Substance Subscription Changes: details & FAQ

[Vincent Gault]

Just to make sure I understand correctly.

I have until Oct 31 2020 (13 months from today) to switch my sub to a perpetual license. Then I also have to purchase updates to said perpetual license before that date.

Can I purchase more than one year of updates at that time, and, Why are you not including Substance Alchemist as part of the Perpetual licenses? I really liked the flexibility of your old pricing options  :<

For the first question, yes exactly: you have until this date, and you can buy the maintenance at the same time.

And no, you can't buy more than one year of updates.

Thanks for sharing your feedback.

[Vincent Gault]

"No stress: you will have until October 31st 2020 to convert to perpetual (it's more than 12 months)"

From only Steam?
"Starting November 2019, perpetual licenses will not be sold through the substance3D.com website anymore. You can still purchase perpetual Indie licenses for Substance Painter and Substance Designer through Steam"

'From only Steam?' --> No: from the official channel

The Steam option is for newcomers (not for existing ones) who want to buy a perpetual license after October 31st 2019

[Steve@massivetree.com]

So if I'm understanding correctly, in 13 months, there will be no more upgrades of maintenance, simply an option to buy a whole new perpetual license off of Steam (which currently is twice the price $150 vs $75 and also I find Steam kind of annoying). 

Personally I'm not affected by this since I've been on subs for the last few years at least and fine with that but I see a lot of people not being fine with it.   After the news of the Adobe/Allegorithmic merger, people from Allegorithmic said that people needn't worry that the things they've loved wouldn't be changing but it seems they are.  You said you would be introducing new pricing plans that people would like.  I suggested people give you the benefit of the doubt, made a video on it.  I really don't see how this is good news for users who prefer not to rent.  You're kind of confirming people's fears about the merger with Adobe and you're getting rid of the one thing that people most loved about the way they purchased software (rent to own).

[Vincent Gault]

Hi Vincent. Thank you for your answers and the time spent.

In 10 months from now 02/October/2019, where do I have to redeem / buy my perpetual license ?, in a) substance3d.com/user/*******/live (the subscription tab). b) Another online store that sells apps ?.

Another extra question. Are current perpetual licenses going to be able to buy updates in the future or are they only going to have, only now, the opportunity to buy maintenance for one year?

First question: it will be the same process tahn before, so via our website
And for the perpetual licenses, you will have until October 31st, 2020 to get one-year maintenance.

[Vincent Gault]

So if I'm understanding correctly, in 13 months, there will be no more upgrades of maintenance, simply an option to buy a whole new perpetual license off of Steam (which currently is twice the price $150 vs $75 and also I find Steam kind of annoying). 

Personally I'm not affected by this since I've been on subs for the last few years at least and fine with that but I see a lot of people not being fine with it.   After the news of the Adobe/Allegorithmic merger, people from Allegorithmic said that people needn't worry that the things they've loved wouldn't be changing but it seems they are.  You said you would be introducing new pricing plans that people would like.  I suggested people give you the benefit of the doubt, made a video on it.  I really don't see how this is good news for users who prefer not to rent.  You're kind of confirming people's fears about the merger with Adobe and you're getting rid of the one thing that people most loved about the way they purchased software (rent to own).

It's the same price a new license has always been 150$ (it's a maintenance that can be at 75$).

Thank you for your feedback. One of the main concerns was that perpetual licenses would go away: we are keeping this option via Steam.

Another concern was that the price will jump so high that no one will be able to afford it: we are adding Substance Alchemist at no additional cost.

So I understand your point, and I'm not saying that everything is perfect, but are still trying to propose the best offer for everyone. Maybe if we have kept the same model, but raised the price, some people would have preferred, while others would have complained that's it's not fair.

In the end, we have made our offer evolving so we can offer a new piece of software (Substance Alchemist) at the same monthly price than before. This may be subject to debate, as we are doing here, but we are confident it's a fair decision.

[mightybob2000]

Just to make sure I understand correctly.

