Tons of apps have monthly subscriptions now and I don't like it at all. Remember when there used to be a one time payment? Literally everything wants a monthly subscription which is expensive as hell. Even some bill every week. Even a alarm clock app I downloaded wants a subscription to use premium
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Tired of monthly subscriptions
- Thread starter Larsenv
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I don't like them either but I can understand devs looking for a steady and dependable cash flow. I only go for them on apps with a record of regular maintenance and functional updates.
The problem is, apps cost money & time to develop. So if all you ever paid for is $1 in return for forever support & updates, there will be a time when the app will be unfeasible to develop. Subscriptions solve that. Specially if it was priced correctly. I think what gives subscription bad reputation is the ridiculous & expensive subscriptions we see from time to time, like a calculator app that costs $20 a week.
Don't use them. Vote with your money and ignore the subscription based apps. I do. I much prefer the model of releasing a new version and charging for that. So the price you pay for V1 covers the development of V1. If they want more money they should release a new version that has me wanting to spend more on that update. I do think there will be a bubble burst at sometime as people get subscription anxiety.
No one has ever asked for forever support and updates. As I mentioned above versions would be released that have you paying for that update. This new model of subscriptions is an opportunity to cash grab more and more from consumers. Nothing wrong with making money and companies and people should make money from their work, but endless subscriptions is something many companies have over consumers if they are the only one that offers what they have. Charge for the development of your app, then make a new version that people will deem worthy of upgrading to. This has worked in the past and hopefully will work again someday.
Actually, plenty of users do expect endless support for their $0.99. I have seen people explicitly demanding that. Some apps may stop working properly in newer iOS versions, so some development & support is required.
What you are suggesting is nice, but the App store doesn't offer that. It's either one-time payment or a subscription. There's no middle line. So subscription is the solution for any app that wants long-term success. That particularly goes for the apps that do require constant updating.
Problem with that last is that people complain after they buy an app and then are told they have to buy it again when it it's upgraded.
This example is for the Mac but I've seen the same complaint for iOS apps -
Why do I have to repurchase apps I alread… - Apple Community
Subscription model is getting more popular, because it works. It creates a more reliable revenue stream for the developer, than one-and-done pricing.
I don't mind paying a sub if the app is worth the cost. If it's not worth the cost, I don't pay for it. Pretty simple.
In return, I am able to INSIST that the app be kept up to date & bugs fixed, otherwise, I stop paying.
I don't mind paying a sub if the app is worth the cost. If it's not worth the cost, I don't pay for it. Pretty simple.
In return, I am able to INSIST that the app be kept up to date & bugs fixed, otherwise, I stop paying.
Upgraded or a new version? If people are complaining that they are not getting lifetime versions for software then they are just entitled and would not take their thoughts seriously.Problem with that last is that people complain after they buy an app and then are told they have to buy it again when it it's upgraded.
This example is for the Mac but I've seen the same complaint for iOS apps -
Why do I have to repurchase apps I alread… - Apple Community
discussions.apple.com
I did not go over that link but quickly looked at it and it looked like someone bought software direct and then wanted updated through the Mac App Store. This is just more confusion on their part, they can get updates direct through where they bought the app. If they buy through the Mac App Store then they get updates through that.
It is more popular for developers because if they all do it then the consumer has no choice but to subscribe if they really need it. It is certainly better for them because of the monthly income, this does not mean it is the best model. I think it is akin to price fixing. When all the grocery stores get together and charge the same they can control the market prices. A buggy app is going to get horrible reviews and will wither up and die. A good app has people excited for every new release and people pay for those new releases. It forces the developer to bring out something worth buying. Updating and patching is now a reason to be paying monthly.
Welcome to the party pal. I've abandoned apps I invested many hours in because they went subscription. Looking at you ProTools.
I have no problem kicking in some $$ for major updates to feed the developers, but the subscription model just reeks of grift.
I have no problem kicking in some $$ for major updates to feed the developers, but the subscription model just reeks of grift.
Possibly not the “best” model but of course neither is one-and-done.
