Everything as a Service?

The good, the bad and the fatigue of subscription.

Introduction

Welcome to 2024, where everything is a service. No, seriously. Everything. You want a copy of your most important document urgently or else you'll lose your job? Well, lucky for you, you own a printer, which you paid to own and to make some copies and print some stuff. But wait, you can't print because you have already printed the 10 free pages you're allowed per month. Now that's a bummer. But don't worry, you can subscribe to the Print-as-a-Service for just $9.99 a month and get unlimited prints. That's not me making this up. That's HP.

The only subscription I had growing up was for a newspaper, which came with a free children's magazine every Sunday. Not to forget, the free shopping vouchers. Today, you can subscribe to movies, music, software, games, groceries, and even cosmetics. The list is endless. But is it really worth it? Let's find out.

The Humble Beginnings of aaS

Salesforce, the poster child of SaaS, launched in 1999, offering a way to use software over the internet without needing to install it on your computer. It was basically just a CRM tool, but it was revolutionary. It saved companies money on infrastructure, it made updates seamless, and it allowed for unprecedented scalability. How could you not love it? Well, where I am from, it was still a dream. I was still screaming at my mom to get off the phone so I could connect to the internet and download a 5MB song.

Then came Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). Companies like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud began renting out virtualized hardware and software over the internet. This model was necessary because it democratized access to powerful computing resources. No longer did you need to be a tech giant to have world-class infrastructure; you just needed a credit card. And a lot of money. A good credit score would help too.

aaS is Good

I like aaS. It is good. It is easy to get, everyone around me has one, and it is getting cheaper. I don't have a lot of money, or a job for that matter, but I still have access to a lot of things. But enough about me. Let's talk about startups.

Startups love aaS. Companies can focus on their core competencies rather than managing infrastructure. Startups can compete with industry giants because they can access the same tools and platforms. Regular updates and maintenance are handled by the service providers, freeing up internal resources.

Take Netflix, for example. Netflix wouldn’t be the streaming behemoth it is today without cloud services. They started by mailing DVDs, but the switch to streaming allowed them to revolutionize how we consume media. AWS played a significant role in this transformation, handling the massive data storage and processing needs of streaming video to millions of users globally. And now, Netflix is a household name. And I am still screaming at my mom to get off the phone. But this time around it's because she's always watching Netflix.

The only subscriptions that I find worth paying for are those that I use daily or are really value for money. I pay for Amazon Prime and YouTube Premium. I share a premium account for ChatGPT as well. Because why not? Imagine having a long day and you want to listen to some music but the ads keep telling you you're broke? Or you want to keep the music playing in the background but you can't because you need to keep the app open? That sounds like a nightmare. And I don't like nightmares. I like aaS.

I don't like aaS

But, as with all things, there’s a flip side. Subscription fatigue is real. It's like FOMO, but for services. You want something today, but might not need it next month? Too bad, you already paid for the year. Want to watch the latest show everyone is talking about? Well, you need to subscribe to another streaming service. What about the one you're already subscribed to? Well, the show just moved to another platform. And you can't watch it there. Oh, you listen to music? Well, you need to subscribe to Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, and Tidal to listen to all the songs you want. Or you can just listen to ads after every song. Your choice. And also, you can't shuffle play. That's a premium feature. The basic human rights will be a premium feature soon.

Not just for us end users, but for businesses too. The cost of subscriptions can rise exponentially as you scale. Once you're deeply embedded in a service, it can be difficult and expensive to switch providers. Companies can change their terms of service, increase prices, or suffer outages, and you’re left holding the bag.

Gaming Subscriptions

Many people think my favorite hobby is gaming. Which is true. I like to see my collection rise, watch my hours played grow and my wallet shrink. But all of this for the games I have paid for, the games that I own. Gaming has embraced the aaS model with fervor. Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation Plus (PS+), and Ubisoft+ are prime examples. Game Pass is often hailed as the best deal in gaming, offering a rotating library of games for a monthly fee. PS+ has its perks, though it's often playing catch-up. Ubisoft+, well, let's just say it is the worst of the bunch.

The allure is clear: for a monthly fee, you get access to a library of games that would cost hundreds or thousands of dollars to purchase outright. But, there is a huge fat but. You don't own the games. They can simply just go away one day. And even if you pay for the service, you may likely never see that game again. All those hours spent, all those items collected, all those missions completed, gone in an instant.

Also, what is wrong with game companies? Why do they feel the need to launch a bad, unfinished product every single year and then require a subscription to play that garbage? Cut it out Ubisoft.

The Present and Future of aaS

As we move deeper into 2024, the aaS model continues to evolve. The convenience and efficiency are undeniable, but so is the growing backlash against subscription overload. Some companies are recognizing this and offering more flexible, modular pricing plans. Others double down, pushing the boundaries of what people are willing to subscribe to.

As I mentioned earlier about the HP printers requiring a subscription to print. BMW once announced that they would charge a subscription fee for heated seats. Tesla cars have features hidden behind a subscription. Social Media platforms offer a subscription to make your account verified. You can have groceries delivered to your doorstep every week, of course, for a subscription. And the list goes on.

I can already see basic necessities such as water, electricty, air conditioning, being offered as a subscription. Aren't they somewhat already? Maybe I just gave someone an idea.

Anyway, aaS may be good, or it may be bad. But it is not going away for now. How about we just subscribe to what we need and not what we want? That's a good idea. I should write that down. But I don't have a pen. I need to subscribe to a pen.

Thank you for reading, and may your day be filled with services worth every penny.