But not if you dip in and out and use a library when you need it?
On the other hand, I'm a media designer and also have the Adobe Cloud. It's even more expensive, but there isn't really an alternative. The good thing is that the products are updated regularly. I think this is very important for any subscription service.
I just look at EW and see how successful their subscription service has been. People absolutely love it, and it gives consumers the oppertunity to try before they buy. This really comes in handy when you're on the fence about buying an expensive library.
Unfortunately, I don't think a subscription service is a "one size fits all" business model.
I think NI is the bigger possibility for subs, but they seem to have carved a nice hardware business.
Quite possibly, but I think NI is a slightly different case. They've diversified into hardware, the DJ market and now Sounds.com. Komplete is fast becoming a software incentive to shift NI hardware as much as a product in it's own right.I agree that NI, as much as I like them, is due for a revision of the way they do business. Just doesn't make sense to me to buy their new products as they're released, and then buy them again as part of Komplete when Komplete updates.
Revenue for Komplete was 40.096.000€ In 2016 according to their annual closure (or 53.6% of all revenues). Which is as I can see it everything from single products to the Komplete bundles and it seems that this also includes their Keyboard series and audio interface.Quite possibly, but I think NI is a slightly different case. They've diversified into hardware, the DJ market and now Sounds.com. Komplete is fast becoming a software incentive to shift NI hardware as much as a product in it's own right.
I kinda agree though that the Komplete model is starting to get a little stale. But I guess we don't have access to the sweet, sweet sales figures..
EW said years ago that they don't intend to produce any new orchestral type products. I think it's fair to say they lost interest a long time ago, and that there's no real intention from them to improve their existing products, or introduce much in the way of new ones.Are there other sample library subscription services besides EW? I can't think of any off the top of my head.
Besides all the issues brought up by others (Kontakt libraries vs. EW being totally in control of their iLok protected sample player being the biggest), I think EW's situation is quite different from companies like Spitfire Audio, 8Dio, etc. From what I can tell, EW has essentially gone dormant as far as new library production is concerned. The last thing I bought from them was the Hollywood Choirs library, which to be honest, was a lot like the previous choirs library, once things are in a big mix. We're not seeing a steady stream of major, attention getting new products from EW as we are from other developers.
From EW's perspective, the subscription service probably makes sense. They've got a large stack of aging libraries that are unlikely to have any new huge waves of buying interest, so the subscription service is a way for them to harvest more revenue from the products they have. It would be interesting to know what's going on at EW these days. I also wonder if the subscription service was kind of a last-ditch experiment for them, but something they couldn't undo once it was up and running. If it was wildly successful (a HUGE volume of subscribers), maybe a lot more libraries would be in the works. Like any company, I'm sure EW has to sit down and assess how profitable releasing new libraries could be. The market has really heated up. There are a LOT of new products constantly coming out, and there are a LOT of big sales. I would also imagine that East West being in LA is a big factor. Lots of talent there, but it has to be the most expensive place in the world to get a sample library produced. And maybe the founders are just tired of it, and they haven't groomed replacements to continue the creative energy (I'm beginning to wonder if that isn't happening at VSL these days, too). I do think we've arrived at the point where a lot of developers are scratching their heads trying to think of what they could do next that would make a big splash, and generate a lot of sales. The bread and butter stuff has all really been covered (although I'm still hoping for 8Dio to release a 76 Trombones library).
I agree that NI, as much as I like them, is due for a revision of the way they do business. Just doesn't make sense to me to buy their new products as they're released, and then buy them again as part of Komplete when Komplete updates.
Komplete is already so steeply discounted (especially at sale time) that by the time deductions are made, NI will be paying you to have the libraries.It should deduct from the total bill what you already have, similar to how Spitfire do it now when you purchase a bundle.
You usually own a license that the company can (but rarely does) revoke. It's very rare that you own the software you use. But yeah once it's on your system it's usually out of the control of the company (assuming it doesn't have a backdoor).I don't know... I like to own a product when I put my money in it. A subscription plan is a nice way to use a lot of tools at a small price, but you don't own anything.
While there is a significant cost to produce a sample library it's not fair to compare physical objects like cars to software until you can duplicate cars by hitting copy + paste. Or to put it another way, once you've developed some software if costs almost nothing to create and distribute a copy of it, the same is not true for a car.I would personally never expect professional tools, some of the best out there, for such little commitment. I would like a Ferrari to drive around in. Can I rent one for £30 a month? No.