If you are reading this and don't know by now, the days of perpetual/lifetime software licensing are numbered and soon to go the way of the dinosaur to make way for the majority of online software vendors like Microsoft and Adobe who slowly but surely continue to transition to the subscription-based SaaS (software as a service) model in an attempt to phase out perpetual/forever software based licensing customers who will no longer be able to purchase a software product and own it for life. Needless to say, whether you sign up for a month-to-month or annual SaaS payment plan as long as your subscription remains active, you're paying for the software as long as you continue to use it. Moreover, not only do marketing gurus behind subscription cloud-based SaaS know exactly what they're doing, you may rest assured companies like Adobe and Microsoft have more than likely asked themselves time and again why it has taken them so long to transition to subscription-based SaaS licensing given the substantial increase in sales revenue to be realized. As to the advantages of subscription-based SaaS, while marketing gurus continue their efforts to convince prospective customers, storing documents/files in the Cloud to be advantageous, convenient, expedient, and secure, it's really a crock of s__t subject to needless ongoing scrutiny and debate that lays beyond the scope of this post. Truth is, software vendors stand to make a lot more money selling subscription-based SaaS licenses than their perpetual-based lifetime ancestors given it's much more lucrative to have customers continue to pay for the privilege of using the software for as long as they intend to use it compared to a one-time purchase to use the software without ever having to pay another dime over time. In short, as long as the subscription-based SaaS license remains active, the software will continue to function/perform as intended. As for those who presently have a perpetual software license, once software support/updates cease to exist under the perpetual software license agreement, it is the consensus of the software industry that the perpetual license holder will soon if not eventually transition to the subscription-based SaaS licensing model to continue to use the software and restore customer service/support along with updates to which they've grown accustomed.

The Good News is if you happen to be an average desktop/laptop computer user with basic computer software skills willing to perform your due diligence, what the SaaS subscription-based companies and marketing gurus won't tell you is that computer software technology has long existed to allow one to literally create their own CRM software and digital/electronic templates for their own personal/business needs without having to spend an arm and a leg on subscription-based software like Pipe Drive, Google/Panda docs, etc.. In fact, depending on your computer skills and proficiency, you can expect to pay a fraction of the cost compared to the overall cost of subscription-based software not to mention eliminating the learning curve along with any additional costs incurred hiring IT personnel to customize and use it! Moreover, if you happen to be an above average computer user well versed in creating interactive PDF forms along with using other software based apps like MS Word, OpenOffice Writer, etc., you can literally create/design a better CRM software app and digital templates intended for use in the Free Adobe Reader where your colleagues/others are able to receive digital/electronic documents via email file attachments using their own email provider as well as open, view, save, and print docs using the Free Adobe Reader. They in turn won't be required to purchase subscription-based software to accommodate your software requirements. Needless to say, the ROI to be realized eliminating the need to purchase subscription-based SaaS is virtually unlimited. Furthermore, if you need to outsource the cost to create digital PDF apps/forms to someone well versed in PDF Digital forms technology, it represents a onetime cost compared to a never-ending subscription-based SaaS. The reason I know this to be True is simply because I have done this myself over many years in business and continue to do so based on 50 plus years computer software experience and 30-years plus designing/developing interactive PDF forms using Adobe Acrobat Pro. As of this writing, I literally pay for nothing other than devote my time creating digital form templates designed for use in the Free Adobe Acrobat Reader and a CRM app to match also intended for use in the Free Adobe Reader.