Tired of monthly subscriptions

[FreakinEurekan]

Looking at it from the perspective of a developer - I'd be fine with one-and-done pricing, as long as it only runs on the version of the OS it was developed for. And perhaps some customers would be fine with that... I know there are still people out there running OS X Snow Leopard or iOS 14, etc.

But of course most users will want to upgrade their OS, and that will require ongoing maintenance to keep the OLD versions of the app running on the NEW versions of the OS. As a dev, now I have to decide if the effort of updating the app is worth any NEW users I might gain, because all of those original users are now sunk-costs. At some point I'll decide nope, it's not worth it, and just abandon it.

And that's where subscription model makes sense to me. Instead of paying $$$ for an app, I'll pay $ for a year - renew it at $ the next year - and so on and so forth; but I'm confident that the app will continue to support the new versions of the OS as I upgrade. And of course if it does not - I quit paying the $ and the developer loses that revenue stream. So they're incentivized to continue updating.

Ultimately, of course, I'm paying more for the app (over time) than I would have if I'd paid for it all up-front. That assumes that I do continue paying for it - which means that the app is still running well and handling the updates properly. But I also have the option of discontinuing payment if my needs change, or the app isn't keeping up with the times. That's a fair trade-off to me.

Reasonably-priced subscription model is really a win-win. Devs get an ongoing revenue stream, and users get reliable operation and regular updates; plus the ability to only pay while they're actually using the app. One-and-done is great for users; not so great for devs.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

Looking at it from the perspective of a developer - I'd be fine with one-and-done pricing, as long as it only runs on the version of the OS it was developed for. And perhaps some customers would be fine with that... I know there are still people out there running OS X Snow Leopard or iOS 14, etc.

But of course most users will want to upgrade their OS, and that will require ongoing maintenance to keep the OLD versions of the app running on the NEW versions of the OS. As a dev, now I have to decide if the effort of updating the app is worth any NEW users I might gain, because all of those original users are now sunk-costs. At some point I'll decide nope, it's not worth it, and just abandon it.

And that's where subscription model makes sense to me. Instead of paying $$$ for an app, I'll pay $ for a year - renew it at $ the next year - and so on and so forth; but I'm confident that the app will continue to support the new versions of the OS as I upgrade. And of course if it does not - I quit paying the $ and the developer loses that revenue stream. So they're incentivized to continue updating.

Ultimately, of course, I'm paying more for the app (over time) than I would have if I'd paid for it all up-front. That assumes that I do continue paying for it - which means that the app is still running well and handling the updates properly. But I also have the option of discontinuing payment if my needs change, or the app isn't keeping up with the times. That's a fair trade-off to me.

Reasonably-priced subscription model is really a win-win. Devs get an ongoing revenue stream, and users get reliable operation and regular updates; plus the ability to only pay while they're actually using the app. One-and-done is great for users; not so great for devs.

A lot of the standalone apps have free updates for over a year or more, and most can be used through OS upgrades. But some photo editing apps can turn into quite a large sum of money when paid by the month and year. For example for me is relatively inexpensive to buy a standalone photo editing app like Lemke Software's Graphic Converter, or DXO Photo Lab with the NIK Software Bundle, and so on. I can use software such as these for a period of three years right through OS upgrades since the software updates are free. Not only that, but I don't have to turn my network WiFi every time I need to edit any of my photos. I could say the same in relation to Home Inventory 4 versus a similar app that has a subscription model. I would dislike with a passion having to pay for a subscription, worst of all, online once month just to have the right to use a home inventory app.

See, there is a stiff competition between the creators of these "standalone" apps, and also between large companies that have only subscription models. The bottom line for me is that it is cheaper to use standalone photo editing or an "utility" app than using the subscription model.

Now I do have a few apps that I must subscribe to for one year period. For example SmugMug, and ClamXAV. Of these two SmugMug costs around $100.00 per year, and ClamXAV' if I well remember, $36.00 (?).

I forgot to mention the following: lest say that while I still don't need to upgrade from Photo Lab 8 to Photo Lab 9 which is the latest upgrade, I can upgrade to Photo Lab 9 for $54.00 or so. While I just took that step (upgrade to PL9) a couple of weeks ago, I can still use Photo Lab 8 for a year or two more if that's what I wanted. The license key for the photo editing apps I have mentioned are emailed to me, and also shown in my account, right under each one of my purchased apps at the designer's website. In this case all the apps' updates and upgrades from years past to the present are listed, and so each key license. As such I own each of the licenses and can download and install older versions of the same app to use in older computers.

~Meanwhile, I do understand what you have written above. That's what works best for you, which is not wrong at all.

 

[Happy_John]

Subscriptions are horrible, yes. But user expectation is a big part of the problem; people will be outraged at the sticker price of a „pay once” license, even when it is far cheaper than paying a monthly subscription fee over a two year period.

