I agree with you. Sounds like a rip off. This may be the last straw. I've been a Cakewalk user for many, many years. But it may be time to make a change. Studio One maybe. Anyway, very frustrated after all the years of my loyalty.

John
All of you do know that a contract is involved here. A breach of the contract by claiming a name change is sufficient to void the contract may be actionable. I think you should read the contract before speculating. 

Incorrect I believe - a company has the right to "retire" software at any time it chooses. It can then choose to launch new products in its stead. There is no breach as the "lifetime" of said retired product has now ended. It is not "our personal" lifetimes here! And we only ever licence the software, so in the end it is Gibsons to do with as they wish!
 
Just one of the myriad reasons why companies spend large sums on lawyers to draft end-user agreements, and to determine the syntax of offers such as these. Not saying there is any blatant deception here, just saying Gibson have used a marketing tool to get some extra cash injected into the business. It is probably needed to fund the rather costly programming effort to bring OSX version to market. They have obviously made economic calculations that offering "lifetime" upgrades will inject cash enough to proceed forward, but the lifetime (in its p.o.v. - if a comapny can have such thing?) is nto going to be long enough to cause much (if any) financial burden on the company.
 
Yes I know Apple do it with free upgrades to the iOS system, but Gibson do not have the millions of Apple users paying for apps on a daily basis. It is why the Apple model works. It would not work for Gibson imo, well not to the same extent, so one must look "behind and between the lines" for motivations for actions - of course it is speculation, but specualtion based on real world experience of how companies operate. They are not benevolent societies after all

BRuys
The model is similar to Windows 10 - supposedly the last version of Windows ever, to be updated indefinitely.  That's why it was not called X4.

That's not particularly encouraging.  <Microsoft did this because they envision there isn't that much left to accomplish at the "operating system" level and they wanted to get the Windows ecosystem spread as wide as possible during this final phase.  That is important because the ecosystem will be full of little monetizing pits.  As time goes on with Windows more and more of what they deliver will be packaged as add-ons that each code a few bucks.
 
It isn't so different with LANDR, Melodyne, and the other VSTs that provide on sample functionality for free, is it?

John T

Tripecac
Continuous updates only work if there is a continuous income stream.  If all Sonar users converted to lifetime subscriptions (including the upcoming Mac users) and stopped buying other Cakewalk products, then the income stream would dry up.

Ah, but the lifetime offer is a/ only available til the end of August and b/ limited to people buying or renewing Platinum. So it's not even a majority of users, never mind "all".

Oh good grief!  Another negative thread?  Give me a break!  IMHO Cakewalk has been in business for years and is not going away any time soon.
 
I believe that John T has just nailed the main point here!!!
 
As far as their revenue stream goes, this "lifetime" deal as stated is only until the end of August.  And is limited to those buying or renewing Platinum. For the rest it is $300 - $500 to upgrade!
 
Consider for a minute that Cakewalk has many current customers that are not on Producer or Platinum yet and may wish to continue their current plan.  They have several levels of Sonar, and the "great deal" is targeted only to the loyal customers on Producer or Platinum today.  Once this deal ends, it's back to the same revenue model as last year, except for those of us who exercise this option soon.  They will continue to bring new users on-board through the entry level products and good word of mouth from the loyal users.
 
I have been on Producer since Sonar 3 came out, and I think that this may be the greatest deal ever! I am planning to upgrade from X3 Producer to Platinum Infinity!
 
The MacOSX plan also ensures that they will grow their market share.  Planting the seeds, anyway.  But it's all good!
 
If I was them, I would give the Mac version away for free to all schools and educators :-)
 
That would be the best way to create a new choice of DAW for teaching music tech on a Mac.  Eventually, when enough students have learned about DAWs, and Sonar in particular, they will hopefully choose to work with the best tools for their needs.  It would be great for SONAR to be among those options.  That will only make the future of Cakewalk that much stronger :-D
 
One final thought here, off-topic, but relating to how good I feel about Cakewalk's concern for it's customers.  It is in contrast to a different company, a different industry, and a different software subscription plan.
 
One word: Adobe ...
 
Words cannot express what I really think about their Monthly/Annual plan for the "Creative Cloud". It is an all you eat buffet of all their creative applications, from Photoshop and Illustrator, to their web & publishing tools. You can download and use them all, similar to CCC.  They are an "industry standard" for graphics professionals, so many depend on them for the tools of their trade.
 
Their monthly pricing for all that sounds great at first look.  But there's a catch. Stop paying and your software stops working. WTF?  You have created projects in formats that can only be edited and saved with said software.
 
