Articulate 360
Nov 09, 2016
Hi,
So the announcement has come out, I WAS excited, but after seeing that price...
Are you literally insane? Why would we pay $1300 PER PERSON PER YEAR to use storyline, when we can just pay a 1 off fee of basically the same price for Storyline on its own.
Yes, I know you get 'other features' in 360, but they are most certainly NOT worth paying that cost every single year.
Let's also look at the fact, that if you stopped subscribing you lose the ability to use Storyline at all, whereas we are still able to use our Storyline 2 licences, and even our Articulate 09 licences.
When I was told during the Beta "you will be pleased with the pricing", I thought that meant you were going to be reasonable. When you compare this and the price against things like the Adobe Creative Suite... how can you justify this extreme expense!?
Having used some of the other pieces of the 360 offering during the Beta, they definitely do not make it worth the price.
Jake
94 Replies
My understanding of this is that Articulate 360 is a separate product, a bundle if you will, of Articulate products that is distinct from the stand alone version of Storyline and Studio. Whenever Storyline 3 is released you "will" be able to buy it, upgrade to it or get it as part of any PMP you have pre purchased as a standalone.
I can't say that I'm compelled by the Articulate 360, as it appears to have a lot of duplication within it, such as potentially 4 screen capturing tools (preso, replay and the built in functions of Storyline and Studio) and 3 different authoring tools (Rise, Storyline and Studio). I just don't need to be chopping and changing between all these different things to get a job done, or figuring out what tool is best, rather than having a single tool that lets me create what is best for the job at hand, which is why the stand alone storyline is great and why I am looking forward to the 3rd version, or at least was.
The content library looks good and has the great potential to grow, but again there are alternatives on the market that provide assets extremely competitively in price. This leaves Articulate Live and Articulate Review, both of which have loads of potential and expansion possibilities, as well as potentially streamlining SME review. I think these are pretty awesome and wish I could just subscribe to them alone, rather than the whole 360 package. Perhaps the model will change depending on uptake?
Price, well there is a lot in the Articulate 360 Bundle with on going upgrades, but it is hard not to compare to other subscription models such as Adobe Captivate, which also includes access to an asset library and wonder about the competitiveness of the model, especially when you drill into what is being offered and if you see value for the yearly subscription cost. Ultimately value is in the eye of the person who lays down their money.
I think Articulate really needs to work on its communication strategy here. I can't help but feel as if there has been a bit of bait and switch. Although no one has said that Storyline 3 is being launched, no one has said that it is not being launched either and that something new and innovative is being launched. The anticipation of a new storyline is pretty high, and the potential new functionalities and streamlined old ones is dizzying from the Articulate Team, so when that's not what you get, well it's all a bit ho hum really, which is a shame considering what is being offered in the 360 package.
Subscription models are the big thing now, I think most digital companies offer something, and it's no surprise Articulate have gone down this path. Infact as a business it would make sense, as a more or less predictable cash flow would help the bottom line and development of new things. So I wish the company well with this and hope that the investment they have put into it pays off. As a consumer of their stand alone products I'm a fan of what Articulate does and their support of the community and will continue to recommend Storyline 2 to people interested in developing eLearning. I'm looking forward to Storyline 3, and will purchase that when it launches, hopefully as a stand alone product, and hopefully in the not too distant future.
At least Storyline 360 is legible on my 3840x2160 resolution HD monitor. Looks just like the old tool on the old computer. Haven't had a chance to play with the new functionality yet. FWIW, if I were a software company, I would go with a subscription model. In the long run, it just makes so much more sense from an update and cash-forecasting standpoint. Best of luck, Articulate. I hope you don't lose too many of the old guard.
I'm looking forward to testing the new products. Articulate Rise and Review look interesting.
Just to be clear, as I understand it. Articulate now offers three products:
Obviously Articulate wants to sell the new product, but we don't have to buy into 360 and can upgrade when Storyline 3 is released? Is that correct?
I agree. And it makes it easier for me to forecast my budget needs at work.
I understand some of the comments about pricing especially for people who buy their own software, but I think the price is fine. Captivate costs us almost $400/yr. Over two years that's almost $800. 360 would cost me $299 with PMP and $999 the next year (assuming no discounts).
$800 vs $1300.
The question is what does the $500 get me? Haven't looked it over yet, but Articulate Rise is a completely new eLearning application. Even if I didn't get anything else, for $250/yr I get that. I also get all of the other things (which I still need to look at in more detail).
Also any money we save on Captivate we spend in production and getting no help from their support team. That means something as well.
