Photography subscriptions

[DavidLMeyers]

I would like to contact someone in marketing with a suggestion regarding subscriptions, namely that it should be possible to terminate a subscription at some point and still have access to the last versions of LR and PS for which one has paid. There could be a minimum number of years of subscribing to enable that feature, or a termination fee to freeze one's version in that way. Anybody know how to contact the right persion? The "contact us" page on the Adobe website doesn't seem to have any such options. I don't want to talk to a salesperson on the phone, who will have no ability to deal with this request/suggestion. I know that I am free to use LR6 and PS CS6 after cancelling my subscriptions, but my guess is that LR6 would be unable to read the catalog resulting from a later version, so that is really not an answer.

Thanks

[ManiacJoe]

What do you mean by "still have access"?

When you terminate the subscription:

- software updates stop, as expected

- LrC Development module is disabled

- LrC Library module and exporting still works

If you are looking for something like an old perpetual license with fully functional but old software, that option has been gone for years now.

[John Waller]

>>>still have access to the last versions of LR and PS for which one has paid.

It's a fair suggestion. However, this option (stop subscription payments, keep the software 'as is' and forego any further updates or customer support) has been discussed at length in the past, right back to when the Creative Cloud was first introduced almost 10 years ago.

Adobe has never shown any interest in this business model. Otherwise, it would have been implemented long ago.

As you're aware, when the Photoshop subscription stops, the software no longer works. That's Adobe protecting their flagship product. I see no reason or incentive for them to let us keep Photoshop 'as is'. It's a subscription, not rent-to-own.

As ManiacJoe points out, when your Lightroom subscription stops, you get to keep the software 'as is' but certain Lightroom features are disabled. That's the extent of Adobe's compromise which still gives you access to your previously edited images. Any further editing must be done in other software or you re-subscribe.

The difference with Lightroom is that your image edits are part of the eco-system so Adobe has conceded that they will not hold them hostage. Hence you're left with basically the Library to view and export only.

[dj_paige]

You lose none of your work. In addition to the above, when your Lightroom subscription ends, you can still Import photos into the Library Module, Export them from the Library module, and still use the Library Module for all the organization that you are currently using it for. If you need to edit the photos, you can use the Lightroom Library module to send photos to an external editor, and then the edited photo is returned to Lightroom's Library module for your further use, just as you can do now (except that external editor will not be Photoshop, which will also not work when the subscription ends). In fact, all modules continue to work except for Develop and Map.

So really, when the Lightroom subscription ends, the situation is not as dire as you may have thought.

[John Waller]

Agreed as per Lightroom Queen's article:

https://www.lightroomqueen.com/cancel-cc-subscription-photos/

>>> In fact, all modules continue to work except for Develop and Map.

And, for those who use it, mobile sync.