Shift to a subscription model - your questions are welcome

[Akos Pfemeter]

Dear Community,

You may have already read the press release or the Insights post about our strategic shift to a subscription model. 

Here is a quick summary of the news:

BUDAPEST, April 2, 2024—Graphisoft, the leading Building Information Modeling (BIM) software solution developer for architecture and multidisciplinary design, today announced that, as part of its strategic shift to a sustainable subscription software delivery model, perpetual licenses will be gradually phased out by the end of 2025. This change does not affect the delivery of Software Service Agreement (SSA)/Forward subscription services to existing customers. 

Archicad perpetual and SSA/Forward licenses will be available for new customers through December 31, 2024, and to existing customers through December 31, 2025. Starting in 2026, Archicad will be available only through subscription. Active SSA/Forward contracts will continue to be serviced beyond 2025. Alternatively, SSA/Forward customers can convert to Archicad Collaborate subscriptions at the same price as SSA/Forward. This offer is designed to help existing SSA/Forward subscribers take full advantage of the Archicad Collaborate subscription, which combines award-winning Archicad for architectural design with BIMx and BIMcloud SaaS for fast, efficient, secure, real-time access to shared projects.

Please ask your questions and share your thoughts here -- Graphisoft's expert team will try and provide answer to all sorts of questions you may have!
Thank you.
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Edit by Moderator:  here is the link to the evolving information/FAQ page about this announcement:

https://graphisoft.com/convert-ssa-forward-to-archicad-collaborate/

[Barry Kelly]

I would assume that if you remain in the SSA support, you will still get the yearly version upgrades and all of the hotfixes that go along with them.

They would have to be kept the same as the Collaboration subscription updates, surely.

So, in my take on this, if we take out subscription, and then stop it, we will get a perpetual license for the version we are currently subscribed to.

This is why we need someone from Graphisoft to clarify these questions we all have (as promised).

It is simple really.

Question - If I remain on SSA support, will I still be able to upgrade to all future versions (28,29, 30, etc) ?

Answer - Yes/no

Question - If I switch to subscription and cancel in 3 years time, will I still have a perpetual license for version 30 or 31 - what ever is current at the time?

Answer - Yes/no

Barry.

[MinhNguyen]

Yes, that’s a more positive version of my take 😄 agree on GS having to clarify those points so that we don’t have to guess what their intention is in the next 3-6 years

[mthd]

The contractual conditions of SAA/Forward are clear and that includes upgrades during the period. SSA/Forward will continue to be serviced after 2025 and beyond. We will not be forced to revert back to lower version of AC with a PL as I understand. There is no need for scare mongering about this we just have to trust them on this detail. I’m sure it will be made clear in the contract if that was actually the case.

[MinhNguyen]

Oh of course, shouldn’t be a problem if you stick to SSA. Previously we discussed what would happen if you decide to leave subscription program, which software version you would end up with, which is this very important question from Barry:

If I switch to subscription and cancel in 3 years time, will I still have a perpetual license for version 30 or 31 - what ever is current at the time?

[mthd]

From what I gather from the FAQ’s, is that it reverts back to AC25 in that particular scenario. I haven’t read any of those contacts so I cannot say for sure. Maybe someone who is considering a conversion to subscription contact can enlighten us about these details and conditions for returning back to a PL ?

[Barry Kelly]

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@mthd wrote:

From what I gather from the FAQ’s, is that it reverts back to AC25 in that particular scenario. I haven’t read any of those contacts so I cannot say for sure. Maybe someone who is considering a conversion to subscription contact can enlighten us about these details and conditions for returning back to a PL ?

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If you have a perpetual license now, and take up the subscription, your existing perpetual license must be surrendered and you will be given a Compatibility License for version 25, so you can still work in old versions.

This is because you will also be given a new cloud license that can only work for versions back to 26.

Supposedly, you can only use one of these licenses at the same time (fair enough).

