Software as a service (SaaS) is nothing new. But what is new is the number of major professional software vendors that are going down this path. I know there are people who like the idea of SaaS. But beware, as all paths do not lead to the same destination. Are you buying software, or merely renting it? Unfortunately, it depends. Let’s take a look at some popular pro audio and video applications, and examine their licenses to see exactly what you’re getting, and whether you or the company benefits most from the SaaS business model.
Avid Software
Avid Software has released Media Composer 8.2.3, the latest update to the video editing tool used by many major motion picture studios. While you can still buy the program outright for $1,299, the subscription price for Media Composer is $79.99 per month. The licensing terms are obviously written by lawyers, which means you may need one to decipher exactly what you are paying for. However, this summary from the Avid website is very clear:
“Each month, Avid will bill you the monthly fee for your subscription (the fee will depend upon which type of subscription you sign up for.) In order to validate that your subscription is in good standing (i.e. you have paid for that month), you must connect your Media Composer system to the Internet. You only need to connect it once each month on the anniversary of your initial sign-up (if you started your subscription on May 15th, then your Media Composer system must be connected to the internet on June 15th, the date that you’ll be billed by Avid.) If your subscription is in good standing, the Media Composer software will continue to run for another month until it’s time to validate your subscription again. If your subscription is not in good standing (i.e. you did not renew, your payment was not received, etc.), the Media Composer software will stop running and you will no longer have access to your subscription products.”
So, with the subscription option, even if you’ve already paid hundreds of dollars, if you miss a monthly payment, or don’t have access on a given date, the software no longer works! Obviously, in this case, you are only renting the software.
Pro Tools, Avid’s audio editing software, has long been considered the industry standard Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) software in the music business. While some of the newer and more user-friendly programs are making headway, you still won’t find a major studio, or many home studios, that does not have Pro Tools installed. So, it was a shock to many when they released Pro Tools 12.0 on a subscription basis. The monthly fee is a reasonable $29.99. Currently, it is still possible to buy the full product outright for $899. But, if you plan on upgrading when a new version becomes available, you need an annual “upgrade plan” that is an additional $199 per year. The annual “upgrade plan” is included in subscription models, but if you bought the product outright, the cost is $199 per year just for the option of paying the upgrade price when a new version is available. Pro Tools 11 owners have until the end of 2015 to get on an upgrade plan, or else they will be forced to pay full price if they decide to purchase the latest version at a later date.
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