Subsription Models per se are not the problem but the artificial
restrictions Autodesk builds in.
There are customer friendly ways to do the subscription and contract
thing and customer unfriendly ways.
I have subscripition contracts at other companys. There is no
restriction for older versions. And I get a License which works forever.
And I dont have to beg on knees for the permission to use older
versions. And I think these companies still earn enough money to make
their business run. And I support their way of business by paying the
subscription because I know there is development and improvement. And
they keep their promises.
Remember: Autodesk always promised to keep Softimage alive. And
everybody using SI was ready to believe it (with a queer feeling in the
stomach). So I paid subscription. And now?
But what AD does is extortion in the best sense of the word in my opinion.
What do you think how big is my trust in AD?
Stephan
One other thing to consider is that software business models are evolving
throughout the industry. Subscription models are becoming increasingly common.
Things have changed a lot along the way – when I started in the industry, you
could pay $60K for a paint system (Matador 64). Maya 1.0 with all its modules
cost around $30K. For many people the price of entry was completely
prohibitive. Subscription models allow businesses to plan their budget and keep
their outgoings at a consistent level, while rental programs enable them to
vary their capacity according to need.
If you find a software business that doesn’t exist to make money, then you’ll
probably find one that won’t exist for long.
Jill