Again, it is unclear if the compatibility license will be a new software license, or if you have a hardware key (as some prefer - I do), will that key be converted back to 25 so we can keep our hardware keys (much better than software keys).

I am not sure why existing licenses have to be surrendered, unless subscription has to be a cloud license.

The question now that needs further clarification, is, if you stop the subscription, will you be left with a perpetual cloud license at that current version?

Or will that be cancelled, in which case your Compatibility License will need to be upgraded to the current version as when you cease subscription.

@Akos Pfemeter , can this please be clarified in the FAQs?

Barry.

[scottjm]

@Barry Kelly - The advice I received verbally from Aus local reseller was that if you cancelled your subscription you would be given back a perpetual license (whether this is a real perpetual, compatibility, software or hardware is unknown) and this would be compatible with the latest version available at the time of cancelling your subscription. 

[Eric Milberger]

To be honest I am lost now.  I have perpetual license but confused.

I am used to lifetime or yearly (The SW I just left)  now perpetual with a small fee each year.

I can't keep up with the changes

[Scott Boyd Turner]

Yes $6357.97 incl. GST per annum per seat in Australia is approx twice the price of Revit, just don't see this making sense for anyone.

[Anita_Slocombe]

It definitely does not make sense at all 🤯

[MinhNguyen]

Sad to see this announcement, although I saw it coming, just not expect it to be this early. All others have shared their (very much valid) concerns already, so without repeating those, my question is:

- How will the new cloud-based key be compatible with different Archicad language versions? We saw a question on the forum, asking about CZE cloud-based key not usable for INT. With multinational firms, this is not acceptable as we need different language versions for different markets. Will the cloud-based keys adapt to that?

Other than my question, I feel like the lack of information coming from GS is not acceptable. I'm sure that this has been in the plan for so long, but I guess GS themselves are also navigating through planning and communication, therefore not much info is available at this stage. I feel sorry for the partners/resellers who might as well be clueless at this point as we all are

P/s: a call with the local partner confirmed my thought - details are still being discussed and finalized, so please go easy on your local friends 🙂

[Miha_M]

My dissapointment level is high and growing. Much has been said already here and I mostly agree with each and every one of the given reasons. A broken promise doesn't make your clients happy.

@MinhNguyen's question about different localization versions compatibility on a cloud based platform will be a serious problem, as I have experienced myself working on an INT version with a GER template/project. The amount of time one needs to adopt all needed settings, translators, mappings, etc. is huge and needs a BIM manager experience user level, which is not acceptable even on today's perpetual license system.

If GS aims only for a localisation version limited interoperability on BIM enabled projects in the cloud, then they for sure are making a big mistake, as they will (again) fail to understand what their clients want and need.

[Martin Jules]

In addition to that, if the internet were essential for the BIMcloud license to function, the risk would be very high, and we'll not be able to work when the internet goes out. There are several occasions that could cause internet interruption, such as, maintenance carried out by internet companies, snowstorms, hurricanes, cyclones, earthquakes, wars, etc., added to some government agencies that always want to know in which countries the servers are located in before authorizing the use of such a software on their computer networks. Do the Graphisoft officers, managers, and Board members think about all these external factors? 

[jl_lt]

Some time ago, while GS was hard at work with their so called structural module, i naively and starry-eyed requested graphic and audiovisual material in this forum, so i could show it to my structural engineers. My intention, of course, was to promote Archicad among them so they could adopt it in their Workflow and we could live like a happy family forever.

GS answer: we don't have any promotional material for that. 

All innocence now lost, my guess is GS employees, experts AND resellers are getting their info about the new suscription model from this very thread, making all of us fall into the realm of circular reference from which we might never escape

[JaredBanks]

This is just one more disappointing move by GRAPHISOFT; one more blunder to overshadow what little highlights there have been in the past half dozen years. Maybe in the long term the shift will actually provide the average Archicad user with real benefits, but right now this decision just further erodes the user base's trust in the decision makers at GRAPHISOFT and the direction of Archicad in the coming years.

