Adobe surprised many at its Max conference earlier this month when it announced that it would no longer be selling Creative Suite, one of their most popular products, which offers Photoshop, Dreamweaver, and other professional design applications in a bundled, one-time purchase. Instead, Adobe is suggesting people move to its relatively new Creative Cloud service, which offers the same applications for a monthly subscription. Converting to a purely cloud-based, subscription model was unexpected, yet with a little foresight and a look at Adobe’s competition, it shouldn’t be too astonishing that they are already making the jump to this new business model.
Microsoft’s latest release of Office has shown that they are also interested in converting to a subscription-based model, as there is a heavy marketing emphasis on Office 365, the subscription version of Office, and its benefits, similar to how Creative Cloud was portrayed for the past couple years. Office 2013 is still available as a standalone, one-time purchase, but there are features in Office 365 that are not available in standalone editions, like the ability to use Office on any operating system without having to pay for separate editions. Yet, Office is still available in an isolated package like it always has been, allowing people uncomfortable with the idea of regular upgrades to still purchase the latest version of the productivity software.
One key point in many subscription models that causes division in users is that they usually don’t allow you to use the software past a given expiration date. Packages you purchase once and don’t pay for again usually can be used as long as you want, which lets people choose which versions of software they would like to upgrade to and which ones they would like to skip. The upgrade model for many of those who used Adobe’s software usually followed this scheme, since most people found it too expensive to upgrade every year when a new version was released.
Companies moving to subscription models claim they are forced to due to piracy concerns. Adobe’s products are some of the most pirated products worldwide, particularly, Adobe Photoshop, which Adobe claims was illegally activated 55 million times last year. It’s clear that the move to Creative Cloud reflects Adobe’s attempts to curb piracy rates, but the restrictive level of options and the lack of ownership over their software has caused considerable backlash among users. Most subscriptions, like those for World of Warcraft and other MMOs, don’t suffer as much backlash because their subscription models have a higher perceived value than traditional software, and users are more comfortable with the idea of paying a monthly subscription for multiplayer games that receive consistent updates. People also typically view these games as having a unique value that can’t be replicated elsewhere, whereas there are cheaper alternatives to photo editing one can use if they aren’t willing to pay for Photoshop.
The biggest struggle for subscription-based models is that many are starting to offer free, ad-supported, or micro-transaction models. The rise of League of Legends, a game whose roots lie in a modification of Warcraft III, a predecessor to World of Warcraft, is a prime example of how free software has been offering considerable competition to software that has become more expensive. While someone might be willing to drop $50 on a game to play forever, there is a mental barrier to overcome between that and paying $12 every month to have the right to play it, and that drives people towards cheap or free models. League of Legends is still able to make money off Riot Points, an in-game currency, which can be used to purchase champions and ‘boosts’ to enhance the gameplay experience. Google has shown an ability to compete with Microsoft Office with the document editing tools in Google Drive, which is sufficient enough for the needs of some. While people in mathematical fields might find that Google’s suite doesn’t offer enough in the way of complex formulas or equation support, the vast majority of people are beginning to feel that Google has given a compelling enough offer for them to not need Office anymore.
Likewise, as Adobe starts dividing its user-base with Creative Cloud, alternatives that will satisfy the needs of the average user will arise. GIMP and Inkscape, while not the most user-friendly programs, have shown themselves to be compelling alternatives to Photoshop and Illustrator if one is strapped for cash. Numerous Dreamweaver alternatives such as Coda, Microsoft Expression Web and Notepad++ have shown promise. Certainly, Adobe and others who make the move to subscription models will find some users will come along for the ride, but it may turn out well for their competition as more user-friendly and inexpensive options come to claim the masses turned off by their new business practices.
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