I'm not sure if I'm buying into your idea of abandoning the "unlimited" based pricings.
Charging per eMail, per N of used storage, per document... that all just sounds like going back to the AOL/Compuserv models of charging per minute.
I think organizations really need a (relatively) fixed pricing model, so they can budget accordingly. I couldn't imagine getting call from AP because so and so created 300 documents this month, and the bill went up by a ridiculous amount.
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I completely agree mwalters1984, it just sounds to me like a way to nickel & dime consumers into paying more for for services they already get with a one time fee.
I agree with you that a fixed pricing model allows for easier budgeting. At the same time, it can act as a barrier for smaller companies. A company may be unwilling to sign up for a service that it will only use eventually due to perceiving the monthly cost to be unfair.
I believe that the pay-per-usage model works as long as the price is fair and it also allows users to better figure out what is the best deal for them, since it invites comparison. It creates a base unit for the price that makes sure everyone is on the same page.
Maybe the solution lies somewhere in between: a hybrid model, where there is a fixed price that covers some usage, and an extra when that usage is exceeded.
I believe that the pay-per-usage model works as long as the price is fair and it also allows users to better figure out what is the best deal for them, since it invites comparison. It creates a base unit for the price that makes sure everyone is on the same page.
Maybe the solution lies somewhere in between: a hybrid model, where there is a fixed price that covers some usage, and an extra when that usage is exceeded.
...I do believe that comparing pricing-per-minute with pricing-per-usage is somewhat unfair, since the princing-per-minute model is about as blunt as a fixed price model, though even more obsolete.
I think that a pay-per-use model could be really attractive since it, just as Thoran Rodrigues says, lacks barriers and can be really transparent. The advantage comparing to pay-per-minute is that it is very easy to achieve a close relation between costs and efforts made, or even better costs-to-(expected )performance.
This could make work made with support from the cloud services more focused and carefully prepared (just think about how much unnecessary (not business-driven) document production that is performed in this very minute...
).
BUT - there are strong requirements on the development of the pricing models though, since they must be mirroring the performance and result that the customer (and its customer) expects - and this demands numerous monitoring and interviewing of the customers, with ideation and iteration as vital disciplines in order to get high quality pricing models in place. Thorough analysis of this could result in hybrid pricing models for messaging functions for instance, while production of advanced spreadsheets with higher value to the customer's customer is priced in another way.
It's quite interesting to make a parallel to other branches - where all sorts of tool investments always should be compared to short term rentals or leasing contracts, instead of making heavy investments in poorly used equipment, which most often results in increased overhead and thus increased cost for the end customer.
I think that a pay-per-use model could be really attractive since it, just as Thoran Rodrigues says, lacks barriers and can be really transparent. The advantage comparing to pay-per-minute is that it is very easy to achieve a close relation between costs and efforts made, or even better costs-to-(expected )performance.
This could make work made with support from the cloud services more focused and carefully prepared (just think about how much unnecessary (not business-driven) document production that is performed in this very minute...
).BUT - there are strong requirements on the development of the pricing models though, since they must be mirroring the performance and result that the customer (and its customer) expects - and this demands numerous monitoring and interviewing of the customers, with ideation and iteration as vital disciplines in order to get high quality pricing models in place. Thorough analysis of this could result in hybrid pricing models for messaging functions for instance, while production of advanced spreadsheets with higher value to the customer's customer is priced in another way.
It's quite interesting to make a parallel to other branches - where all sorts of tool investments always should be compared to short term rentals or leasing contracts, instead of making heavy investments in poorly used equipment, which most often results in increased overhead and thus increased cost for the end customer.
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