Adobe Cancellation Fees: A Closer Look at Recent Controversies

Adobe has long been synonymous with innovation and creativity, thanks to its powerhouse software like Adobe Acrobat, Photoshop, and Illustrator. However, recent developments have cast a shadow over its reputation, stirring up significant media scrutiny and public debate.

Cancellation Fees for Adobe Creative Cloud

Controversy has arisen involving the revelation of cancellation fees associated with Adobe Creative Cloud services. This has stirred frustration among subscribers who found themselves locked into year long contracts or facing unexpected charges upon attempting to discontinue their subscriptions. The lack of clarity and accessibility regarding these fees has left many feeling misled and dissatisfied with Adobe's customer service policies.

Many users who have attempted to cancel their Adobe CC subscriptions using online services have found themselves lost in a labyrinth of unnecessary pages without an easy path to cancellation. Those who have tried to cancel via telephone services have also found their calls being dropped by call agents and having to repeat their situation to different agents.

How does Adobe's Creative Cloud Payment Structure work?

The way that Adobe subscriptions work is that users sign up to what is technically a yearly plan, that can be paid off month by month. When a user signs up, they are signing up to use Adobe Creative Cloud for at least 1 year, if the user decides that they want to cancel before that year is up, they have to pay 50% of the remaining term, leaving some users with a cancellation fee of hundreds of dollars. Essentially Adobe are offering a loan for a subscription product. For any user that has had Adobe for 1 year+, this is not something they need to worry about as they have already paid for the minimum term.

What is Adobe Creative Cloud?

Adobe Creative Cloud is a software subscription that gives users access to use Adobe's full range of creative products for a fixed monthly cost. This cost varies based on the user type (Individual, Student, Business, Education). For an individual the fee is A$87.99 per month at time of publication (14/07/24).

The Adobe Creative Cloud package includes access to the following software:

Prior to the creation of Adobe's software subscription (Adobe Creative Cloud) in 2011. The various tools Adobe offered were available to be bought outright which allowed users to own their software, which offered a a higher cost efficiency over time, control over upgrades and updates, and an investment in a tangible (albeit digital) asset.

Adobe's subscription income accounted for 95% of the companies income in Q1 of 2024. Subscriptions totalled to A$7.4  billion ($US4.92 billion)

What is being done about Adobe's burying its fees?

The US department of Justice is suing Adobe as well as 2 top executives, Maninder Sawhney and David Wadhwani, for their involvement in making the pricing plan work for Adobe. This pricing structure has been described by many as "confusing" and "misleading".

Adobe's General Council and Chief Trust Officer, Dana Rao has stated - "We are transparent with the terms and conditions of our subscription agreements and have a simple cancellation process. Subscription services are convenient, flexible and cost effective to allow users to choose the plan that best fits their needs, timeline and budget"

Adobe have stated they will be looking to refute the Federal Trade Commissions claims in court.

Alternative Options to avoid Adobe's Cancellation Fees

With the recent negative media that Adobe has been facing, some users have begun to jump ship to alternative services such as those offered by Serif, who produce Affinity Designer, Affinity Photo and Affinity Publisher. Which are direct competitors for Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign. Others who primarily use Adobe's video editing tool Premiere are also looking at alternatives such as Apples Final Cut Pro or Blackmagic's DaVinci Resolve. These tools are great alternatives that offer lifetime licenses for a one off purchase fee, or in some cases are available for free.

We are not sponsored or affiliated with Serif / Affinity, but for those who are interested in stepping away from Adobe, you can currently purchase all 3 of The Affinity products on a lifetime license for just A$137.99, that's just 2x months of Adobe Creative Cloud! (Offer valid as of 14/07/2024) - Learn more about Affinity

While the alternative software from other developers offer viable solutions to avoid using Adobes creative tools. Adobe has cemented its products as the industry standard in many industries. This near monopolisation on the creative software market makes it very difficult for those using creative tools to move away from Adobe and its growing use of dishonest practices.