On your topic nr 5) I dont know on which continent you live. but for the sake of discussion, let say you live in the Americas somewhere. That means the price you pay for CorelDRAW is about Half of what we europeans pay for the same program. So, in that respect, its not that much your paying ;-)
But, I would also had thougth it to have been a big win in the short term, to alloww upgrade price on MAc versions for those who have a Windows version. Despite it being different platforms.
But, again, that said, from now on you will at least be eligable for upgrade prices ion all future Mac versions. Thats always something ;-) And, devloping a NEW plattform of a program still cost a lot of money. And they need revenue just like any other company out there.
No company I know of these days that produces professional-use software (or, at least the ones I use), even when they develop for a new OS, does not include a dual-OS license. One can have a Mac and a Windows machine and install a version on each, use one version at a time, etc.Corel should do the same. It's that simple. As it is, Corel is squeezing maximum revenue from X number of users that then have little compelling reason to switch from using a VM to the native Mac version. So it would be sacrificing the (relative) few in order to gain new customers to purchase new licenses. That is not a customer-friendly revenue model. Instead (aside from the dual-OS thing), they could have had ambassadors of good will from their existing customers using the MacOS.
This non-dual OS licensing also prevents someone or a company from choosing to switch OSs if they have to start all over with a new license.
It's all just short-sighted and dumb.
Hi Mike We,
In all fairness, how many professional-use software do you know of, right off the bat, who creates a completely new product, which CorelDRAW for Mac basically is, alongside an already existing product like the Windows version is, to begin with? And at this stage.
Regardless of what I think, Corel decided to do it this way, and thats that basically.
Because CorelDRAW for Mac by Corel is regarded as a New product, they treat it like any other software they have. Meaning, if you dont have Corel Painter for Mac, and intend to buy it, you wouldnt expect to get Corel Painter 2019 for an upgrade price, simply because you have a Windows or Mac license of CorelDRAw, would you.
I would had prefer them to be able to offer it for an upgrade price for windows license CorelDRAW owners.
If you ask me, here in Europe, your Full license prize is basically what we over here have to pay for an upgrade. Meaning, if your an american, you only pay HALF of what Europeans pay. Is that fair? It is what it is. They have retailers in Europe of course, and those wouldnt sell CorelDRAW or any other license locally, if the same buyer could buy online the Corel store for half.
No. I've never thought the non-USA pricing was fully fair. It does cost some extra to administer the taxes and if technically there has to be an EU (for instance) office (typically for lower tax purposes). But it sure doesn't cost that much.
I know of only two, larger software titles (but a few smaller ones) that developed for a different OS well after the original OS release. Maybe because they instituted a dual OS licensing at the time, they treated upgrades the same. But it wasn't a new license cost.
Because I have always used a PC, I also do not remember what Corel did with the previous Mac release. Did they charge full-cost then?
Yes, Corel (and whatever other company) can and do whatever they decide. Which never makes it the right thing to do whether it is for the good of the customers or for Corel. I believe (which doesn't matter to Corel) that what they are doing is absolutely not good for the company in either the short or long term.
Bean counters never see the potential profit right under their noses. Corel at least could have offered a competitive upgrade half-way between. Heck, own CorelDraw and do long documents? Quark offers a competitive upgrade for owning a CorelDraw license. It's dumb Corel cannot see the value and act positively on it.
Mikewe I believe you're incorrect about non-USA pricing. If memory serves Corel charges the same amount for CD and any difference the end user pays in their country is due to taxation. It's bad especially in Europe and Asia. I believe I talked to someone a few years ago and CD was triple what I paid in the U.S.. I'm all for a better business climate.
What follows is my poor understanding. It's been a while since I last had to be involved in the process.
VAT in Europe is currently (last time I checked) between 17% and 27% for SaaS, and different (lower if I recall) for physical goods.
A typical practice of software companies, though, is to take the highest rate possible and not distinguish between countries by adding it into the price + a handling charge...and be careful because some yet still charge VAT on what should have been the net cost. I have no idea how Corel charges VAT in Europe. But if the base price we see in the USA isn't what the price is to say someone in GB and they still pay VAT...then a bit of greed is happening.
Mike
MY upgrade price is £299. At current exchange rates that is $391.
If I deduct the 20% UK VAT from the £299, then the base cost is £249, which is $326