I have until Oct 31 2020 (13 months from today) to switch my sub to a perpetual license. Then I also have to purchase updates to said perpetual license before that date.

Can I purchase more than one year of updates at that time, and, Why are you not including Substance Alchemist as part of the Perpetual licenses? I really liked the flexibility of your old pricing options  :<

For the first question, yes exactly: you have until this date, and you can buy the maintenance at the same time.

And no, you can't buy more than one year of updates.

Thanks for sharing your feedback.

I apologize for retreading the same question but to by crystal clear:

Let's say it's October 30th, 2020. I exercise my buyout option for Painter and Designer.  I can then buy maintenance right away that will extend my updates into 2021?


p.s. The removal of perpetual licenses is exactly what we feared and knew would happen when the Adobe acquisition was announced.  You've proven us right.  At least the exit terms are reasonable but I certainly won't be renewing my subscription beyond 2020.  Your rent-to-own pricing model was essentially unique in the DCC world and was the only reason I agreed to sign up for a subscription in the first place.

[Jeremie Noguer]

Let's say it's October 30th, 2020. I exercise my buyout option for Painter and Designer.  I can then buy maintenance right away that will extend my updates into 2021?

Yes!

[pabcou]

If getting the perpetual license through Steam, will it be possible to run Substance directly, without having to keep Steam running on the background?

Also, could you give us some insight into why you decided to keep perpetual licensing available through Steam, but not offer it through Substance's website? Personally, I had the experience of using Steam to license Modo from The Foundry, and it was an awkward and clunky setup; definitely not something that I would recommend to a fellow artist.

[Jeremie Noguer]

The sales on our website have been overwhelmingly subscriptions for the past year or so. Perpetual licenses represent a small and shrinking percentage overall, and same goes for people using the rent-to-own option.
That being said, there is a significant community of users on Steam, especially from countries where Steam's regional pricing makes it affordable to buy Substance tools while it would be too expensive through traditional channels. Setting up regional pricing on our own would be very complex and way overkill for our small IT team so we decided to keep Steam as a way to access the tools.

[Digital Legends]

Just to double check, in case of having a perpetual license of "Substance Painter 2 (legacy)", will be possible to upgrade that license to a new Substance Painter Pro (latest release with one year of maintenance) until October 31, 2020?

[jessgloder]

I was subscribed to Substance using the rent-to-own model from a few years ago, then chose to 'cash out' and buy the software outright (which I believe is now known as having a perpetual license?). I pay for a years maintenance as and when, as I don't want to subscribe and don't always benefit from the point release features.

So am I right in thinking I have until October 31st 2020 to buy another years maintenance, which will run until October 30th 2021?

[filda]

If I buy out, what will happen with all my points at substance source?

[aabel]

Ahh great. You went the ransomware option. Not only are you converting to ransomware 'licensing' you did it with the most reckless ransomware company possible, the company who lost all their 'subscribers' data in a colossal breach.

[mailrox]

Could you please clarify the notion "maintenance" of a perpetual license. Does it mean that buying it
on October 31st 2020 it gives me again a perpetual license for all releases published on or before October 30th 2021 ?

[Jeremie Noguer]

Just to double check, in case of having a perpetual license of "Substance Painter 2 (legacy)", will be possible to upgrade that license to a new Substance Painter Pro (latest release with one year of maintenance) until October 31, 2020?

If you are a Pro licensee, please contact us directly at sales@allegorithmic.com

I was subscribed to Substance using the rent-to-own model from a few years ago, then chose to 'cash out' and buy the software outright (which I believe is now known as having a perpetual license?). I pay for a years maintenance as and when, as I don't want to subscribe and don't always benefit from the point release features.

So am I right in thinking I have until October 31st 2020 to buy another years maintenance, which will run until October 30th 2021?

You are right.

If I buy out, what will happen with all my points at substance source?

You keep all the points you accumulated until your buyout.

Could you please clarify the notion "maintenance" of a perpetual license. Does it mean that buying it
on October 31st 2020 it gives me again a perpetual license for all releases published on or before October 30th 2021 ?

Yes exactly.