I've been a long-time user of Nik plug-ins (and Topaz, and Imagenomic), and I finally built a new PC and installed Windows 10... which meant upgrading to PS CC, which meant having to buy/install the new Nik plug-ins by DxO.
Given that I had paid hundreds of bucks for the Nik plug-ins before Google bought them and made the collection free, I was OK paying for these amazing plug-ins again. I think the last one I paid for was Silver Efex 2.
So I paid $150 for Collection 2 at the end of April.
Then recently DxO releases Collection 3. The upgrade price is $50, and a fresh/new install costs $100. The cut-off date for getting the upgrade free was 10 days after I made my purchase. I contacted DxO, saying basically, "hey, I'm a long-time user of this great product but a brand-new DxO customer; can you accommodate me for making a purchase 2 weeks too early?" I figured they'd happily help me out--the way Imagenomic and HDRSoft had in the past. Hell, Topaz even gave me a free key to an obsolete plug-in that wouldn't run on 64-bit Photoshop.
But DxO flat refused. They told me the marketing department determined the date for the free upgrade and customer service could do nothing about it. I tried reason; I asked nicely; I pointed out that I'm an enthusiastic user of the product and would certainly give them positive reviews on sites like this one--and they wouldn't be "losing" money on the upgrade, given that I had already paid more than what the current price was.
Nope. The marketing department set the date, and that's that.
Now, before you jump in with the "caveat emptor" stuff and defending the company's right to make their policies--I totally get all that. But this is my recourse. Letting other people know my experience. I'm not suggesting people do anything one way or the other--indeed, I really like the software, enough to have paid for it in multiple iterations. But this experience doesn't inspire confidence in DxO as a company. If they're willing to tell a customer "screw you; we have our policy and you missed the date by 10 days, so pay us more money" and risk that customer never buying from them again--and telling other people about the experience, potentially losing sales--then what else will they do?
That's my experience. My first purchase and interaction with DxO, and it left a bad taste in my mouth.
Given that I had paid hundreds of bucks for the Nik plug-ins before Google bought them and made the collection free, I was OK paying for these amazing plug-ins again. I think the last one I paid for was Silver Efex 2.
So I paid $150 for Collection 2 at the end of April.
Then recently DxO releases Collection 3. The upgrade price is $50, and a fresh/new install costs $100. The cut-off date for getting the upgrade free was 10 days after I made my purchase. I contacted DxO, saying basically, "hey, I'm a long-time user of this great product but a brand-new DxO customer; can you accommodate me for making a purchase 2 weeks too early?" I figured they'd happily help me out--the way Imagenomic and HDRSoft had in the past. Hell, Topaz even gave me a free key to an obsolete plug-in that wouldn't run on 64-bit Photoshop.
But DxO flat refused. They told me the marketing department determined the date for the free upgrade and customer service could do nothing about it. I tried reason; I asked nicely; I pointed out that I'm an enthusiastic user of the product and would certainly give them positive reviews on sites like this one--and they wouldn't be "losing" money on the upgrade, given that I had already paid more than what the current price was.
Nope. The marketing department set the date, and that's that.
Now, before you jump in with the "caveat emptor" stuff and defending the company's right to make their policies--I totally get all that. But this is my recourse. Letting other people know my experience. I'm not suggesting people do anything one way or the other--indeed, I really like the software, enough to have paid for it in multiple iterations. But this experience doesn't inspire confidence in DxO as a company. If they're willing to tell a customer "screw you; we have our policy and you missed the date by 10 days, so pay us more money" and risk that customer never buying from them again--and telling other people about the experience, potentially losing sales--then what else will they do?
That's my experience. My first purchase and interaction with DxO, and it left a bad taste in my mouth.
