cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 
cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 
General discussions
Posts about job ads, news about competitions, events, learning resources, research, etc.

Shift to a subscription model - your questions are welcome

Akos Pfemeter
Graphisoft
Graphisoft

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.
----------------------

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/

Akos Pfemeter

VP Global Cross-Brand Sales, Graphisoft

381 REPLIES 381
snow
Rockstar

Can't we just agree that we are everything else than amused about this step?

 

What will be the real advantage for users (comparing to sea/forward)?

Has anyone made calculation of the real cost through years?

Why is it not possible anymore to buy a license for lifetime?

 

Could find no satisfying answers to such questions...

Archicad For Future F R E E D O M for-COLORS
______________________________________

archicad versions 8-27 | mac os 13 | win 10
mthd
Ace

Still possible to the end of this year but I agree that they should always be available. If their product is good enough and they trust their future users, they can still offer perpetual licensing indefinitely. They do not have to follow the current trend because they can make their product more attractive by having both types of licensing available for both types of users.

They have made this decision now and technically it is not impossible to once again offer perpetual licenses if they decided to do so. Why follow crowd of other CAD/BIM competitors ?

 


In the long run you would think that they would gain many more users by having both options available ?

AC8.1 - AC28 ARM AUS + CI Tools
Apple Mac Studio M1 Max Chip 10C CPU
24C GPU 7.8TF 32GB RAM OS Sequoia

Considering the existing SSA/Forward contracts will be supported - there is probably not any good reason why they can't continue to sell perpetual licenses...if they want...if the financial department will let them...

Erik Bjornhage : SwedishChef, ETTELVA Arkitekter, Gothenburg, Sweden
Architect : Digital Development : Graphisoft Cert. BIM-Manager
ETTELVA Arkitekter : Eriks LinkedIn
DELL Precision 5570; i7-12700H; 64 GB; RTX A2000 [8GB] : AC12 - future

@Erik Bjornhage wrote:

Considering the existing SSA/Forward contracts will be supported - there is probably not any good reason why they can't continue to sell perpetual licenses...if they want...if the financial department will let them...


There probably is no reason why Graphisoft couldn't continue to sell perpetual licenses into the future.

Except that Graphisoft have said they will stop selling them by the end of 2024.

Unless you happen to already own a perpetual license, and then you will have until the end of 2025 to buy any more.

 

From 2026, Graphisoft have said they will not be available to anyone.

As to why this is, it is simply a decision Graphisoft have made - that will affect and upset many users.

 

Barry.

 

 

One of the forum moderators.
Versions 6.5 to 27
i7-10700 @ 2.9Ghz, 32GB ram, GeForce RTX 2060 (6GB), Windows 10
Lenovo Thinkpad - i7-1270P 2.20 GHz, 32GB RAM, Nvidia T550, Windows 11

Exactly!

So it's simply - they don't want to...(or the fninancial department doesn't think that it's maximising revenue and won't let them).

I completely understand why users are frustrated and upset. We just have to wait and see how it develops.

 

 

Erik Bjornhage : SwedishChef, ETTELVA Arkitekter, Gothenburg, Sweden
Architect : Digital Development : Graphisoft Cert. BIM-Manager
ETTELVA Arkitekter : Eriks LinkedIn
DELL Precision 5570; i7-12700H; 64 GB; RTX A2000 [8GB] : AC12 - future

That unfortunately is the sad reality of the decisions they have already made. We just have to learn to live with it and adjust to it.

 

If current customers want to jump ship because of these decisions they can only blame themselves. Not many viable options out there that don’t require a subscription only policy for new customers these days.

 

Back to the drawing board by hand if that’s what it takes ?

AC8.1 - AC28 ARM AUS + CI Tools
Apple Mac Studio M1 Max Chip 10C CPU
24C GPU 7.8TF 32GB RAM OS Sequoia

At this point, I don`t really care if the competitors are good, bad or just another subscription, I will jump off the ship for principles. This was a shade move. I rather give my money away them giving a company making this move. In fewer words: If there is no option for us, maybe we should all just jump out of this boat and make it a no option for them. 

The Perpetual license is deal and I don't have a problem with the yearly upgrades as we want more features.  The fee though must be relative and not required to upgrade yearly as some may not need those upgrades.

 

And it has to be competitive with other software or they will be pushed out of business.

