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 I'm a hobbyist who has been an occasional user for many years.  I finally decided to purchase PrintMusic only to find that it's been eliminated for mac users.  As I said, I'm not a professional, and dropping $600 on a piece of software simply isn't something I can manage at this time (at least if I'm interested in maintaining marital bliss).  Sure, there are other options out there, but they're all pretty clunky. MuseScore? Lily Pond? Sibelius? Yuck.

It turns out that Sibelius offers monthly subscriptions to both their flagship software (~$25/month) and their "lite" version (<$10/month).  As much as I'd like to stick with Finale, it's looking like I'll have to switch.  Now, if there were a monthly subscription, available, you can bet I'd jump in.  Based on most of my other online subscriptions, it's also likely that I'd let it ride indefinitely.  I actually don't remember the last time I looked at Angie's List or Consumer Reports...

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Hi Mark and all:

 

Thank you for posting your request for a subscription pricing model to Finale. We continue to evaluate business models and the best way to provide value to our users while remaining profitable. At this time, we do not plan to offer a monthly subscription to our flagship program, Finale. We are looking to provide a solution for hobbyists such as yourself that want professional notation for free or a fraction of the price. Any new product announcements would be made on our site

 

Cheers,
Michael Johnson
VP, Professional Notation
MakeMusic

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 Mark Anderson,

 

Since you have PrintMusic, you can upgrade to the “full Finale” for 99$.

But you have to act quickly - the offer expires by the end of september.

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See, there's the rub.  I've been using a trial version I apparently downloaded some time before the sunset but didn't activate until recently...  

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To be fair to MuseScore, it's free. Despite that, you can make pretty professional looking scores. (Complicated notation is also possible.)

 

Finale is still the best, though ... despite itself sometimes.

 

Not sure how much experience you have with MuseScore, but if you are having issues getting the full version of Finale, you should revisit MuseScore as a legitimate option.

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I've abandoned other (very fine) programs that went to a subscription model and hope Finale does not go that route.

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As do I!

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No, No, No, No, No, No, No!  And No again!

Don't even hint about MakeMusic hopping on the subscription bandwagon!  There lies the road to ruin, for sure.

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Hi Adrian, Mike, and Anthony:

 

As I mentioned in my initial post, we plan to maintain the perpetual license in Finale for the foreseeable future. Our other product, SmartMusic is based on a subscription to properly handle royalty payments to copyright holders based on usage. So, MakeMusic hopped on the Subscription bandwagon about 10 years ago and see the pros and cons of that revenue structure. Providing a modern solution to compete at the entry level of notation creation is something we continue to investigate. But, never fear, you will always be able to "own" your Finale.

 

Cheers,

Michael Johnson

VP, Professional Notation

MakeMusic

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