The following question raised by slartabartfast and others still has not been answered: Will non-lifetime membership be reduced to core-features as well? If so, won't those members get less than announced for their price?

According to the FAQ, there will be no difference in features and content between monthly, annual, or lifetime membership. But it also has been said that lifetime membership is limited to core features, so non-core features like drum-replacer or free content like the drum production video should be no longer included from now on. This seems to apply to non-lifetime members as well.

The other question of course is if there will be annual membership again after the limited time offer for lifetime membership. Could be the usual marketing pressure resulting in "The offer was received very well by our customers, so we decided to keep it permanent." (As if that wasn't the plan from the very beginning.) We will see ...

About the question if lifetime membership is feasible, I think Cakewalk should know what they are doing. I agree that having satisfied customers and a good reputation is too important for a company like Cakewalk that they could abuse lifetime membership as a rip-off. Also, the Mac version together with the announcement that it will be free for customers with an active membership implies that Sonar should still exist for some years. It would make no sense to develop and release a Mac version for a software just to end the product line shortly after.

ralf

But it also has been said that lifetime membership is limited to core features, so non-core features like drum-replacer or free content like the drum production video should be no longer included from now on.

 
 
This is where things are being so misunderstood. Why can't it be the other way around ? Things like Drum replacer, Vocal sync, Melodyne within Sonar, TH3 version within Sonar, etc., are VERY MUCH PART of the SONAR updates, they have to be and they better be. Why are these assumed to be non-core features ? They are integrated within Sonar and are NOT standalones which can be purchased or used separately. Its the upgrades higher than these that will be payable, that is, higher versions of Melodyne (like editor), the full TH3 producer version, etc. This has always been the case. And this remains the same whichever membership one is on, whether monthly, annual or lifetime.
 
Why are we assuming that these will be separate ? Over and above, the ones that will be clearly separate are things like Rapture Pro, additional Pro channel modules, priced expansion packs, etc. And this has always been the case even before the lifetime option was announced. I think this clarity has been provided time and again by various Cakewalk staff. So its meaningless for users to draw conclusions about the core and non-core. Its quite clear that core does not mean only the executable, it means everything that comes integrated within the Sonar main program which gets included as part of the monthly updates content. There is no reason to believe any different from this unless any Cakewalk staff has anything different to say. And if any unfavorable change to this understanding is communicated at later stages, it sure won't go the pleasant way with users.
 

What makes you think there is going to be any reduction? That is an assumption without evidence. Keep in mind this. Platinum is not just built in features its also the bundled add ons. Otherwise it wouldn't be Platinum.   

First, the phrase with "core-features" etc. was not in the monthly/annual membership product pages, but has been added for lifetime membership. So it looks like something changed here.
 
Second, Cakewalk is very vague about this, so they are causing the confusion or "misunderstanding" about this issue themselves. Obviously, I'm far from being the only one who is not sure about how this will be handled.
 
Third, drum-replacer and "maybe" vocal-sync have been named explicitely by Cakewalk officials as examples for non-core features. Similar for bonus content like some (third-party) effects or instruments (IIRC).
 
Finally, I already opted for lifetime membership and I'm fine if it concentrates on core-features. I'm not complaining. I'm just asking for clarity to know what to expect. And clarity was for sure not the strong side of this announcement. (Mainly because they leaked the lifetime membership beforehand.)

noynekker
Sorry, I just can't read any more, not another one of these exploratory why did they do it threads, enough, just buy into it or don't, guess I just need to go make some music with my new lifetime software . . . goodnight all.

LOL. All of the "insight" - by people who don't have any real idea but like to imagine they do. The conspiracy theories suggesting Cake are really setting out to lose money, or to take our money and run.
The way I look at it is there was a lot of angst when Cake announced the membership model (nobody would support it, Cake would go out of business, they couldn't deliver monthly updates, etc etc) - Cake delivered on ALL of it - and exceeded expectations.
I jumped on the lifetime updates, and I am confident Cake not only knows what they are doing, but are absolutely committed to growth and delivering on their plans. I wish Cake and all of its current and future customers the best of luck and the best of success. As a (LIFETIME!) customer, I am going to enjoy the ride. (But yes, I too am going to stop reading these counter-productive threads).
 

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.

Yep. I like that model so much that I forked out $299 for Capture One.
 
Dan

 
 
Well, even if there is this confusion about what "core" is all about, its still very clear that irrespective of which membership one is on, whether monthly, annual or lifetime, it applies the same to all.
 
So, whats the point of confusion or indecision really ? Is it merely about "core" OR is it about whether to go for lifetime instead of remaining on monthly/annual ? Because if its the latter, its an unwarranted and meaningless confusion because it doesn't make a difference which plan one is on, you get the same content irrespective. Cakewalk staff have confirmed this more than once.
 
But yes, if its about what the content really is and what "core" really means, that confusion is justified but it still applies the same way to all membership plans. At the moment, I trust that the content will be everything and nothing will be reduced, otherwise there would be no meaning to the "Platinum" version. Any significant reduction could mean disaster and I seriously don't think Cakewalk are going that route. Or so I hope and believe quite strongly.
 
Now really, lets explore the world of beautiful music for goodness sake. 
 

guitars53
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.

Sorry, but ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
 
Tell us who you really work for

bapu

superdan54
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. 

What you have failed to recognize, IMO, is that CW staffers have CLEARLY stated here in this forum that the annual plan we know today is NOT going away. They have simply added a $99 lifetime updates plan for those Platinum users that bought in Jan 2015 and purchased a renewal in 2016. They also have a $199 for Platinum users who just bought in either in 2016 or just now. Added bonus anyone wanting to upgrade to lifetime Platinum (from Artist or Pro) can do so for the upgrade cost + $199. All of those life time update options go away on August 31. 
 
The annual Platinum with all bells and whistles is NOT going away. Any Platinum user can opt stay that way. No gun to anyone's head.

I know they have said that SONAR will still be available as an annual plan, but have they said that all three SONAR flavors will be available? If so, that could really get confusing. You'd have one subset of Platinum owners who would be getting Platinum only features automatically, and another set of Platinum owners who wouldn't, since the lifetime membership only includes Core features.

Well it looks like I'm not the only one confused by the annual/lifetime Platinum paradox, as this thread is addressing it specifically. I'll stay tuned there and hopefully a CW rep will clear it up for us.
 
http://forum.cakewalk.com...-payment-m3428160.aspx