And the $64,000 question - does 360 fix the DPI scaling issue?
As a contractor, I have a version of Storyline on my home PC, and one on my Surface that I use when working in a client's office. Does that mean I'll need to purchase two user licences? The current ability to run one licence on two machines is a bit of a 'must have' for me, so if i have to buy two licences that makes me less inclined to move to the new product.
Which is a pity, as there sounds like some really useful tools and cool things!
I'm with you, Matthew! I was a Captivate user too, but I'll never go back. The community and support here was worth the switch. I can always find an answer to a Storyline problem in the threads here. That's invaluable! When I make the argument I always include that Articulate does elearning. Only elearning. Adobe has so much more on its plate; elearning developers do not rank at all.
You are allowed to install the Articulate 360 desktop software on two machines. And do try it out on your high DPI monitor; you should be pleased with the improvements there.
Well said Matthew...I had written a similar post but got caught up reading all the posts and forgot to post it - lol. You said it beautifully 360 is not for everyone - but the bits I've seen and tested are fantastic. While as a freelancer the subscription price is a little exe I look at the added value of everything including this forum and support.
Go Articulate...onward and upward :-)
Brian, that's great news! I'm going to trot off and give it a trial right now.
I agree Jane and Matt,
I was a Captivate user for a short while before switching and I remember the frustration of being a new-ish developer and receiving no answer from anyone at Adobe, or their "community".
Then, the first time I submitted a support case with Articulate, I was expecting to not hear back--based on my Captivate experience--and was amazed by the crazy prompt response AND solution to my problem.
Well said Matt!
For organisations, this provides more options for creating content, plus the review and content library will help so much. In some cases Rise will be appropriate for some content and in others it will be Storyline... and perhaps Peek or Preso.
For those who do client work, like myself, we can offer more to our clients and that's a good thing.
And, for those who want a perpetual licence, well, you can just get that.
I think this is really good and the potential is enormous. And the promise of regular updates and new features is just too good to pass up.
Just to clarify at first reading about 360 I believe myself a several others were under the impression SL2 as standalone package was going away and 360 was going to be the only path to take. Since the post Articulate says SL3 is coming in the future as a standalone program for purchase not just for rent.
I did download and tour 360 and I like that SL has somewhat of a fresh look and the other tools look cool also. I'm sure I would really like 360 but I'm just not a fan of subscription based software. I will update to SL3 when it comes out and as others have said good luck with 360 for those who want to take that path.
SL Fan
This. 100 times this. Articulate? Are you there? We shouldn't have to dig through forum posts and internet comments to get the full story. It's hard to believe this lack of communication from an ELEARNING company.
Hype for the new product is fine, and it looks like great value for a very narrow set of customers, but for the rest of us loyal customers it's been a stressful day spent thinking that time and money invested in this platform was wasted as we may now have to switch back to Captivate or whatever.
Hi James,
Is it good? Absolutely.
Is it worth this price? Absolutely NOT.
How they can say it is competitive with other offerings on the market is a joke, when you look at this like the Adobe Creative Suite and Captivate.
As it stands, for the same price you could get BOTH the creative suite AND captivate for the same price. Believe me that offers infinite more value and utility.
I'm with Jake here. The pricing is absurd.
I pitched Storyline to my employer with the upgrade pricing plans as I had thought that this platform would be Articulate's main focus due the promises of future updates. Unfortunately, as I have since learned, Articulate refuses to provide information of their release dates and or tease future features. All we've heard so far (after some begging) is "sometime in 2017." Seriously? Why is not, today? Storyline 360 IS Storyline 3. If it's not 3, then 3 better be a huge improvement over 360 since you're making your already paying customers wait.
It's astonishing to me that Storyline 360 is not available as an upgrade to those of us who have purchased the upgrade plans. As a current Storyline 2 user, there is no reason why I shouldn't be able to use Storyline 360 as a Standalone product; I don't want all the extra stuff or the subscription that goes along with the bundle. It's clear that this is a money grab for Articulate. "Get them into the subscription plan before we release the standalone product!"
This is like going to a restaurant and ordering food, then seeing a table next to you sit down and getting their food before you get yours.
As far as the community on this forum, it is a great place. The templates, suggestions and other ideas presented here tend to be fantastic. But let's be real: the customers are who deserve most of the credit for the feedback and suggestions, not the Articulate employees. Most of the time the employees either post a link to another thread or just pop-in after someone else has answered the question. That's not a knock on the Articulate employees, it's just that the community is SO good that they typically respond before an employee gets the chance. The community members make the community great, and they deserve credit for that.
