Now that Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for iPad are official, let’s talk about pricing. These apps coming out on a random day in May is surprising. Subscription pricing? Not so much. Nevertheless, pricing for these long overdue apps is interesting when you consider their Mac counterparts and the Apple One bundle.
First, let’s address the Mac apps.
How would Apple price Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for Mac if they were released today? In the era of service revenue, Apple would almost certainly charge a subscription fee for access rather than a one-time fee.
Mac users have had years of free updates to Logic and Final Cut Pro after paying once for each app. In fact, Logic Pro X will be a decade old in July, and Final Cut Pro X turns 12 next month. The price of Logic Pro for Mac today ($199.99) is the same as four years of subscribing to Logic Pro for iPad, and Final Cut Pro for Mac ($299.99) will equal six years of paying for the iPad version.
That’s not to argue that the iPad versions a $4.99/month or $49.99/year per app are overpriced. The Mac apps have just proved to be an excellent value for customers over the years.
For Apple, it may be time to consider switching the Mac apps to subscription pricing. Microsoft and Adobe already enjoy subscription revenue from Mac app customers. Apple is missing a revenue opportunity.
Legacy customers could continue receiving free updates, and new customers would pay the subscription fee. While it would be more profitable, cutting off existing customers from updates doesn’t seem like the Apple way.
Mac apps aside, charging a service fee for access to creation tools is a new business for Apple.
Top comment by Hayden M
It's really quite simple. Offer both a subscription model, and a purchasable license. Developers deserve to be paid for their work, but I decide when the work they have done is valuable. If they want to charge for major version updates, that's fine. Subscriptions are not the only way for devs to be properly compensated. If they provide new features that I find valuable, I'll pay them more for their work. That should be the users choice though. A subscription model implies a steady stream of income, which can be good, but it can also make development lazy. Adobe has mastered this. Avid is even worse. They already know they're going to be paid. Why even try? Apple is about to be a three trillion dollar company. They don't need help with development. Subscriptions make more sense for smaller companies. Not as much for Apple.
Apple uses its software to draw people into hardware sales. One of the ways I justify the price of a Mac is through the price of software (though I do love my Mac in general). If that model gets switched, I can happily do my work on my PC and/or different software. Luckily, I'm quite versed in the major platforms.
Today Apple sees service revenue from access to content (Music, Arcade, TV+, Fitness+, News+), server storage (iCloud+), and hardware insurance (AppleCare+). Xcode used to require a paid membership for access but is now free, and the fee is really for access to publish on Apple’s App Store.
Apple does earn revenue from subscription fees to creation tools from other companies through App Store fees, but Final Cut Pro and Logic pricing is a new model for Apple.
Is there room for Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro in the Apple One Premier bundle? Apple One Premier Pro, anyone? Adobe already has claim to Premiere Pro, so Apple might need to workshop that one.
Is bringing Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro to iPad a unique situation, or could a new suite of subscription software from Apple be an opportunity? Sound off in the comments, and tell us what you think.
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