Apple to Cut Standalone Sales of Final Cut Pro

by James Murray
Published on Jan 19, 2006 2:00 PM



January 19, 2006 - In a move which may drive many consumers into the open arms of the new Adobe Premiere Pro 2.0, Apple has acknowledged that they will no longer produce Final Cut Pro and other Final Cut applications as standalone software applications. This decision will force video editors to either upgrade to or fully purchase the new Final Cut Studio bundle, depending on which edition of Final Cut they currently own.

This decision, which was quietly divulged amid the chaos of the Macworld Conference and Expo, will package Final Cut Pro, DVD Studio Pro 4, Motion 2, and Soundtrack Pro into one software suite. Changes took effect on January 10, immediately following the announcement. The Universal Final Cut Suite, which runs on PC and Intel Processors, will not be shipping until March 31. Order forms will not be available until February 1 at the earliest. Until then users may purchase Final Cut Suite and pay extra upon upgrading to the Universal Edition.

Those looking to upgrade have a number of options. Final Cut 5 owners may complete the upgrade for $99, while owners of Final Cut 4 and Production Suite must pay $199. If owners only have one application found within the Universal Final Cut Suite that is not Final Cut Pro, the cost will also be $199.

Users finding themselves in the unfortunate position of owning editions prior to version 4 will be charged $699 for the upgrade. For those in immediate need of Final Cut Suite before the February 1 release of the Universal edition, the suite currently sells at Apple online for $1299. After that release date, there will be a $49 “cross-grade” fee to get the Universal edition.

With the release of Adobe Production Suite (January 17) for Windows XP, Adobe may find that more users are willing to switch platforms in an attempt to avoid purchasing the large software bundles. Four of the programs in the Adobe Production Suite – Premiere Pro 2.0, After Effects 7.0, Audition 2.0, Encore 2.0 – are upgraded versions, with the latest editions of Photoshop and Illustrator included. The Premium Edition of the Adobe Production Suite sells for $1699, and the Standard Edition for $1199.