Apple has filed a brand update that paves the way for a future Final Cut Pro subscription.
Apple's professional video editing software - Final Cut Pro - can currently be purchased for around 329.99 euros in the Mac App Store. But the Cupertino-based company has now taken a step that opens up four potential new scenarios. As reported by Patently Apple discovered, Apple updated the Final Cut Pro trademark and added the Software Rental category. Apple's Final Cut Pro was granted Registered Trademark (RTM) status in May 2016. Apple's RTM was only registered under International Class 009, which includes:
Computer software for creating, editing, processing, organizing, importing, exporting and encoding video, game and multimedia content; Computer software for creating, editing, processing, organizing, importing, exporting and encoding audio, music and sound content; Computer software for creating and editing digital animations, graphics and special effects; Computer software for color correction of video and multimedia content; Computer software for creating, editing, exporting and encoding digital media.
“Final Cut Pro” brand receives Nice classification #42
The term “software rental” was not part of the registered trademark in 2016. That is now changing. On Monday, Apple filed an update to its “Final Cut Pro” trademark in Europe and added the Nice classification #42 added, which suggests that Apple may decide to go the route of Microsoft's subscription model for Final Cut Pro by adding the term "software rental" in this class. As Patently Apple notes, this is a very specific step that Apple is taking to expand the coverage of the brand, so it doesn't seem to be simply a standard move that the company is making to cover all the bases. Now, there are four possible scenarios for Final Cut Pro:
Four possible scenarios
- First, Apple could keep the one-time purchase option but charge a subscription fee for major updates.
- Second, the company could offer new users the choice between a one-time purchase and a monthly subscription to use the app.
- Third, Apple could remove the one-time purchase option and turn Final Cut Pro into a subscription service. This possibility would deter many who reject the software-as-a-service (SAAS) trend and prefer occasional app purchase costs to recurring monthly fees.
- The fourth possibility is that Apple leaves things as they are and only charges a subscription for those who want to use some sort of cloud-based version of Final Cut. That could mean access to an iPad version of the app as well as the Mac app, in addition to cloud storage.
Although the move seems very deliberate, it does not mean that Apple currently has any plans to change its business model for Final Cut Pro. But it is not out of the question. So it remains exciting as always. (Image: Apple)
