Ask OutlinerSoftware: Subscription vs One time pricing?

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Posted by BrainTool
Jan 17, 2022 at 06:20 PM

Hi All,
I’m getting close to the point of enforcing licensing on my BrainTool browser extension.

I’ve seen some comments here and from some BT early adopters that some people will only consider one time pricing. I’d love to get some thoughts from this group.

My current model is a 1:10 ratio for monthly to yearly pricing ($4/mo or $40/yr). I’m considering adding one or both of the following:
- 1:10:25 pricing, whereby a lifetime subscription option is 25 times the monthly sub (in this case $100)
- Stop paying the sub at any time, you no longer get updates or support but keep access to the version you are on.

BrainTool is Freemium, open source (the free version will always be, not sure about paid features), and gives you full access to your data in plain text (org-mode) format. I want to compete on features and utility, not lock in. You can see the current pricing page here: https://braintool.org/pricing

Is 1:10:25 the right ratio? Does ongoing access to your paid up version alleviate the need for a one-time price?

Thanks and regards,
Tony

Posted by Ahmed fawzy
Jan 18, 2022 at 04:13 AM

Personally I prefer the first option:
Lifetime always updates version.

Posted by Andy Brice
Jan 18, 2022 at 08:59 AM

You need to be clear what you mean by a ‘lifetime’ licence.

Sometimes vendors have a ‘lifetime’ licence where you pay once and get all upgrades free forever. This is almost certainly a bad idea (for the vendor!).

With Hyper Plan, if you buy a v2 Professional licence, then you can use v2 Professional edition forever (perpetual licence). But you only get v3 if:
a) You pay a 40% upgrade fee; or
b) It is released within 3 months of your purchase of v2

—

Andy Brice
https://www.hyperplan.com

Posted by Cyganet
Jan 18, 2022 at 09:20 AM

As someone who uses a lot of different software programs, I avoid subscription fees for any program that isn’t in near-daily use. I could bankrupt myself paying for all of them! And the vast majority are not essential enough for my workflow to pay subscription fees.

So I agree with Andy’s model - I will buy a ‘perpetual’ license for a program so I can use it whenever I want, and if I want to upgrade to a new version I’ll buy the upgrade.

Posted by MadaboutDana
Jan 18, 2022 at 11:09 AM

Ditto

Cyganet wrote:
As someone who uses a lot of different software programs, I avoid
>subscription fees for any program that isn’t in near-daily use. I could
>bankrupt myself paying for all of them! And the vast majority are not
>essential enough for my workflow to pay subscription fees.
> >So I agree with Andy’s model - I will buy a ‘perpetual’ license for a
>program so I can use it whenever I want, and if I want to upgrade to a
>new version I’ll buy the upgrade.

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