Avid released a Reinstatement FAQ Knowledgebase article dated November 27th 2019, announcing that with effect from January 1st, 2020, Avid will no longer be offering Reinstatement Plans to reactivate an annual upgrade and support plan for either Pro Tools or Pro Tools Ultimate software.

What Is Reinstatement?

Avid’s aim was that all perpetual Pro Tools and Pro Tools Ultimate owners would take out and renew an annual upgrade plan every year and so always have access to the latest version of Pro Tools.

As we know, not everyone chose that option, with some users not prepared to take out an annual upgrade plan choosing instead not to spend the money and allow it to lapse.

To encourage those users back onto an annual upgrade plan, Avid has offered a Reinstatement Plan, which for a price, enabled users with a lapsed upgrade plan to buy back into an annual upgrade plan. It is this option for Pro Tools and Pro Tools Ultimate perpetual license owners to get back onto an annual upgrade plan that Avid is discontinuing on December 31st 2019.

What About Annual Upgrade Plans?

Avid is not discontinuing annual upgrade plans, which are now $199 per year for Pro Tools Standard, since Avid increased the prices back in July 2019 and $399 per year for Pro Tools Ultimate. As long as you renew your upgrade plan in time you will continue to have access to all the latest updates.

Is This The End of Perpetual Licenses For Pro Tools?

Avid says in their Reinstatement FAQ article that “there are no plans to discontinue perpetual licensing. You may still purchase a new perpetual license and, if you own a perpetual license with an active plan, you can continue to stay up to date with the latest versions of your software by purchasing an annual renewal each year.”

Will Users Be Forced To Move To A Rental Subscription Plan?

Again Avid say not. When you come to purchase your next perpetual license upgrade plan you will not be required to surrender your perpetual license and move to a rental subscription plan. As long as you renew in time you will continue to be able to renew your perpetual license upgrade plan. Avid is not discontinuing upgrade plan renewals.

Can I Still Purchase A Reinstatement Plan?

If you would like to take advantage of a reinstatement plan, before they are discontinued and get back on board with an active perpetual license upgrade plan for either Pro Tools Standard or Pro Tools Ultimate then you can still purchase a reinstatement plan from the Avid Online Store or from your Avid Dealer.

From January 1st 2020 you will no longer be able to purchase a reinstatement plan from Avid Online Store, for ether Pro Tools or Pro Tools Ultimate. However, you may still be able to purchase a reinstatement plan from an Avid dealer for as long as they have stocks of the reinstatement plan you need, either for Pro Tools Standard or Pro Tools Ultimate. Once Avid dealers have sold out it will no longer be possible to buy a Pro Tools Reinstatement Plan.

Avid Are To Discount Reinstatement Plans Until December 31st 2019

We have just heard from a senior Avid source that they have been planning a reduction in the price of Reinstatement plans, to go with this announcement. Information is limited at present because of Thanksgiving but we understand the Pro Tools Standard reinstatement plan will be reduced from $299 to $199 and the Pro Tools Ultimate reinstatement plan will be reduced from $999 down to $599.

We do not know exactly when the reduced prices will take effect but we expect it to be some time tomorrow and will last until December 31st 2019 on the Avid Store and until stocks run out at Avid dealers.

UPDATE: Avid Confirm Reinstatement Plan Code Does Not Expire

The question on the Avid Pro Tools User Group on Facebook was “If I buy a reinstatement plan will the code expire, or can I use it a few years down the road if I choose to?”

The answer from François Quereuil, who is Avid’s Director of Audio Product Management says “The code does not expire.”

UPDATE: Avid Revises Reinstatement FAQ To Confirm This

Avid has updated their Knowledge Base Reinstatement FAQ with the following question and answer…

Q: If I purchase a reinstatement and do not immediately redeem, will it expire?

A: No. When you purchase a reinstatement from Avid or a reseller, it does not expire and you are able to use it at a future time. Avid will continue to honor reinstatement redemptions during the promo and after we discontinue selling them.

Based on this answer it would appear that there is nothing sotting someone buying a Reinstatement Plan before December 31st 2019 or will stocks lat with Avid Dealers and ‘bank’ the code until you are ready to reinstate and jump back into having an up to date Pro Tools system for at least a year because don’t forget that a reinstatement plan also comes with a 12-month upgrade plan.

UPDATE: Avid Has Reduced The Reinstatement Prices

Check out our article Pro Tools Reinstatement Plans - Avid Drop Prices Until 31st December 2019 for all the details. But remember if you want to get a reinstatement plan to get back to the current version of Pro Tools then you only have until the end of the year.

If My Upgrade Plan Has Lapsed What Are My Options?

If you do not have a current upgrade plan and do not take advantage of buying a Reinstatement Plan by December 31st 2019, you won’t necessarily have to pay the full price for your Pro Tools software to get back to a position where you can keep your Pro Tools up to date.

Avid will continue to offer Pro Tools users, who no longer have a current perpetual license upgrade plan, the opportunity to crossgrade to a corresponding rental subscription plan.

When Avid doubled the upgrade plan price for Pro Tools Standard users, they also offered a special price where for the first 2 years the annual rental subscription plan would be $99 per year, before rising to the normal price of $299 from then on.

When you take into consideration that Avid is also offering rental subscription customers the Avid Complete Bundle and HEAT at no extra cost to rental subscribers, it does sweeten the deal.