Adobe is planning to release a ‘freemium’ web version of its popular graphics editing tool Photoshop that will provide users with the tools to perform Photoshop's "core functions," according to a US report.
“The company is now testing the free version in Canada, where users are able to access Photoshop on the web through a free Adobe account,” according to a report by US tech site The Verge.
“Adobe describes the service as ‘freemium’ and eventually plans to gate off some features that will be exclusive to paying subscribers. Enough tools will be freely available to perform what Adobe considers to be Photoshop’s core functions.”
Maria Yap, Adobe’s VP of digital imaging, said: “We want to make [Photoshop] more accessible and easier for more people to try it out and experience the product.”
According to the report, “Adobe’s goal is to use the web version of Photoshop to make the app more accessible and potentially hook users who’ll want to pay for the full version down the road. The company has taken a similar route with a number of its mobile apps, including Fresco and Express. The web version of Photoshop is a particularly important offering since it opens one of the company’s most powerful tools up to Chromebooks, which are widely used in schools.”
Adobe didn’t provide a timeline on when the freemium version would launch more widely. Meanwhile, "the company is continuing to update Photoshop for web with more tools, including refine edge, curves, the dodge and burn tools, and the ability to convert Smart Objects," the report said.
The free version is an update on a web version of Photoshop launched last year for PCs and some Chromebooks, which provided a limited set of features.
https://www.adobe.com/au/products/photoshop.html
