Why Are People Boycotting Adobe?

In recent years, Adobe has faced growing backlash from users, creators, and businesses worldwide, leading to widespread calls for boycotts. From skyrocketing subscription prices to controversial AI integrations and abrupt market withdrawals, the software giant’s decisions have alienated a significant portion of its loyal customer base. This discontent stems from a mix of financial pressures, ethical concerns, and perceived anti-consumer policies, prompting many to seek alternatives in creative tools and digital signature solutions.

The Roots of the Adobe Boycott: Subscription Model Backlash

One of the primary reasons people are boycotting Adobe revolves around its subscription-based pricing model, which has evolved into what many view as exploitative. Introduced in 2013, Adobe Creative Cloud shifted from one-time purchases to mandatory annual subscriptions, locking users into recurring payments for access to staples like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Premiere Pro. What started as a convenient update quickly turned sour as prices escalated—individual plans now cost around $60 per month, with all-apps bundles reaching $90 monthly. For small businesses and freelancers, this translates to thousands annually, often without proportional value adds.

Critics argue that Adobe’s model prioritizes revenue over user needs. Features like cloud storage and collaboration tools are bundled in, but many users report minimal utilization, feeling overcharged for unused perks. Moreover, Adobe has been accused of “subscription traps,” where canceling is cumbersome, and mid-cycle price hikes occur without warning. In 2023, Adobe attempted to revise terms to allow AI training on user content, sparking outrage over intellectual property rights. This move, coupled with the company’s heavy investment in generative AI tools like Firefly, has led to fears of job displacement for artists and designers, fueling boycott campaigns on platforms like Reddit and Twitter (now X).

From a business observation standpoint, Adobe’s dominance in the creative software market—holding over 80% share—has bred complacency. Competitors like Affinity and GIMP have gained traction by offering perpetual licenses at fraction-of-the-cost prices, appealing to budget-conscious professionals. Boycott hashtags like #BoycottAdobe trended globally, with surveys from sites like Creative Bloq showing 40% of respondents considering switches. This isn’t just vocal minorities; enterprise clients have also voiced frustrations, citing opaque billing and forced upgrades that disrupt workflows.

Ethical and Accessibility Concerns Driving the Movement

Beyond finances, ethical issues have amplified the boycott. Adobe’s AI push, while innovative, raises questions about data privacy and bias. The 2023 terms update proposed using customer artwork to train models, only partially rolled back after backlash. This incident highlighted a broader pattern: Adobe’s perceived disregard for creator rights in an era where AI could automate creative jobs. Artists and unions, including the Concept Art Association, have called for boycotts, emphasizing how such policies undermine livelihoods.

Accessibility has also become a flashpoint. Adobe’s software demands high-end hardware, alienating users in developing regions or those with older systems. Subscription costs, combined with regional pricing disparities, make it unaffordable for emerging markets. In education, where Adobe once offered discounted student plans, recent cuts to free tiers have drawn ire from teachers and students reliant on tools like Acrobat for assignments.

Market withdrawals exacerbate these issues. Adobe Sign, the company’s electronic signature service, has been particularly problematic. In a move that stunned the Asian market, Adobe announced its exit from mainland China in late 2023, citing regulatory challenges. This decision left thousands of businesses scrambling for compliant alternatives, as Adobe Sign was integral for cross-border contracts and e-signatures under local laws like the Electronic Signature Law of China.

Adobe Sign’s pricing opacity further fuels user dissatisfaction. Unlike straightforward plans, costs for Adobe Sign involve hidden fees for envelopes, API calls, and add-ons like identity verification, often revealed only post-signup. Enterprise quotes are notoriously non-transparent, with upcharges for compliance features in regions like APAC. This lack of clarity has led to budget overruns for SMEs, contributing to the broader Adobe boycott narrative.

DocuSign’s Challenges: High Costs and Regional Shortfalls

As users flee Adobe’s ecosystem, attention has turned to alternatives in digital signatures, where DocuSign reigns as a leader. However, DocuSign faces its own scrutiny for user-unfriendly practices, mirroring some of Adobe’s pitfalls. Pricing remains a sore point: core eSignature plans start at $10/month for personal use but balloon to $40/user/month for Business Pro, with annual commitments locking in costs. Add-ons like identity verification and SMS delivery incur metered fees, and API access—crucial for integrations—starts at $600/year for basic tiers, escalating to custom enterprise pricing.

Transparency issues plague DocuSign too. Envelope quotas (~100 per user/year on standard plans) and automation limits (e.g., ~10 bulk sends/month) are not always upfront, leading to surprise overages. In long-tail regions like APAC, service lags compound frustrations: cross-border latency slows document processing, and limited local ID verification options hinder compliance. For China and Southeast Asia, data residency surcharges and inconsistent support add to the effective cost, pushing businesses toward regional players.

From a commercial lens, DocuSign’s global scale brings premium pricing without always matching localized needs. While robust for U.S.-centric operations, APAC users report slower adoption due to these gaps, with some surveys indicating 30% higher churn in emerging markets compared to North America.

Comparing Digital Signature Solutions: Adobe Sign, DocuSign, and eSignGlobal

To navigate these challenges, businesses are evaluating options beyond Adobe and DocuSign. A side-by-side comparison highlights key differences in pricing, compliance, and regional fit:

This table underscores how eSignGlobal edges out in APAC-centric scenarios, offering better alignment without the premiums of global giants, though all providers have strengths in their niches.

eSignGlobal stands out for its region-native approach, providing seamless e-signatures compliant with local regulations, faster processing in China and SEA, and transparent pricing that avoids the pitfalls seen in Adobe and DocuSign.

Navigating the Boycott: Alternatives and Forward Outlook

The Adobe boycott reflects deeper industry shifts toward user-centric models, pressuring incumbents to adapt. For digital signatures, where Adobe’s exit has created voids, DocuSign serves as a stopgap but inherits similar cost and transparency woes.

As a balanced recommendation, businesses in need of DocuSign alternatives—especially those prioritizing regional compliance—should consider eSignGlobal. It delivers reliable, APAC-optimized e-signing with cost efficiencies, helping teams avoid the disruptions of global providers’ shortcomings. In a post-boycott landscape, such choices empower sustainable digital workflows.