The internet model has totally screwed up a lot of people’s ability to put an accurate monetary value on things. Nothing is free.

 

[sparksd]

Subscriptions are horrible, yes. But user expectation is a big part of the problem; people will be outraged at the sticker price of a „pay once” license, even when it is far cheaper than paying a monthly subscription fee over a two year period.

The internet model has totally screwed up a lot of people’s ability to put an accurate monetary value on things. Nothing is free.

Yeah, people are always looking for free or cheap apps. It would be a difficult living to make, developing mobile apps.

 

[BrianBaughn]

I'd pay someone $20/month if they could make me subscription-free.

 

[iHorseHead]

You can not pay for them and look for alternatives.
I use Pixelmator Pro instead of Photoshop etc

 

[Happy_John]

You can not pay for them and look for alternatives.
I use Pixelmator Pro instead of Photoshop etc

I finally made the switch from Photoshop to Pixelmater Pro about a year and a half ago.

If I'm being honest, Pixelmater Pro is not as good as Photoshop, but it is enough of a "clone" to not have had much of a learning curve when switching, and it fits my needs as well as Photoshop. And, compared to Photoshop, it's ridiculously cheap.

I was sick of Abode's pricing structure. It felt like a shakedown every month. At least Microsoft 365 kept within reasonable levels when it comes to charging monthly for work-essential software.

 

[max2]

Depends on what it is.

Overall though some things should not be if possible. If there few developers or even just one then that changes things too.

 

[Camera M]

From the developer's perspective, apps have been getting complex over the years.

The basic $0.99...$2.99 structure started back then, when apps were small and basically did what widgets would do. Now the ecosystems have gotten more complex, and developing for them takes more effort and time, which leads to the need for more manpower.

Also, with the fixed upfront price structure, you run out of buyers at some point, at least a decline.

However, some apps do have subscriptions that are overpriced, in my opinion.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

From the developer's perspective, apps have been getting complex over the years.

The basic $0.99...$2.99 structure started back then, when apps were small and basically did what widgets would do. Now the ecosystems have gotten more complex, and developing for them takes more effort and time, which leads to the need for more manpower.

Also, with the fixed upfront price structure, you run out of buyers at some point, at least a decline.

However, some apps do have subscriptions that are overpriced, in my opinion.

A decline can happen to all software creators and sellers, regardless if the customer pays for a monthly or yearly fee, or just pays upfront. See...the problem facing any business, regardless of being small or not, is figuring which product or service can hold the greatest clientele. But regardless of "model type," the developer, or creator, or the seller, has to compete against all others or at least find a foothold in the middle if he or she wants to stay in business.

For example, Adobe provides its customers with a great variety of the products they, the customers, want or need. However, a great number of people, photographers, publishers, and so on, fall into other categories of clients who for various reasons may not need or want to be tied to subscription models. And it is here where there is a market for the non-subcription model.

I stopped using the very expensive -around $500.00 or more back then- Adobe CS5 and the CS6 when this company stopped updating CS6, and would never subscribe to use any of its photo-editing apps, since there are several standalone photo-editing apps I can use through several OS updates for a period of 3,4, or even more years.

 

[MBAir2010]

I have had a balance of .49¢ on my  account for two years now.
march 17 2026 will be my 3rd anniversary!

perhaps a cheap champagne app is in order!

 

[AlaskaMoose]

I have had a balance of .49¢ on my  account for two years now.
march 17 2026 will be my 3rd anniversary!

perhaps a cheap champagne app is in order!

Yes, I should have had a balance of a few cents at the Music Store for a few years already, but not enough use it to buy another song.

 

[lostPod]

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.

I'm using the cheaper Photography subscription ... I don't know if I would use it if it were any higher in price.

But yes I should have mentioned using THEIR servers which is a main reason why I do not mind the sub. I'm probably jinxing myself by saying that LOL.

 

[circatee]

Honestly, subscriptions are actually a way of life now, for virtually all services.
My gripe with it is that, some developers take a monthly service fee (Grocery list with sync) and then all of a sudden stop updates and support, yet continue to take a monthly fee.

The "Grocery list with sync" app, is a prime example of that. I only found out about it, when I went to contact support, only to learn that I had been paying for the app for years, only for the developer to have stopped working on the app etcetera in over a year!

 

[turbineseaplane]

My gripe with it is that, some developers take a monthly service fee (Grocery list with sync) and then all of a sudden stop updates and support, yet continue to take a monthly fee.

Exactly the fundamental problem with subscriptions in software.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

Exactly the fundamental problem with subscriptions in software.

So your solution is to pay a large sum for software up-front - and THEN if it quits working, you're just out the cost?

This is also the BENEFIT of subscriptions in software. If it quits working and they don't fix it, you stop paying & they lose their revenue stream. So they're generally motivated not to do that. It still happens, of course - but (hopefully) less often.