-core in October 2004, saying they would treat multiple core processors as one chip. IBM followed that with a similar announcement in April.

Dual core processors will help the typical user who finds one CPU-intensive task keeps them from working effectively with other applications on a PC. Also, the increase in performance won't come with an increase in heat, a problem for computers as chip speeds increase.

David Utter is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology and business. Email him here.