Be happy that Cakewalk has chosen the path they are on :-)

Leee


I think you could come out with the perfect piece of software, that's great in every way, and someone will STILL find something to complain about.
 

I think this is spot on

Sylvan

The Grim
companies are all the same, at the end of the day it is all about what is best for them, their survival first and foremost, everything else is secondary, anyone who tells you different is either deluded or flat out lying.

Wait a minute. Do you mean that companies go into business to make a profit? What nerve! How dare they make decisions based on staying in business! This is an outrage!
 
They should require their employees to spend 40 hours a week working for free out of the goodness of their hearts while their families starve in the streets, all to make products and services to benefit everyone else.
 
To actually think that any company could have the audacity and evilness to go into business to make a profit, so they can earn a standard of living for themselves and their families is so vile it should be condemned for all time!

BOOM! You said what I have been thinking ,getting sick of how rediculous  people are being .

This may have been mentioned, I honestly didn't feel like reading the whole thread...
 
First, the Lifetime update deal is a special until the end of August.  Did you miss that?  It's not permanent.  After August, it goes back to the yearly subscription plan.  Also, as stated, the yearly update plan ONLY is for core program updates and enhancements.  Cakewalk will continue to update it, but will also continue to make new things like instrument and effects that you can add to it, FOR A PRICE.  It says that if you read it.  
 
Also, if you would rather just pay your $200 a year, you go with your bad self.  Have fun with that.  I plan on doing the lifetime upgrade. 

Well in one sense I think the OP is correct. Platinum as we know it now, is already being retired. And by that I mean that the tiered system where we pay more per year to get more extras (synths, fx & tools) is going by the wayside. The lifetime updates pretty clearly stated that only core features will be included in free monthly updates. And it looks like that is being reflected in the #Sonar4You announcement: all future updates listed will be available for all three levels of SONAR. So what we are getting is more akin to the $49/yr Artist subscription model. What we know now as Platinum/Professional additions will be purchased ala carte. So if this years updates had been under the new business model, I would have gotten Smart Solo, Style Dials, Add Track Menu, and many others as a free update. But I would have to purchase separately Ultra Analog Session 2, Lounge Lizard, & Cakewalk Mastering Plugs. This is great b/c it tailors the SONAR experience to each user and Cakewalk in turn saves money by not having to pay expensive licensing fees for stuff users may not use. I, for one, would not have bought any of them, but I would have purchased Drum Replacer & VocalSync using funds I normally would have allotted for my yearly SONAR dues.
 
What I mean to say is that there's a lot of "too good to be true" pessimism floating around. The truth is that this is both an amazingly generous offer and a viable business model.

sharke

abacab
One word: Adobe ...
 
Words cannot express what I really think about their Monthly/Annual plan for the "Creative Cloud". It is an all you eat buffet of all their creative applications, from Photoshop and Illustrator, to their web & publishing tools. You can download and use them all, similar to CCC.  They are an "industry standard" for graphics professionals, so many depend on them for the tools of their trade.
 
Their monthly pricing for all that sounds great at first look.  But there's a catch. Stop paying and your software stops working. WTF?  You have created projects in formats that can only be edited and saved with said software.

I've never understood why people think that is a "catch." People go in with the knowledge that they're just renting the software and that they have to keep paying the rental fee for as long as they wish to keep working on their projects. The CC subscription makes excellent sense for business owners and people who might just need the software temporarily for one project. It gives them an opportunity to use Adobe software that would not have been cost effective before.

And so what if the software stops working when you stop subscribing? If you need to work on your projects more you can start the subscription again at any time. Saying that it's a "catch" is like saying that hiring a belt sander comes with the "catch" that you have to give it back and that if you need to touch up your floors in the future, you'll have to hire it again. Software is just a tool, and like all tools there are those who don't need to own them. Subscriptions are an answer to this problem, even Adobe's "stop paying and the software gets turned off" version.

 
You clearly missed the point of my example. Cakewalk's license is perpetual, which means you can stop paying the subscription and you get to keep the working software for the version you have payed up for, indefinitely.
 
In the case of Adobe, their subscription plan is clearly meant to be a "rental" only plan.  True, they are up front about it. But as an old Photoshop user, I'm not about to jump on that train.  If you think that is not a "catch", you should should see what many long time users of the Adobe CS thought when they were told the only way to upgrade was to "subscribe". 
 
The argument against that subscription model is that when you create something with a piece of software, the creation belongs to you.  Having to pay up again, to unlock something that you created, just rubbed lots of folks the wrong way.
 
Call it what you like, but just imagine the sh!tstorm on this forum if Cake ever tried that, LOL!!!