I’ll try not to fuel a fire here, but rather to persuade Steinberg to change their minds. This is a very honest dose of my perspective. It’s respectful. But I’m not holding back. This is how I feel about the licensing schemes employed by Steinberg:
The future
The Surface Book doesn’t even have a USB port on the tablet. The world is moving away from ports and moving toward wireless. In 2010 the iPad was introduced. It disrupted several markets very quickly. If anyone thinks it will be long before dongles are dead, they are fooling themselves. How will dongles survive the day we get rid of ports altogether?
Even now, Pro Tools and Cubase are starting to see disruption by another DAW that is gaining market momentum. I won’t name that DAW out of respect. But the market is an objective climate and will speak for itself in the end. You really have to see what’s out your window for what it is. We can either move with the times or stay put and let the world move on without us. It’s certain that dongles are dead or will be soon enough. But taking a baby step with a software iLicenser is simply not enough.
Consider this-
I can install my DAW on 5 machines and move seamlessly between them. Think about that from my point of view for a minute. Steinberg, tell me… please find a reason… how could a move to Cubase from what I currently have possibly improve my user experience? I’m a reasonable human being. If you can name one reason, I’ll be interested.
What I’m really saying by that is that for Sibelius, Finale, and Notion users, as well as many others… how can Dorico even stand a chance? Don’t get me wrong, I want it to succeed because I like what I’m seeing. So I’m not saying Dorico should fail. I want it to succeed. I’m on your side here. But let me be clear… I like what I’m seeing out of London, just not Hamburg.
Light-hearted nonsense
Before anyone sees more in my comment than I’ve actually said… I love Germany (people, culture, music, and especially the food… oh man, the food). If it weren’t for family, I’d go back and probably live there. I swear it must be in my blood. But Hamburg is gambling Dorico’s future based on an old and well-hated idea. And that worries me a bit. Steinberg should celebrate the success and hard work of good people. But whichever person decided that the eLicenser was a good thing… well I’d hand them a wad of cash to survive with and then wish a good life for them in another company. Every company makes mistakes. What sets you apart is what you do about them. If you want to keep a good ship sailing, it has to be a good ship. That means cutting out a few bad ideas from time to time.
I wish Steinberg the best. The best comes from listening and acting, not sitting around waiting for users to change their minds. Please listen.
Cheers,
Sean