Eric Milberger, Architect | Master Planner
leandrolopes
Booster

Lately, I’ve been asking around, but it seems that no one really knows what qualifies as an “existing customer” for the Nemetschek Group. The Brazilian resellers can’t assure me that I’ll be able to purchase a perpetual license in 2025, given that I’m currently only a subscriber. The forum advises me to check with my local resellers, local resellers tell me to check on the release and forums...it is the dog chasing it`s own tail. So "happy"with this whole situation. 

leandrolopes
Booster

Brazilian representatives are as usefull as a subscription model for a bad financial year. I ask them about subscribers buying the perpetual in 2025 and they tell me about how great the migration will be for everyone. 

Still don't have a great answer as this has been made to complicated or confusing.

 

If you have a Perpetual License, I assume we will have to pay a yearly maintenance fee.

And in the future if I add employees you will have to go onto the monthly program like was available for the last so many years.

And maybe the subscription change means it will be billed monthly and you can no longer stall your subscription?

 

Do I understand this correctly?

 

Note please do not become a Autodesk clone.

Eric Milberger, Architect | Master Planner

If you have a Perpetual License you can either pay the maintenance fee or choose to migrate to the subscription plan and lose your perpetual license.
If you already own a perpetual license, you can buy more licenses till the end of 2025, after that you need to pay the rent every year for every employe you have using Archicad, forever.
Subscriptions are like rents, they can change anytime with short warnings periods. It can be rent monthly, yearly or for a period of 3 years right now. I don`t think it will change, I think they will just make the monthly and yearly excrutiating expensive in a couple of years. Like Autodesk did. 

that is what I assumed, however the questions keep coming and wanted to make sure I was not missing something.

Now it just depends on what the yearly service fee is.

 

Plus, It will cost me a ton to have new employees trained as they all know Revit.  I cannot hire anyone here that knows Archicad.

At some point firms will be forced to look at migrating to the worst company (Autodesk)  because there is no engineering support here in the U.S.

The engineers I have talked to are across the country and in different directions.  How will they do what they need to so on site and keep us competitive on our fees.

 

More needs to be done to grow the Engineering and Intern base of users.

 

Eric Milberger, Architect | Master Planner

I need a spell checker - sorry

How will Graphisoft grow their Engineer base so that they can compete with Revit firms?  Tis hurts us as Architects as it makes it HARD for Engineers to bring projects to us.  Thy don't want the hastle of translations.

Eric Milberger, Architect | Master Planner

just a couple of hours ago a friend of mine showed me some videos of what revit can do in terms of Rebar. I knew it could be done, but not to that level. Impressive to say the least. Archicad is at least 15 years behind that. So why bother?

I don't like putting another software down like your message….thought you need to know that REVIT is causing a lot of grief on our projects with consultants STRUGGLING with it to to get drawings coordinated and on-time. 

Lilian Seow
LEED AP | cSBA | CAPM | PMP
Interior-Architecture and BIM Management
AC20 USA | 27- macOS 10.14.6| 4 GHz Intel Core i7| 32 GB RAM | Archicad-user since 1994!

BIT it is still the ugly big dog.  And we have to do better not equal.

Eric Milberger, Architect | Master Planner

I didnt say Revit should be used (im absolutely against wasting time modeling rebar as an architectural practice). I just admit it is very impressive from a bystander point of view.

leandrolopes
Booster

Just a follow up guys, today one of the brazilian resellers told me he was in contact with Graphisoft's representatives and that my impressions were correct only those already owning a perpetual license will be able to buy anything from 2025 January first and ahead. 

After that he gave me a "great" one hour argumentation, "almost" not agressive at all, about how this os the future and how I should embrace software as a service and that the companies are doing me a favor on letting me use their software for a restricted period. 

It was really great... and showed me the real graphisoft mentality.

Llian
Advocate

After using perpetual software comfortably since 1994, this transition is throwing me off.  I get it - corporate "strategic shift"  to satisfy investors' appetite, and luring new users, not loyal users.  I feel betrayed by Graphisoft for going with one model - subscription. No option, No freedom of choice. 

 

There is a risk for perpetual user - Graphisoft switch off the USB access for non-subscribers after 2025. Here goes digging deep into savings to own the last perpetual software plus a new iMac for the next two years in the hope Graphisoft consider a protection stream for loyal users > 30years.  

Lilian Seow
LEED AP | cSBA | CAPM | PMP
Interior-Architecture and BIM Management
AC20 USA | 27- macOS 10.14.6| 4 GHz Intel Core i7| 32 GB RAM | Archicad-user since 1994!

Perpetual licenses will be sold only till december this year in my country.

A perpetual license in Brazil is now 1/3 of the whole annual income for an avarage architect ( before taxes and basic expenses). Since Graphisoft Brasil has made no announcement about this shift that I just found out about, and since I pretend to eat and pay my bills in the next 3 months... I shall probably switch to ArchlineXP next year.