The way consumers purchase software has changed a lot over the past decade.
And with the advent of software as a service and subscription-based plans, we’re probably not going back to the gold old days.
Capture One users were recently reminded of this very modern phenomenon when they were told that perpetual license holders were no longer guaranteed access to new features and functionality in the future.
The change isn’t immediate – in fact, it doesn’t take effect until February 2023 – but that hasn’t stopped some users from expressing their thoughts on the matter.
In a blog post explaining the change, Capture One unequivocally states: “After 1st February 2023, new perpetual license purchases will not include any feature updates. This means that any updates containing new features and functionality will not be included in your license purchase. However, bug fixes and optimizations will be included(16.x.x) until a new paid version is released. Finally as a subscription always provides you with access to the latest version, subscribers will also not be affected by these changes.”
What about people that purchase licenses prior to this change? The blog post says that those users will “receive free updates until September 30th, 2023”; however, “If you wish to get a new version of Capture One Pro after September 30th, 2023, you will need to buy a new license.”
Additionally, Capture One is going to rely more heavily on a loyalty program moving forward rather than differentiating products through upgrades. Interestingly, details on that loyalty program were not available as of press but will be made public before February 2023.
If you’re a Capture One user, we’d love to know your thoughts on the change to perpetual licenses in the comments.
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