This announcement is quite an interesting business model change for Adobe and could be a game-changer. The company was very clear that it is not abandoning its desktop licensing model for Creative Suite, but the ability for users to access the full range of Adobe publishing solutions, including Creative Suite 6 and Digital Publishing Single Edition, for as little as $50 a month (for a one-year commitment), will be a significant boon, especially for the growing force of freelance designers. Another huge benefit of using the Creative Cloud is access to updates as they happen without any additional fees, not having to wait a full year for the next release.
Users can download the applications they need and are licensed to used them on two computers, but only one concurrent use. This also means that users that have a Mac and a PC don’t need to purchase two separate versions of licensed applications. They simply download the version they need to each computer. Creative Cloud also provides a great platform for sharing work, and is designed to be a hub where creatives can come to access everything they need, from creative tools to publishing services to the inspiration that is an important part of every creative professional’s creative process.

In the end, this is likely to offer Adobe significant financial benefits as well, of course. Over time, a single user subscriber to the Creative Cloud is likely to pay more than they would to license software because many don’t upgrade each year. Also, the cloud-based pay-as-you-go model is much easier to swallow for smaller users and will likely attract new users. Two new applications not available with CS6 will also be included, Adobe Muse built for designers to easily lay out and publish web sites without using code; and Adobe Edge that uses HTML5 to create Flash-like capabilities. CS6 will ship with Acrobat 10, the current version, but when Acrobat 11 is released, it will be available through Creative Cloud at no extra cost. Creative Cloud also comes with a significant amount of cloud-based storage. There are also video-related applications available.

Adobe has indicated that not everything will be available Day One, but most of what they talked about will be available by the fall, and, of course, CS6 is there from the beginning.

Creative Cloud is not just for small designers; Adobe also has an enterprise license, and is offering a very affordable education version for qualified users ($29.99/month). Users can also choose to subscribe on a month-to-month basis for $74.99, ideal for users that only need the solutions from time to time.

Creative Cloud will be available within a month, but you can preorder today. You can check out some exciting previews of forthcoming CS6 tools and features by visiting the AdobeCreativeCloud YouTube page and you can also join the live streaming launch event today at 10 AM Pacific. Adobe will make the launch event available as a replay beginning April 24th.

It will be interesting to see what the adoption rates are as well as the reactions of Adobe competitors. Stay tuned!