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Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

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Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#151

Post by orbit7 »

I think in some cases having a core paid/free owned software is good, then paying subscriptions for extra features within it. Additionally blockchain software is new area for example holding purchased tokens providing liquidity to the software company is another model to be explored.

But some software just due to the interconnected nature of it needs to be subscription based to cover the cost of running it before even getting into the ongoing development, bug fixes etc. In many cases I'd sooner pay for well maintained software than something under funded and as such not maintained. Subscriptions is opex vs capex meaning paying less than what a lot of software would be affordable to buy as a one off purchase at this point.

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#152

Post by manigandham »

webmobdev wrote: post #139
mattjenner wrote: post #21

Dear innovative people: think of a better model. 1. Free = problematic with the lack of money 2. Freemium = looks good if the balance is right 3. Ads = Mostly works but the model is flawed and skewed 4. Subscription = Love/Hate currently trendy but too relied on 5. Pay-what-you-can = Fans provide the service for everyone 6. Premium only = Only what it's worth, when it's worth 7. Enterprise = S'ok because my company/o…

Let me add some more fuel to the debate - How can software-as-a-service be regulated in a way that it balances consumer rights and the rights of a business? Perhaps: 1. Every SaaS business should be compelled to offer both a subscription price and perpetual license at a fixed price. 2. The fixed price of a perpetual license should not be more than 10x or 20x (?) of the monthly subscription price. 3. If a user has opt…

Regulation is the worst solution to any of this. Let the free market figure it out and you'll find enough competition if there really is enough demand.

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#153

Post by sorrychuck »

jeromegv wrote: post #87
andix wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

After paying for housing, power, food, insurance, transportation, savings, …, I have maybe 1000$ left for spending every month. I don’t want to spend 10% of it for some apps/services that save me maybe a few minutes every months, for tasks that can be also somehow achieved with the apps that came with my phone.

Then you’re not the target market. It’s just supply and demand. If not enough people want to pay that subscription, they will stop and change model (or shut down). But if this is sustainable enough to pay for their dev, it doesn’t look like they should cater to you as those are non critical tasks for you and they barely have any impact on your life.

> Then you’re not the target market.

This is correct. Most of the complaints here amount to “it’s too expensive” which like, yeah, it’s too expensive for you. So don’t buy it.

(Somehow HN — on average, obviously not everyone, but the zeitgeist say — manages to at once complain about companies constantly losing money, and also about companies that charge money!)

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#154

Post by pyrrhotech »

xg15 wrote: post #10
boffinism wrote: post #4

Dear customers: we know. But our businesses are viable as subscription services, and not as one-off or ad-hoc puchase models. We know because we tried them. So we're catering to the people who are OK with buying a subscription because there are enough of them. Sorry if that doesn't suit you.

> But our businesses are viable as subscription services, and not as one-off or ad-hoc puchase models. Doesn't explain businesses that had been per-purchase for a long time and are now still switching to subscriptions though. (E.g. photoshop, jetbrains...)

take a look at ADBE stock chart before and after they switched to SAAS model

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#155

Post by dwighttk »

ChildOfChaos wrote: post #50
xg15 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> But our businesses are viable as subscription services, and not as one-off or ad-hoc puchase models. Doesn't explain businesses that had been per-purchase for a long time and are now still switching to subscriptions though. (E.g. photoshop, jetbrains...)

Agreed, it's usually nothing to do with the fact they weren't viable before, it's just that subscriptions are more profitable. With cost of living crisis and such, soon enough though it won't be able to last. People are already cancelling one of the biggest main subscriptions they have (netflix). Also I fear this is really changing society. Many years ago, as you got older you got into a better place in life because…

>nothing to do with the fact they weren't viable before, it's just that subscriptions are more profitable.

more profitable is more likely to be viable in more future situations

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#156

Post by usrusr »

muppetman wrote: post #144
jwr wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That sounds like a cynical take, but is actually close to the truth. The usual take is that businesses are "greedy" and subscription models are "lucrative". The word I'd rather use is "sustainable". Maintaining software (any software) is an ongoing process, not a one-time effort. It needs to be paid for on an ongoing basis. Even a tiny phone app needs regular maintenance work just to stay current with OS and tools de…

Windows 3.11, Office, Windows 95 etc seem to have done ok without monthly payments.

And they were all funded in the paid update model. Subscription is a consequence of products running on the cloud (where you certainly wouldn't want to operate old versions for customers who refuse to update) and of the lifetime background updates established by app stores.

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#157

Post by StevenWaterman »

mattjenner wrote: post #21

Dear innovative people: think of a better model. 1. Free = problematic with the lack of money 2. Freemium = looks good if the balance is right 3. Ads = Mostly works but the model is flawed and skewed 4. Subscription = Love/Hate currently trendy but too relied on 5. Pay-what-you-can = Fans provide the service for everyone 6. Premium only = Only what it's worth, when it's worth 7. Enterprise = S'ok because my company/o…

Metered usage, pay for what you use

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#158

Post by alanfranz »

cinntaile wrote: post #147
alanfranz wrote: post #104

One thing the article seems to miss out: price. Some subscriptions are horribly expensive. $8/month for something I’d be happy to pay $10/year. That’s the real problem. A lot of services come out at $50/$60 per year with minimal improvements over an OSS or ad-supported tool.

But can a developer live off of $10/year? You would need a lot of customers, compared to a more expensive $8/month model.

Of course. But maybe you don’t need one million features and $500M vc investment.

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#159

Post by pessimizer »

jagged-chisel wrote: post #123
pakitan wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Also I fear this is really changing society. Many years ago, as you got older you got into a better place in life because you had saved up and bought all the stuff you need and slowly aqquired good equipment and everything you need. Your grandfather's wheelbarrow didn't need replacing every 2 years but he also didn't have Netflix. You can easily have your grandfather's lifestyle by buying a future-proof wheelbarrow…

Are future-proof wheelbarrows being made now? If the trend of lower quality power tools has reached wheelbarrows, you probably still have to replace one every few years.

They're only slightly lower quality, but now you rent them in kg/m increments. Once your account is empty, the wheelbarrow will be disabled until you recharge through the app. If you're done with the wheelbarrow, you should just leave it on the sidewalk. I'm sure someone will pick it up.

Re: Dear startups: I hate subscription services (2021)

#160

Post by tmikaeld »

mattjenner wrote: post #21

Dear innovative people: think of a better model. 1. Free = problematic with the lack of money 2. Freemium = looks good if the balance is right 3. Ads = Mostly works but the model is flawed and skewed 4. Subscription = Love/Hate currently trendy but too relied on 5. Pay-what-you-can = Fans provide the service for everyone 6. Premium only = Only what it's worth, when it's worth 7. Enterprise = S'ok because my company/o…

Pay-for-use is a fair and transparent variant, don't use the service? don't pay.
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