Subscription Model

[elementalpress]

Well, in general there is nothing wrong with a subscription model. BUT - and this is the huge difference to other companies following a subscription model - there is no roadmap and no vision available. The value-add is not visible to me.

I can see tons of updates and new features for example at Adobe. Here the subscription model is a real benefit for the users. But what updates/features would enrich PM? How frequent would it be? Also when I remember the past, for how long users had to wait for major updates but also some bug fixes...

CB should publish a roadmap to give its customers a clear vision/outlook. This would be helpful to reduce users' doubts about the new model (at the moment it just looks like making money).

[bildbaendiger]

New email and blog post from the founder. A perpetual license will be offered. Details to follow.
https://home.camerabits.com/2023/11/12/changes-coming-to-photo-mechanic/

This are good news and a complete change for me:
I would never have been able to end the subscription with a subscription alone, otherwise i would no longer be able to use the program.
With the option of an additional perpetual license, I can now choose whether the features of the actual PM are enough for me or whether I want to pay for new ones (whether by subscription or license).
Thanks Dennis for listening to the feedback from your customers.

[hya]

I’m not happy about this as I now have to rent another piece of my workflow. I understand this is where the software industry is headed, and am sad that another beloved application has moved to that model. I don’t look forward to the day when we all have to cut costs due to a market slowdown and PM ends up on the cutting block because another subscription I’m already paying for, like Lightroom CC, becomes “good enough."

What Camerabits should've done was enforce the one year upgrade policy for licenses. It's almost given that, since Apple has yearly MacOS upgrades that break the app one way or another, Mac users will pay for a license once they upgrade their OS.

[Max Lemesh]

And as it was said many times, having useful features, a road map and frequent updates will surely justify the subscription cost for most.

Also an option of perpetual licence after subscription would be good to have. Similar to Capture One model, where you can keep paying the sub for latest updates, or stay with last version you were eligible to use, or get a discount of purchasing one. Say PM7 releases in 2024, and after full year of subscription you are able to keep using PM7 (2024) perpetually, however not the features of next major update of  say PM7.1 (2025).

[jgrove]

Customer pressure helps and that is possible the case here, but it still doesn't explain the lack of clarity over the move to universal/silicon binary code, the lack of any road map for future versions of PM. Yes I agree that we have got bugs fixes etc which comes with the purchase of the current perpetual license, but we just dont have any details on the direction Camera Bits is moving in

[samknutson]

I don't have a problem with a reasonably priced subscription model provided consistent investment in new development is made.  Adobe has a reasonably priced Photography plan and has aggressively and impressively updated Photoshop and Lightroom Classic.  The development of PM so far is not remotely as good.  I love VueScan and it has a perpetual licence model and constant innovation and releases from one developer.  Hamrick recently announced a subscription model and a supporter program where perpetual license holders could voluntarily sign up for annual donation to support development.  I don't know how many takers he got but I signed up. 

PM needs to do the things that users have been pounding on the ceiling for!   
Native Apple silicon binary and reduced CPU use all around
facial recognition/AI search the current database features in PMPlus don't help me too duplicative of what I can already do in LrC. 

Feels like a cash grab right now because I have been nipped to death by fees, subscriptions and opt-out tipping and I like PM but I don't love PM.  I'm giving feedback to the Lightroom Product Managers every chance I get to add the few features I would need to ditch PM easily.  This just gives me a reason to push harder on them.

[nick]

my 2 cents.

I teach photography and journalism in a high school on a shoestring budget (think, teacher pays for everything). I literally just purchased a few licenses for my photo kids and journalism kids.  We run an online newspaper and PM has become a crucial tool for our keywording and metadata workflow.  I don't have a funding stream to support a handful of licenses on a monthly basis.  Schools just don't work that way. 

What's the plan for teachers and education?  We're training your future users. 

I can beg for money once a year, but the principal will never commit to handing over the credit card and signing up for subscriptions.

If I've got 4 licenses, does that me I need 4 subscriptions?  Lame, if so.

[Claude Diderich]

I potentially like the subscription model because it keeps me up to date with the software that I regularly use (as is the case with Adobe Photoshop and Office 365) without continuously having to make the decision whether it is worth upgrading or not.

