Steinberg - Subscription

[Qbass-007]

Speaking of Cakewalk, have a read if you like on the Gear Slutz forum regarding the objections…there are some very good points against it.

Sonar, first DAW to go in to subscription model - Gearspace.com

I agree, it appears to be primarily a money grab, and a way to keep you biting on the line.

Steinberg already has already you biting on the line in their own way, and it’s working! Software companies have transitioned from the idea of providing a finished product for sale, to a never ending work in progress for rent. And much like TV shows, at the end of each episode, instead of giving you an ending to a predicament, they always leave you hanging to ensure you’ll want to watch the next! This may be very good for TV shows, but not for software IMO…because for software, they leave you with something never quite finished, and entice you with a promise it will be completed in the next… hence, the “Carrot On A Stick”!

[zephonic]

It really depends on how much they’d charge. With the current annual update policy at $99 (from latest to latest) it works out to $8.25 p/m, which is not unreasonable.

But the crux is -of course- what will happen to your projects if you decide to discontinue your subscription. I have hundreds of GB’s of project data, if all of that just becomes useless when you cancel your plan, you are effectively being held hostage.

So there’d need to be a good exit policy.

[steve]

Steinberg has given their answer on this.

Steinberg Forums

@Guillermo

Hello,

No, we conducted a survey a couple of months ago in which we asked if subscription might be an alternative model. The result was a clear “no.” we will respect the wishes of our customer base. There are definitely no plans or whatsoever for a subscription model.

Best regards,
GN

I’ll close the topic.