Retailers not left behind as software giant moves to cloud-only. You can still buy Adobe instore but on subscription card, as opposed to packs.
 |
As the software giant announced it was scrapping selling software packs and moving to ‘Creative Cloud’ online subscription-only services this week, we wondered; would Adobe be banished from stores completely?
Not quite, as Adobe will now be sold via subscription cards in-store, Officeworks confirmed to CN.
“There will be a move away from boxes to cards, but there will still be a presence in-store,” an Officeworks spokesperson said.
Read: Adobe: Online Only, Dumps Software Packs
It is believed the subscription cards will be sold in the same value as what Adobe is offering online, including $29.99, $49.99 and $19.99 per month depending on the packaged required.
“Adobe are changing so we will be changing along with them,” he added.
However, JB Hi-Fi said Adobe had not confirmed its retail strategy since the move to the cloud-only model was announced.
“Adobe are yet to publicly confirm their specific local plans for retail fullfilment,” a spokesperson told CN.
However, JB predicts Adobe will take the direction favoured by Microsoft, with a combination of prepaid cards and SKUs.
“We anticipate, like with the direction taken by a number of other software publishers such as Microsoft, there will be a combination of maintained physical SKUs and prepaid card activation solutions on offer.”
It appears software is becoming increasingly an online affair with JB Hi-Fi now selling Microsoft, Trend Micro, Norton and some Adobe software directly online, along with Officeworks, Harvey Norman and Dick Smith.
Software is a vital part of electronics retailers’ product mix, with consumers often buying their hardware and additional software in the one purchase.
