It’s been close to a decade since I first started being grumpy about subscription apps. I did acknowledge the benefits right from the start, including giving many developers a more sustainable income, but expressed my unease about where we were headed.
A few years later, I voiced doubts as to whether it was a sustainable business model. But the trend has continued to grow, with Apple Creator Studio the latest example …
While I don’t claim to be neutral, I do acknowledge both sides of the argument.
The arguments for subscription apps
There are two main arguments in favour of subscription apps, one for consumers, the other for developers.
For consumers, supporters would argue that subscriptions make many apps more accessible. Outright purchase of a set of apps aimed at creative professionals can run from hundreds of dollars to four figures. Making those same apps available for a monthly fee means they are within reach of more people.
That argument is at its strongest when we have only an occasional need for a particular app or set of apps. It may be greatly preferable to pay $10 or $20 for a few months of a year than to pay hundreds of dollars to buy an app outright.
For developers, subscriptions give them a more sustainable and predictable income stream than purchases. Many argue that this makes it much more practical for them to continue to develop and innovate, and thus benefits consumers too.
The argument against subscription apps
I’ll also acknowledge that it’s really argument singular against subscription apps: the ever-growing cumulative cost of everything that we rent rather than own.
What started out as a handful of apps and services using subscription models is rapidly becoming the norm. While individual monthly subscriptions may be as low as $2 or $3, many are significantly more expensive. It’s only when you add them all up that the true cost of the rental model becomes apparent.
A report last year found that the average American was spending almost $1,000 a year on subscription video services alone. That’s before we even get started on subscription apps, streaming music, cloud storage, backup services, AI chatbots, and more.
That total is only ever going to increase as more and more apps make the switch to a subscription model. At what point do we decide that things have gone too far? $100 per month? $200? $500? That ever-increasing total is the basis of my objection to the model.
Is Apple Creator Studio more palatable?
As much as I dislike subscription apps on principle, I do have to admit that the new Apple Creator Studio bundle is likely a very good deal for many creative professionals.
It’s not a like-for-like comparison, and which of the two packages will suit you better depends on your needs, but just as an illustration a standard Adobe Creative Cloud Pro subscription will cost you almost $800 a year if you commit to annual billing.
Opt instead for month-to-month billing and it will run you more than $100 a month – and you can more than double either of those costs if you need to buy additional credits for generative AI features.
Apple Creator Studio, in contrast, is $129 a year or $13 a month, and appears to offer all the AI you can eat.
Even better, Apple isn’t forcing you to rent the apps: each one of them is still available as an outright purchase. That may be a better deal if you don’t need all of the included apps, or if you expect to use them over several years and don’t need the AI-generated content. Choice is always good.
Top comment by Ryan
I’m too burnt out on subscriptions, and something needs to be done to rein them in.
Why they didn’t have multiple options makes this an instant pass also.
I just want Pixelmator Pro (one time payment) for the iPad. I don’t need all the video apps or AI slop in Pages etc.
My only concern is how long this position might last. Apple could choose to withdraw the outright purchase options at any point in the future.
What’s your take?
What’s your take on this development? Do you think that the value offered by an Apple Creator Studio subscription justifies the company’s use of a rental model? Would you still feel the same if Apple later withdrew the option to buy the apps outright?
Please take our poll and share your thoughts in the comments.
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