But, that comes with a but, and that but states that I will get regular feature updates as part of my subscription. And currently, CameraBits with PhotoMechanics does not have a track record of rolling-out such new features (and I honestly don't know what such features could be that would be of value to me). Therefore I will probably stick with my perpetual license until I am sufficiently confident that CameraBits can deliver a regular stream of valued features beyond bug and security fixes. And the subscription price should be aligned with the value that those features offer.

A model where I could get a perpetual license that I can upgrade whenever I want to the latest version for a discount and CameraBits only supporting the latest version at any given point in time would be a solution that probably would find more enthusiasts (especially due to the lack of continuous features roll-out track record).

And keep in mind that moving to a subscription model means that no efforts have to be put into maintaining older versions, which means that these resources get freed at CamerBits (and should be part of the pricing).

And the regular updates (that I would expect with a subscription) need to be seamless, like with Adobe's CreativeCloud, rather than having to explicitly run an install each time.

[charlesteton]

Not sure what to think or do! Does that mean we will never see a native Apple silicon version? Trouble is that there is no info at all what a subscription based version will bring or pricing. Seems like since M1 came out it's been in maintenance mode behind the scenes, 'if not' just tell us what the road plan is, so we can make an informed decision. Thanks.

Great news that PM are going to offer a one off license as well as subscription. Would love to see road map and pricing details?

I've been using PM since version 3 or 4, so a fair time, it's always been mega fast for viewing and sorting. Now I have Apple M2 Mac, I tried the PM 6 demo, running through Rosetta, but it just choked! Actually been looking for an alternative to PM but there is nothing out there to match, just need the speed back with Apple silicon and would be happy.

[Max Lemesh]

Actually been looking for an alternative to PM but there is nothing out there to match

I've been looking for alternatives over last few years, just out of curiosity, but nothing comes close to PM.
I think that is part of the problem — in absence of competition we have what we have plus a subscription coming up.

[jgrove]

Actually been looking for an alternative to PM but there is nothing out there to match

I've been looking for alternatives over last few years, just out of curiosity, but nothing comes close to PM.
I think that is part of the problem — in absence of competition we have what we have plus a subscription coming up.

I suppose it depends on what functions you use? For example PM is the only editor that can write IPTC date to NEF files, I do find that useful, but its not really needed as other metal data options are available that dont alter the original file. If it's for FTP upload then this is a niche area and the way PM does this is pretty unique.

FastRAWViewer
ApolloOne
RAWPower

are all alternatives, heck even Bridge (if you can cope with the bugs)

My concern is that PM positions itself in a very niche area and that the wider customer base drops it, this kind of happened to Fotostation for those that remember.

Anyway, we've seen nothing about a new version, so most of us are just speculating, its just a shame we haven't seen any information from CB surrounding the future for the product and not the future of the pricing model.

[Max Lemesh]

FastRAWViewer
ApolloOne
RAWPower

Tried them all, even bought FastRawViewer.

They have their strengths and features, the ones I would love to have in PM. However overall though they do few things that PM does, sometimes better than PM, but they do not do everything that PM does.

 I have a checklist of things an app needs to do to be considered a PM equal... and the closest one on my list is Capture One )

[Claude Diderich]

Actually been looking for an alternative to PM but there is nothing out there to match

I've been looking for alternatives over last few years, just out of curiosity, but nothing comes close to PM.
I think that is part of the problem — in absence of competition we have what we have plus a subscription coming up.

I blieve that "FotoStation Pro" (https://www.fotoware.com/fotostation) comes close to the functionalities (at least the ones that I use), bit it is way more expensive that PhotoMechanics!

[bildbaendiger]

I have a checklist of things an app needs to do to be considered a PM equal... and the closest one on my list is Capture One

There are already some programs with similar features as PM6, Capture One would not be in my selection.
In my opinion, a good program with similar functions to PM6 is digiKam https://www.digikam.org/
For an open soucre program, it is typically packed with functions, some of which are too much for me. It is therefore not as clear and simple as PM6.
I use it as a replacement for PM6 on Linux machines.

[Max Lemesh]

I blieve that "FotoStation Pro" (https://www.fotoware.com/fotostation) comes close to the functionalities (at least the ones that I use), bit it is way more expensive that PhotoMechanics!

too bad you can't just download and try it, and from the website it is not clear what it does and why it is any good.