As currently announced, it is indeed the intention that if you use offline activation to lock your license to a single computer for a period of one year, you will not be able to use online activation for another computer.
However, before a handful of you begin gnashing your teeth, please allow me to point out that the offline activation part of the system is not yet fully implemented, and is not part of the current beta testing that we are doing for Dorico 4 and Cubase 12. As such, it may be that we make some changes to the way this works.
Indeed, I think it’s safe to say that although the introduction of the new Steinberg Licensing system has been well received by most users, if there is a single sticking point it is the policy that in order to enforce the terms of the license agreement, the software should contact the activation server to renew its activation. We have heard this feedback loud and clear, and we are talking internally about what, if anything, to do about it.
If and when we determine that it is appropriate to make any changes to the system as announced, we will both update the existing information that we have published about it, and also make further announcements via the forum, our social media channels, and elsewhere.
Steinberg Licensing is a big project that has been years in development. We are absolutely committed to delivering a simple, reliable system that meets both our business needs and our customers’ expectations as far as is possible. We are definitely open to considering changes in some of the details of how the system will work in practice, but please be patient while we discuss the feedback internally and then make any decisions that need to be made as a result.