Dear Adobe.
I have a lot of files stored in Creative Cloud. I actually lost count of how many files I have created during the past 3+ years.
I am at a point where I need, and want to, cancel my Adobe subscription, after some months of growing discontent with the company’s actions, policies, and the lack of attention it gives to their costumers opinion and complaints.
It’s also too much money for me at the moment to be “renting” the company’s software and feeling like it offers less and less value as the years go by, instead of really owning a copy of it for as long as I want, just like the old times.
This discontent just got bigger after I found out that, when in need to cancel an Adobe subscription, the costumer must pay what you call an Early Termination Fee. I do understand that the ETF exists because of the “early plan”. But even though you might have no regard for the way that I feel, I must say that I do sense that I’m being squeezed to not cancel my subscription, as you will charge me either way. Which feels, once again, absurd to be paying for software that I don’t really own, even when I choose to part ways with it.
But I digress.
Today, I started trying to download my professional work files from Creative Cloud to my device, locally. As you may expect, I quickly learned that recently Adobe changed this function so that the costumer can only download 10 files at a time, instead of presenting a convenient “select all” function, like it used to. But once again, it’s another reason why I and thousands of other costumers, and ex-costumers, feel like Adobe doesn’t really want convenience when it comes to giving us the basic freedom to cancel a subscription.
I decided to go through that discomfort still, as I obviously need my work after I cancel my Adobe plan, although it will take me an awful long time and attention that I view as unnecessary.
I’m 4 hours in this quest of trying to get my work to my device and I’ve so far only been able to download 102 files out of possibly thousands. And although you may not know me or how productive and quick I am with these kinds of tasks, I can assure you there wasn’t a lack of trying on my part. Because additional to that “10 file downloads at a time” rule, and having to select each of those files one by one, the Creative Cloud desktop app still manages to slow down this seemingly really difficult attempt at retrieving my work:
With every 10 downloads, it gets increasingly more difficult to download my files. Some files get stuck on “waiting to download” endlessly, and they’re taking an increasingly longer time to download, regardless of how complex in size or detail they are;
With every 10 downloads, one or two files always fail to download, leaving a timed red box informing me of that failure in such a way that I can not look away from my device, if I really want to make sure every single file is being safely downloaded. So, not only do I need to wait a minimum of 2 minutes between each 10 downloads, I can’t just leave the download running and fulfil some other task, as I’ll have no way of knowing if one of the files failed to download, unless I take on the after check of making sure every single file exists locally in my device *every 10 downloads* ;
And, with every 10 downloads, I try to delete the previously 10 downloaded files from Creative Cloud so I can better track what the next 10 will be, but even that seems too difficult of a function for Creative Cloud to fulfil. There’s some files that I simply cannot erase from Creative Cloud as it will not let me.
With all this said…
I know that the Adobe employee reading this probably has no legislation or power within the company.
But for the sake of my money, and the money of your costumers, I need a way to export all my files at once. I think we all do. No schemes. No trying to make this process harder, because it’s clear that it is, and unnecessarily so.
I am in urgent need of canceling my Adobe subscription, and I simply have no time on my hands to spend more than an entire day trying to export all of my creative work and all my files, almost one by one, with no guarantee of success. Not because I don’t deem my work worthy of that effort, it certainly is my entire life at this point, but because life is already difficult as it is and there are always other people and chores waiting for our attention and care. I know that is certainly the same for whoever is reading this.
Although all of these issues, and many more, seem too much for me to remain with my subscription, I’m conscious of the fact that I’ve used Adobe for more than 3 years and I’ve kickstarted my career with the help of its software. And although I may be foolish and naive by thinking this, I believe this can be a door for Adobe to just be better. For its costumers. For the artists and creators that still use it. For the people that keep helping the company grow.
Adobe, it's time to fix this.
Thank you for your attention.
4
Replies
AdChoices