Some might take these comments as brash and rude. They shouldn't be taken that way. They should be taken by Articulate as constructive criticism from an upset consumer of their product that feels pushed aside.
I'm not responding negatively to Articulate 360. It looks like it is full of features and great improvements. It looks like it could really progress ELearning to the next level.
I'm responding, as others are, negatively to the fact that Storyline 2 users can't use Storyline 360 as a standalone product. From the outside looking in, it seems that Storyline 360 is Storyline 3... why can't I have access to it? As part of the upgrade plan my employer has already paid for it. Why can I not get standalone access to a product that we've already purchased?
Exactly! If you could pick and choose products, that would be amazing! I want Review and possibly Rise but not everything!
Sometimes I wish the customer's of online products like this were unionized (lol) this way we could get a real momentum behind us and force change through sheer numbers and coordinated effort. If enough customer's don't buy the product at it's launch price, than the launch price will have to lower or the product package will have to change entirely.
Problem with today's society is that the small guys (us) don't really have much of a say in how the larger companies like Articulate & Adobe package their products and price them because companies (with much higher budgets than free lancers or contractors) will step in and buy the product for whatever x, y, z price is offered.
I agree mostly, but disagree to a point. Larger companies don't necessarily find it easier to have the budget for software.
Indeed, the expensive of 360 is so much larger than anything else that it is impossible for us to even consider it. We have 10 IDs, 10 x 1300 per year is bonkers.
Yes I know there is a discount for more than 10 seats, but unless that discount is like 60% then it's not going to be enough! Not when we can pay a 1 off fee of 1398 for a copy of the software.
I see a lot of people disliking the price, not much else we can do here except just tell them its outrageous until they finally realise. We keep being told about how 'competitive' it is compared to other offerings out there, even though we are coming back with evidence showing that to be false lol
That's what I haven't understood. They have that table showing that Articulate 360 is cheaper then alternatives, but don't say what alternatives they are comparing it to. As you said, we know Adobe (their biggest competitor) is around the same price, and cheaper if you consider you can pick and choose apps. So I'm not sure what they mean.
I posted this in another forum that somehow turned into tech support for some guy. I downloaded the trial, and Storyline 360 looks almost identical to Storyline 2. I don't see why all of us loyal Storyline users should wait a year for what looks like Storyline 2.5. I'm a HUGE supporter and promoter of Articulate Storyline through my very large network. I have converted many companies that I have been contracted by, from Captivate to Storyline. I know all companies need to make money, but this approach with 360 and trying to make us buy all these other products we don't want to get the most up to date Storyline seems to be a bit of a slap in the face to Articulate's loyal Storyline customers. We shouldn't have to wait until next year for the next version of Storyline when it is ready now. :(
@Fraser M, perhaps that's why SL3 hasn't yet been released—Articulate might have realized that SL360 isn't enough of an upgrade for SL-only users. They have a bunch of other new tools and decided to bundle them all together to create a subscription base now with plans to upgrade SL3 with more features before its release.
Of course, this is all speculation, but if it's the case, it would put my mind at ease a little bit about why it feels as those who paid for upgrades are getting stiffed.
I was so excited to see the release of a subscription based Storyline product, ready and eager to jump ship from Captivate to Storyline, especially after seeing the extra features. Then my jaw dropped when I saw the for me prohibitive price tag. My Captivate-only monthly subscription is one quarter of the 360 price over a year, and way more digestible, so sadly I have to stick to Captivate. I would be prepared to pay more for a Storyline subscription, because it is the superior product, but not THAT much more. At least I can enjoy SL2 at work.
Bundling products to justify a bigger price tag is a terrible idea. I work in a law firm and am acutely aware of what legal publishers do with bundling. They might be getting away with it (for now) but smaller enterprises like Articulate, I don't know... Customers want flexibility.
Yes, but Storyline 360 mobile publishing is sooooo much better. My biggest gripe with Storyline was the mobile publishing. It's like a new version, that's how much it matters. Are you going to add the new mobile publishing for Storyline 2 users? We've had Storyline 2 for less than a year. This whole 360 thing seems shady.
360 is certainly better for publishing, but the price is a big issue. Articulate traditionally release a new version of software every 3 years. They traditionally cost roughly $1300.
With 360 this means triple the price, as instead of buying new the software every 3 years you pay the same amount EACH year.
This is also ignoring the huge fact that it is cheaper to upgrade a previous version than to buy outright, in which case it is 4 or 5 times cheaper.
Can someone at Articulate please let us know exactly what other offerings on the market they are referring to when they say it is 'competitive'?
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