(Archived) Lifetime Premium membership?

[ebob9 0]

Has there been any thought to offering a lifetime or multi-year Premium membership program?

I'd really like to upgrade to Premium, but I *hate* recurring yearly fees. Especially when it's a great service that I could see myself using for a while, I tend to want to pay for it once and get the recurring expense done with.

I completely understand that a sustainable business model requires consistent revenue, and that lifetime subscriptions could undermine funding to enhance the service. Still, if the upfront cost is enough - it could make sense.

Thanks!

[engberg 89]

That's a great idea!

We don't currently have anything set up like that in our payment system, but it would be a nice option. I remember when I bought my first TiVo, I paid for the lifetime subscription up front instead of the monthly plan.

[BurgersNFries 2,407]

I remember when I bought my first TiVo, I paid for the lifetime subscription up front instead of the monthly plan.

Indeed! Our first Tivo has been running on "free" for a few years now & 2nd one soon. (Lifetime subscriptions were upped from equal to two years to equal to three years.)

My lifetime membership to Nautilus 24 Hour Gym....well...that's another story. (At least I broke even.)

[crane 40]

That's a great idea!

We don't currently have anything set up like that in our payment system, but it would be a nice option. I remember when I bought my first TiVo, I paid for the lifetime subscription up front instead of the monthly plan.

I'd buy that.

[jbenson2 2,147]

A lifetime subscription for a software program?

Well, to each his own, but it seems like a high risk gamble ...

Compuserve

Visicalc

Lotus Works, Lotus Agenda, Lotus Symphony

etc., etc.

What is that saying by P.T. Barnum?

[BurgersNFries 2,407]

It's a two way street for both sides. As OP stated,

I completely understand that a sustainable business model requires consistent revenue,

And as you & I have noted, there are often instances where a lifetime membership to ____ and $5 will buy you a vente mocha from *$ with about 3 cents left over. When you're the "consumer", the lifetime cost must be recoverable in a reasonable amount of time so you're willing to front more money b/c you feel like you're "getting a deal" AND you want to probably confirm if the entity is a viable investment. In the gym example...well, I did get my money's worth out of the membership. So NBD. In the Tivo example, we're ahead of the game b/c we paid (essentially) for two years of Tivo service & have (so far) rec'd about five & it's still going strong. (Just watch...it will ***** out today.) And the issuer can increment the price of a lifetime membership as time goes on, if they feel the need to do so. (Tivo annual used to be equal to 2 years of payments & now it's 3.) I think this may be a good idea for EN. Another option would be to have tiered pricing. Instead of monthly/annual, perhaps add 2 & 5 years for a deeper discount.

[allen 39]

This is definitely something I'd strongly consider if it were an option -- there are a few services I have lifetime subs to as it is.

[superdifficult 0]

I'd do it.

[katahdin 8]

Lifetime plans usually fall in my woulda, coulda, shoulda bucket ! LOL

I would guess that before EN reached a certain mass of users, that a lifetime promo would be beneficial for them. Expect that since they have 4-5 million users, it has significantly passed that point.

[Julian 40]

It would obviously depend on the price but if it was available if/when I decide to go premium then I would be coming to the decision with a strong preference for lifetime subscriptions. Like the OP, I hate recurring charges and prefer to get the pain out of the way at the start and then never need to budget for it again.

- Julian

[jbenson2 2,147]

Lifetime plans usually fall in my woulda, coulda, shoulda bucket ! LOL

I would guess that before EN reached a certain mass of users, that a lifetime promo would be beneficial for them. Expect that since they have 4-5 million users, it has significantly passed that point.

Your logic is perfect from a business standpoint. The financial impact is great for startups, but a major problem for established companies.

By the way, Evernote hit 5 million users (and added over 22,00 users in just one day).

http://blog.evernote.com/2010/11/10/5-million-evernote-users/

[TheGurkha 1]

What is that saying by P.T. Barnum?

An elephant sat on my hat?

[lucaberta 0]

With the $20M C round of funding that Evernote had last month I don't believe that there is much of a cashflow issue these days... so maybe the lifetime membership could not make much sense after all.

Ciao, Luca