Given that, where are the benefits to the user that are so undeniable?

You don't expect Adobe to admit that this change is entirely about increasing their profit margin do you?  It's only fair that they make up pretend reasons why this is really being done to benefit the user.

Yeah...I just looked up some videos about creative cloud.  It looks like a normal, local install of adobe stuff.  The only difference is some synchronization of your work files, digital delivery of installation files, and digital license stuff.  That's it.  very minor.  If you think about it, most of our third party tools work exactly the same way.  All the little sharewares we use don't come boxed, several offer cloud syncing services (e.g. MLO, Evernote) and licensing is verified through some online portal.

To a certain extent, the whole "cloud" part of the announcement is a red herring. And about as substantial as a cloud - so it's an apt term in this context.

However, as CWuestefeld so neatly pointed out in an earlier post, it's a minor change in the delivery method and authorization mechanism for CS. But it's a seismic shift in the sales/pricing model. And that is what is really significant here.

What Adobe is saying is that their CS lineup is now only available as a monthly or annual rental.

Adobe can split hairs over definitions and terminology ("no, it's not a rental - it's software as a service") but what it basically comes down to is that the Creative Suite has now been put behind a paywall. And what makes this newsworthy is that Adobe is the first major vendor to do this with a de facto industry standard, non-enterprise, software title.

And if this move is accepted by Adobe's customer base, you'll see more and more software publishers follow in their footsteps.

Right now, Adobe has implemented this is a benign fashion. But down the road , who can guess what they might decide to do in the name of anti-piracy or whatever.

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