The international pricing of CS3 is insane

If you think of buying CS3, consider this: the price difference between the US and Europe can easily pay for a weekend trip to New York with all expenses paid.

by Jens C. Brynildsen Update: With the release of CF8, Adobe proves that they do not want to update the prices.

Adobe must have struck a deal with the US department of tourism - we have no better suggestion as to why the European prices for the CS3 products are that high. If you live in the UK, you have to pay $913 more than your friend in America. If you live in Germany, France or Italy, you pay even more.

If you don't think this is insane, consider this weekend holiday ($1114 to spend):

Airfare Frankfurt Main - New York: $809 (Lufthansa, roundtrip economy ticket)
Top rated 4 star hotel on Manhattan: $249 (one night)
Sightseeing and souvenirs: $50

Despite these expenses you have still saved $6 (plus the shipping and maybe even a VAT refund?). This is if we use prices excluding VAT as it would be if bought in Germany. If you are not VAT deductable (buying as a hobby user) you'll pay $1620 more than a US buyer, so you could stay two more nights at the hotel or get a really fancy dinner. If you need software for the whole design shop, why not offer them a US holiday? Pay all expenses provided that they bring back a copy of CS3 each, or maybe even two that can be sold in Europe with a nice profit.

Let's face it. We live in 2007. The music business are slowly realizing it, gaming companies are realizing it, why can't Adobe understand that the internet IS the channel? You cannot sell downloadable software at the same price as boxed and shipped software. You cannot use different prices in a global market.

Adobe officials have earlier claimed that prices outside the US must be higher to maintain the local Adobe offices. This is a common excuse, but does it hold up? Most of Adobe's European staff are salespeople. There is nobody you can really talk to if you have a problem (unless it's sales related) and as Aral Balkan points out in a comment - one only get to see them when they have a new product to push. If it is indeed true that these people are unable to sell enough Adobe software to justify their salaries, they should probably be fired.

Exactly what does Adobe think Creative Suite 3 Web Premium is worth if you live in:


Country	Price	as $	Percent	Penalty
US	$1599	1599	100.00%	0
Mexico	$1599	1599	100.00%	0
Switzerland	CHF2564	2208	138.09%	609
Sweden	SEK15300	2407	150.53%	808
Denmark	DKK12600	2417	151.16%	818
Luxembourg	€ 1699	2427	151.78%	828
Netherlands	€ 1699	2427	151.78%	828
Portugal	€ 1699	2427	151.78%	828
Finland	€ 1699	2427	151.78%	828
Norway	NOK14440	2486	155.47%	887
UK	GBP1195	2512	157.10%	913
Australia	A$2775	2536	158.60%	937
Germany	€ 1899	2713	169.67%	1114
France	€ 1899	2713	169.67%	1114
Italy	€ 1899	2713	169.67%	1114

(based on todays exchange rates and official Adobe pricing)

As we pointed out some days ago, strange things are happening in the Adobe sales department these days. Let's all hope they recover soon.

Update:
There is currently a petition going on. The petition will be communicated to
Adobe and to the European/Swiss commissions of competition once closed. Since writing this article, we've received several emails from enraged europeans and even americans that find this absurd.

We sincerely hope Adobe can fix this ASAP - they have already lost face in the community. Keep in mind that the community provides marketing and support that never shows up in any budget.

(Note: This article has been updated from it's original version where we incorrectly used prices including VAT. Thanks to Danielle for pointing this out. We would like to add that Flash is often used by hobbyists. These cannot deduct the VAT so it is not far fetched to say that the Italian, German and French versions all cost more than twice the US price...)