Logos Bible Software is one of my favorite computer programs and companies (Faithlife), and I regularly purchase from and use it. I have been a user since 2014, and my first base package is a Logos 5 Gold package. Over the past decade, it has saved me countless hours during seminary and in sermon preparation. Also, over the past many years, I really could not tell you when they first started it, there have been different subscription services that Faithlife has offered as part of their Logos software. The first one I ever signed up for was not really a subscription, per se, but it was just to charge me fifteen dollars a month, giving me that much in Logos store credit to buy books. That was short-lived because I spent more than that each month on books. Then there was Logos Now (which I don’t remember what it was for), which eventually became Faithlife Connect. I may have missed something; however, that is not the main point of this post.
Currently, I have the Faithlife Connect Essentials package for those who rolled into it from Logos Now, which gets me all of the feature sets at a set rate that I pay annually. Overall, it is cheaper than buying the full feature sets that come out every two years with the new versions of Logos (Logos 5, 6, etc. through 10). Currently, for me, the Logos 10 Full Feature Upgrade is priced at $331.84 (as of the date of this article). The Connect subscription I have is much less than that for two years.
This all changed on March 6, 2024, at approximately 10:00 AM. This post, which resulted in a mega-thread (over 1250 replies on 63 pages of posts), announced that the future of Logos Bible Software would be subscription-based, beginning with the early access to the Logos Pro features to those who owned or had full access to the Logos 10 full feature set. Now, I must lay out these disclaimers: First, I did not read every single post on this thread, nor will I. Secondly, no stance on this topic of discussion will make everyone happy, and thus I will probably annoy or upset some people with my thoughts on this. Especially with the fact that I am really going to divide the issue into two sides.
First, there are the people who are pro-subscription. Citing the fact that many technology companies are moving toward the subscription model for their products, they say it was only inevitable for Faithlife to do so with the Logos Bible Software. Companies such as Adobe with its Creative Suite and Microsoft with Microsoft 365 are two notable examples. This stance is one that I agree with; given the many assurances that Logos users will not be forced to pay to use the program nor will they lose any resources which they own the program, I strongly feel that the position Faithlife is taking on this is strong, suitable, as well as God-honoring. It mentions this in the above-linked mega-thread that began with Mark Barnes’ post announcing the subscription model.
Another thing that has been made abundantly clear since this post through replies, other posts, promotional emails, and more is that not everything is set in stone. There are still facets and caveats of the new subscription model and its tiers that are being worked out, such as perpetual access and the cost of the program. Currently, the “Early Access” to Logos Pro is $9.99 per month, but we will know that will change upon the full release, presumably this fall. As for perpetual access, the latest email I received states, “perpetual feature licensing, in some form, will be a component of our new subscription model.” So, knowing this, you think that people would wait and see for things to become more set in stone.
Some decry the idea of Logos going to a subscription model. Many of them instantly became economic/financial experts (maybe some of them are, I don’t know, but statistically speaking, I don’t think that it’s possible for all of them to be as such). From the vast number of posts that I have read (not all 1200+, but many), it seems like many in the anti-subscription base are afraid of losing what they currently have. From what I have read, I do not believe that will be the case nor has it ever been presented that way. Too many people seemingly jumped to conclusions based purely on speculation (the same could be said for some in the pro-subscription base). As for economics, I am not only not an expert, but I am not even close to being knowledgeable about such topics. When it comes to business, people are making the argument that the subscription model is not the best fiscal way to remain profitable for the company. This post is an example of that (for many reasons, this is one of my favorite threads on this topic).
There are many more takes to this discussion, on both sides of the debate, that one can look at. I’m writing this post because I think that both sides of the debate need to step back, take a deep breath, and count to ten. Everyone who is invested in Logos as a company, whether you are using free software, have a mid-range package, or have a massive library amassed over the years, needs to wait until the final details are set and the official release has been announced. Then, and only then, should we continue with the debate of the pros and cons of the Logos subscription model. I know that this will most likely not happen, but until it does come out in the fall, I am happily utilizing the new features of the Logos Pro Early Access subscription and looking forward to what is coming.
In the meantime, Soli Deo Gloria!
Here is a list of posts/threads about the topic:
https://community.logos.com/forums/t/221543.aspx
https://community.logos.com/forums/t/222001.aspx
https://community.logos.com/forums/t/223103.aspx?PageIndex=1
https://community.logos.com/forums/t/223153.aspx
https://www.logos.com/product/228476/logos-10-full-feature-upgrade?httproute=True
https://view.mail.logos.com/?qs=7a5a31251435f705ed4c80a85d818dad69712cc10252ccea276f3a519abd0aa2c817052fed0c181ed45dd46c3898f5a8a66f508da9bfaef2c48aa1c4d25709d1266753ff4398f200f03d86166e787cb2 (I don’t know if this link will work as it was an email I received and I clicked on the “To view this email as a web page, go here” link).
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