[JaredBanks]

I do have a question.

With the promotion to switch from perpetual + SSA to subscription, will there be a prorated discount for those of us part way through our yearly SSA? I just paid my SSA two weeks ago. Did I just get scammed out of $1,157.63? If I switched to subscription next week, did I just give GRAPHISOFT that money for nothing? If I wait until late December, did I pay for 8 months of SSA for the cost of 12 months of SSA? Has GRAPHISOFT thought about this?

[Karl Ottenstein]

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@JaredBanks wrote:

I do have a question.

With the promotion to switch from perpetual + SSA to subscription, will there be a prorated discount for those of us part way through our yearly SSA? I just paid my SSA two weeks ago. Did I just get scammed out of $1,157.63? If I switched to subscription next week, did I just give GRAPHISOFT that money for nothing? If I wait until late December, did I pay for 8 months of SSA for the cost of 12 months of SSA? Has GRAPHISOFT thought about this?

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See my post about the conversion promotion.  You can convert your SSA to a subscription at the same price as current subscription... so 11.5 months pre-paid if you convert today I guess -  but I'd hope they'd just go ahead and give you a year... but the promo for conversion requires a 3 year payment up front (!) ... so you'd have to pay another 1,157.63 x 2 to get a 3 year pre-paid subscription.  Then for years 4 through 6 you get a discount off subscription prices equal to the current percentage that your SSA (less sales tax) price is over the current annual subscription  rate (2,810.04) - paying 41% of the subscription price if I have that sort of figured out.

https://graphisoft.com/us/buy-now

(I had no idea that the USA SSA had gone up that much ... must include sales tax, but I thought US internet sales law says that there is no sales tax unless the selling company has a brick and mortar store in your state?)

[Jp1138]

When I read it I though the upfront would be yearly - I mean, it would be the same as paying the SSA every year, but it being a susbcription... If it works the way you say, the deal it a lot worse 🤔

[thesleepofreason]

No - that is upfront for a 3-year term. Annual payments available at 10% premium....

[JaredBanks]

Thanks Karl. There's so many posts, I must have missed yours. The tax thing has to do with employees in the state as well. I don't think there's any GS employees in WA anymore, but who knows. I wouldn't be surprised if they are doing it wrong.

[Karl Ottenstein]

Well, my interpretation of the original, discounted conversion program offer for those of us on perpetual/SSA was wrong based on the updated FAQ here:

https://graphisoft.com/convert-ssa-forward-to-archicad-collaborate/faq

"SSA/Forward customers can convert to Archicad Collaborate subscriptions at the end of
their SSA/Forward term. Graphisoft guarantees price parity with SSA/Forward for the initial
subscription term and same discount percentage at the first renewal for 3-year upfront paid
subscriptions. Yearly payment options are also available for a 10% markup on the 3-year
upfront paid option"

Which says "end of SSA term" ... suggesting that with the "special offer" of subscription at current SSA pricing expiring on 12/31/2024, anybody who has already paid for their SSA renewal such that it expires after 12/31/24, cannot convert at the special rate ... and is stuck with the full SSA term plus higher pricing later on.  That has to be a mistake?  How can they not plan for and allow pro-rated conversions?  It would be insane that they require the completion of an SSA term that you paid for 2 weeks ago before you can apply your payment to a (discounted) subscription!   So, only people whose SSA will renew between now and 12/31/24 can actually get the special 3 year discount?  And the year 4-6 discount not mentioned on the FAQ page...

Beyond the mess that has been every release in recent years having minimal features and maximal bugs and compatibility issues ... the information to date is not building any confidence.  Yes, the conversion does not have to take place for a long while - but then they offer a huge discount to convert now, but with info that doesn't seem to let people take advantage of the 6 year migration pricing.  This will all be a case study in some business school one day...