Adobe Creative Cloud could change the way Sam Houston State University students use the company’s popular software products such as Photoshop.
Students will be able to use any of Adobe’s programs they need without having to pay the full price for each individual application via a “highly discounted” service for students, according to the company. The company now offers the option of paying a month-by-month usage fee as well as yearly subscriptions.
Students who only need a program for a semester or two may find monthly payments worth their money, while some students needing the programs for longer terms have found it to be equally beneficial.
“It was worth paying the monthly fee,” SHSU computer animation major David Grant said. “We used a lot of Photoshop and Flash, but it was cheaper [than buying the software] and you also got to use the other programs.”
The Creative Cloud can be purchased for individual, university or corporate use, and each membership has different payment options for different membership lengths.
There are options for student discounts, but Adobe requires cooperation with the institution, which has yet to happen at SHSU.
“It is something we are investigating for use at Sam Houston,” said Mateo Zuniga, asset management coordinator for IT@Sam. “The way we would license it is a little different than say, by a professor or student for personal use. [Students] would have access to it without the monthly fee.”
For a short time frame, such as a semester, it is more cost effective for students to pay the discounted $29.99 per month ($49.99 per month without student discount) versus paying close to $600 for a single program or $2,600 for Adobe’s Creative Suite 6.
For long-term use, such as several semesters or for a career after college, it is cheaper to purchase a regular version of whichever software you need. However, Adobe doesn’t plan on releasing future versions of its software application without a subscription.
According to the technology magazine Wired, many customers have complained that they will no longer be able to have their own current version of the software and that the subscription model benefits Adobe more than its customers.
SHSU offers no student discount for Adobe products, although the entire Adobe Suite CS6 is available to students on on-campus computers. According to the SHSU website, students, faculty and staff may take copies of the software home via the Adobe Home Use Program. Available for distribution are Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver and more.