Pro Tools Studio Perpetual vs Subscription?

[alldayjay]

I have a subscription to Pro Tools Studio. I've had it for a few years now and have paid well over the amount a perpetual license would be.

Should I cancel the subscription and get a perpetual license ? And if so what are the Cons of this?

I believe I read with a perpetual license I would need a physical Ilok/dongle instead of it just connecting through the internet like it does now. Is that true?

What else if anything would I lose with a perpetual license?

I hate to keep paying $30/month ($360 per year) if I could just make a one-time purchase for a license

Thanks in advance for any help.

[albee1952]

Hmmm, tough call. It might help to consider what computer you are using. If you are on a Mac, with Apple's constant updates that break everything, then a subscription would allow you to keep PT upgraded to match. If you're on a Windows machine, then updates are not nearly as problematic(perpetual would make sense here). If you are a pro and earn a living with this(and take tax deductions), then a subscription is an annual write-off. For a hobbyist/home recording person, saving money makes a bit sense

[cvicente22]

Hi alldayjay,

Perpetual and Subscription have the same ilok license authorization scheme. Their license can be both activated on cloud or iLok depending on your preference. Owning a perpetual license is more like owning a car than subscription where you're just renting it. With subscription, after your plan expire, you won't be able to use the software at all, while with perpetual, after your plan expires, you won't be able to receive any update or use the add-value plugins and support, but you can still use the software with the version where your license is allowed to work.

I hope this helps.