Market forces do work, though. If the subscription cost is too high - people won’t pay it. I do pay what I consider to be a fair price for several apps: e.g. Quicken, 1Password, MacroFactor, Hevy. Those all do offer Annual subscriptions for a discount over Monthly, and I do take advantage of that. But I like the Monthly option for a “trial” basis too.
ChatGPT and Dropbox has you using their servers so I could never see a time when having a monthly or yearly subscription would not make sense. Photoshop is a bit iffy on that. I use Adobe CC to make a living and have no problem with it as a subscription as I do like that pretty much everyone in the industry now is on the same version and I find that incredibly valuable. I do think an option for those one time buyer types would be great, but that is not a market Adobe is really going after and there are great alternatives that are completely free now for those people.
The thing is we as users never asked for constant updates to the apps we use; that was a developer decision. All we really ask is that they still work when we change phones or update to a new OS version.
If developers want to sell add-on packs with new features later down the line that is perfectly fine: we shouldn't get them for free. But users never asked for constant engagement, constant updates or the subscription model. We were happy paying a small upfront fee just as we do with physical products.
I don't expect Toyota to come and respray my car every 6 months.
I don't think you can say that for all users. Lots of users expect/want regular updates for bug fixes and improved functionality.
As the great Shigeru Miyamoto once said: "A delayed game is eventually good but a rushed game is forever bad". I'm not saying devs should be expected to release every app bug-free on day one, and indeed removing them only makes an app a better purchase for future buyers.
But just because we have the convenience of instant distribution does not mean we (as users) should expect apps or games to gain functionality over time. Developers choose that working model, not us. We should not be penalised with the subscription business model because they never wanted to just make a single working product and then move on to something new.
Upgrade pricing would also solve this, but isn't offered by Apple.
I don't like the lack of a stronger incentive structure that happens with subscriptions.
To justify a new purchase, more work had to go into creating something that's truly a major update and improvement and the business had to be earned (keep using existing version or spring for a new purchase).
Pros/Cons to both systems and I wish both were required by Apple to be offered
(Subscriptions and one time purchases for the life of an OS version)
There's less and less ways to avoid this because this model is spreading everywhere - even beyond software realm.
When we look at Microsoft then they will probably soon be providing only subscriptions. They have morphed from Windows-centric company to cloud-based company - but as of now only Office and Windows desktop OS can be had on perpetual licensing model. All server products are on subscription only...
When we look at Microsoft then they will probably soon be providing only subscriptions. They have morphed from Windows-centric company to cloud-based company - but as of now only Office and Windows desktop OS can be had on perpetual licensing model. All server products are on subscription only...
“All we really ask is that they still work when we change phones or update to a new OS version”
Even that is work done for free for an app you bought once. Sometimes new iOS versions completely break apps, and it requires a lot of work to fix (happened with me once, Apple dropped a feature the app can’t function without). Also, Apple enfoces that apps have to get updated once every 3 years, even if it was working properly, and not to forget the $99 a year fee Apple requires.
The way I see it, the one-time payment is unfair to developers. Greedy subscriptions are unfair to consumers.
I agree! Allowing people to buy app updates would easily solve this. I don’t see Apple doing it though.
Then perhaps the onus is on Apple to add an emulation layer to iOS to ensure old apps don’t need updating?
That's exactly what I do. I don't pay for any apps that requires subscription, not even the Adobe CCC apps. All I use are standalone apps that I pay for upfront, and there are plenty of these.
This is entirely the fault of the App Stores. Fundamentally I'm with @wonderings but the App Stores don't allow for that model. There's no facility to voluntarily just pay for an upgrade to a new version of the same app like there used to be when we bought apps on physical media or downloaded them from a dev's website.
But as for subscribing to an alarm-clock app...sorry I've no sympathy there, because that's crazy sh.... Stop being so smart-tech dependent and just buy a bloody bedside clock and plug it into a wall socket.
But as for subscribing to an alarm-clock app...sorry I've no sympathy there, because that's crazy sh.... Stop being so smart-tech dependent and just buy a bloody bedside clock and plug it into a wall socket.