Replies to post #77247 on Apple Inc (AAPL)

[Bootz]

"The current plan is to polish the free product while in beta, and later incorporate additional features and storage on a subscription basis. Adobe is confident that Software as a Service is the future direction for software, and Photoshop Express is their maiden voyage to test the SaaS waters."

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080327-worth-1000-words-photoshop-express-now-free-and-online.html

[Tex]

re ADBE web app strategy

There's a population that has photos it'd like to manipulate but doesn't want to part with hundreds for the privilege. ADBE can do two things at once here: learn, by watching users, what these folks actually want to accomplish (market research in user demand), and develop a user base that might be monetized with ad support, or built into a photo community that might be similarly monetized, etc. And since ADBE holds all the logic on its servers, ADBE can pull the plus any time it looks like it's a bad deal.

I haven't checked it out, but I'm sure folks at ADBE are interested in at least testing the feasibility of this. My strong impression is that power users -- the folks who happily pay ADBE's suite fees to churn through their work on their butch desktop systems -- aren't interested in slowing their workflow by squeezing all their in-flow and out-flow I/O through the relatively thin pipe of their network connections. The folks who have been paying for the pro apps probably don't feel this is a substitute for The Real Thing™ on their desktop. Assuming I'm right in this impression, what is ADBE risking with this foray into the web services space? Assuming I'm right on the unlikeliness of significant cannibalization in ADBE's primary market, ADBE is in a position to explore a market segment it's never been able to monetize before: folks who have images to fool with, but won't part with hundreds of bucks.

I think the possibility of ad-supported hobbyist communities or "supreme" versions with a subscription fee is a very plausible later game. First, though, ADBE needs to learn what the users actually do with the app, and how many are interested in doing what. Maybe ADBE ends up partnering with someone's social networking site -- or offering services in connection with those sites, for revenue sharing. Maybe, with significant storage, ADBE gives folks a good subscription value for remote storage and publishing, considering what they get in image editing. Mind you I'm just speculating. But this is the kind of thing that invites itself to my mind. These people are picture enthusiasts, and they are a good market for folks looking to peddle scanners or printers or cameras or lenses or vacation packages or costumes or diving equipment or parachute training ....

It'll be interesting to see where this stuff ends up. For sure, you can't tell from here, can you? :-)

Take care,
--Tex.

[Bootz]

Here's your business model, from the TOS agreement:

Adobe does not claim ownership of Your Content. However, with respect to Your Content that you submit or make available for inclusion on publicly accessible areas of the Services, you grant Adobe a worldwide, royalty-free, nonexclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, and fully sublicensable license to use, distribute, derive revenue or other remuneration from, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform and publicly display such Content (in whole or in part) and to incorporate such Content into other Materials or works in any format or medium now known or later developed.

LOL