Microsoft Store version vs Desktop version

[Raymond]

Question:

1. Are there differences, for now, or in future, between the MS Store version and the affinity.store download version?

2. I purchased and have a set of product key in the Download and Product key page on affinity.store. If I prefer to use the MS Store way to download, can i apply the product key to it? From what I can see, the MS Store page does not have a "trial" button. I can only click "buy". If I click it, I am going to pay again. 

[Chris B]

Hey Raymond,

 

1. There are no differences, other than the way the app is downloaded and installed. With the Microsoft Store, all the updates are automatic. With our own store, the process is manual however we are able to push updates out quicker than waiting for it to go through the Microsoft Store.

 

2. They are completely separate licenses so you would be unable to install the version from the Microsoft Store without purchasing it. We do not offer a way to transfer that license to the Microsoft Store.

[Raymond]

Thanks, Chris. It would be nice if you can consider merging them. I feel that going forward the Microsoft Store is the way to go.

[R C-R]

2 hours ago, Chris B said:

1. There are no differences, other than the way the app is downloaded and installed.

From what I have read in the several other topics about the Microsoft Store version, another difference is there can be no free 'bonus' content offered through the MS store version because MS prohibits that. Is that true?

 

1 hour ago, Raymond said:

It would be nice if you can consider merging them. I feel that going forward the Microsoft Store is the way to go.

In some of the other topics it was mentioned that (like with Apple & the Mac App Store) MS does not share personally identifiable buyer data with third party developers selling their products through the MS store, & that this is a primary reason why there is no easy way to merge the two licenses.

 

Another complicating factor is that MS keeps 30% of the purchase price of apps sold through its store, so it is unlikely that MS would be willing to merge an Affinity Store license with an MS Store one unless someone pays MS the 30% they otherwise would have gotten from the original purchase.

[d0e30e7d76]

2 minutes ago, R C-R said:

Another complicating factor is that MS keeps 30% of the purchase price of apps sold through its store, so it is unlikely that MS would be willing to merge an Affinity Store license with an MS Store one unless someone pays MS the 30% they otherwise would have gotten from the original purchase.

Promo codes are here for a reason

[Chris B]

4 minutes ago, R C-R said:

From what I have read in the several other topics about the Microsoft Store version, another difference is there can be no free 'bonus' content offered through the MS store version because MS prohibits that. Is that true?

Yes, this is true and also a good point. Any free content would have to be acquired through us for MS Store customers. Thanks R C-R. 

[R C-R]

Just now, lugiank said:

Promo codes are here for a reason

They are also limited & typically reserved for reviewers & such. All this has been discussed at some length in one or more of the other topics about the MS Store version. If you do a forum search on "Microsoft Store" you will get several pages of results that cover all this & more.

[Chris B]

1 minute ago, R C-R said:

They are also limited & typically reserved for reviewers & such. All this has been discussed at some length in one or more of the other topics about the MS Store version. If you do a forum search on "Microsoft Store" you will get several pages of results that cover all this & more.

I think we would also soon find ourselves removed from the MS Store if we started giving away hundreds if not thousands of promo codes away. Unfortunately, it is what it is and I'm sorry if you feel you aren't satisfied with the purchase you made through our store. 

[R C-R]

7 minutes ago, Chris B said:

I think we would also soon find ourselves removed from the MS Store if we started giving away hundreds if not thousands of promo codes away.

It does seem very unlikely that MS would permit that, since it would mean forfeiting their 30% cut on hundreds or (more likely) on thousands of what would otherwise be store sales. Besides, if they let you do that, other developers would complain if they could not do the same thing, so this would probably end up costing MS quite a bit in lost revenue.

[wildpneuma]

I realize that I cannot download my affinity product for my mac because mac does not support the microsoft store... Is there any way to fix this and use the software on the mac? I would certainly have gone through Affinity's website had I known this.

[walt.farrell]

50 minutes ago, wildpneuma said:

I realize that I cannot download my affinity product for my mac because mac does not support the microsoft store... Is there any way to fix this and use the software on the mac? I would certainly have gone through Affinity's website had I known this.

Welcome to the Serif Affinity forums.

The Affinity applications are licensed separately by platform (Mac, Windows, iPad) and it does not matter where you purchase them. If you purchased a Windows license directly from Serif that still would not give you a license for Mac. You would need to buy the Mac license separately.

[CK Au]

I've an installed copy of Affinity Designer and have bought a license thru Windows Store. Both programs appear to be identical (v1.8.3). However in my Windows App page, I noticed

• Affinity Designer Desktop 935 MB
• Affinity Designer App 101 MB

If both versions are identical why the difference in program installed size?

I dig into the install folder and noticed there are some large files in the desktop version eg 

• Serif.Interop.Persona.dll 40MB
• libpersona.dll 350 MB