My issues with Version 13

HajoBolle
HajoBolle Posts: 11 ✭✭
edited May 2023 in General questions

I did not yet find anything on Google News or here ... I thought thousands of licenced people will jump up and scream - and it seems I am the first one. But ok, I will stand up, alone or not.

Teamviewer got big by being for free. Even with Teamviewer 13 you can still make an account, you can add your devices, you can manage them, you can use two computers in the same time, you can use any device you want ... no problem. With the free version.

This was also no problem with the licensed version. I own a license. Since Teamviewer 9. I upgraded each year. I have Teamviewer 12. I supported this software and company. I liked their fairness so one day I said "ok, from now I will have my license".

So ... I bought a license for myself. I am a single person. I do not share my license or my list of computers. I had just one computer licensed, which I mostly used for connections. But sometimes I used my notebook in the same time for another connection ... or I visited a company in which I manage the IT and used their client computers to connect home to my computer for example to look up for some registry key or to copy a file. So you could say I worked opposite to the license. But I did not work opposites to Teamviewer's policy. The policy is: everybody can use it. When you want, where you want, how often you want ... with some small limits when you have a free version, of course.

So, I was happy. I was licensed. I used normally just 1 PC and 1 channel. Rarely another machine or more channels. But it happened. And when I needed it was important. And I was happy the software let me do it. I was fair to pay my license, Teamviewer was fair to let me a bit more space.

This fairness got broken with Teamviewer 13 totally. When Teamviewer announced the beta, I installed it and bought the license. So I paid another 200 €. When I paid already more than 1000 € in the last 4 years. Then I started to use it, updated some clients ... connected from my notebook ... connected from my server ... then I went with another (bigger) notebook to the living room to watch football and wanted to keep an eye on my PC and ...... BAAAAAAAAAAM

Something written like "you have already used this software on 3 different machines" - and it did not let me login in the software to see my computers and to connect. As a licensed user. As a loyal user. As a supporter. As one of many who told everyone "Teamviewer is so great". Suddenly Teamviewer stops me from working like I was used to. Just because they can. They limit a licensed user to something which a free user is not limited too. I checked it. I tested it. A free user has no 3 machines limit. A free user uses Teamviewer 13 just like Teamviewer 12. Why the **bleep** should I now buy Teamviewer anymore, if I can do less things with a license than I can do with a free version? Does this make any sense?

I reverted to Teamviewer 12. I claimed my money back for the upgrade (which worked fine). I am back on Teamviewer 12. If I still had Teamviewer 13, tonight I would have been doomed, and I give you the example.

In the evening I went to that company which I administrate. I meant to take my work notebook with me but when I arrived there I noticed I forgot it. I had to do server works so I had to shut down a server, boot it back up and connect an encrypted drive. For this I need to connect to the server by Teamviewer. Since my license was back to Teamviewer 12, I just started one of the clients, logged in and used it to do my server works. Great. Exactly what I expect Teamviewer to be for me. With Teamviewer 13 I would have had to drive all the way back home to get my notebook ... or to schedule the work for another day and would have lost time for nothing ... just because the Teamviewer company suddenly cuts the rights of the licensed users.

Another example. As I said, normally I use only my one computer at home for my work. But in rare cases I might have to run an installer or Windows Update on a client machine and I want to watch the process, while being able in the same time to work on my computer. So I take my noteook and place it on the tabel, make a connection by Teamviewer (1 channel) and I might have a connection to my own server from my PC (1 channel). So in this moment I just 1 channel from 2 different devices. No problem in Teamviewer 12. NOT POSSIBLE IN TEAMVIEWER 13. It does not just limit your "licensed computers" to a number of 3, it also limits you to have channels only from 1 computer int he same time. Which ressources do I waste on the Teamviewer server using 2 computers? What is the difference to have 2 connections on 1 PC or 1 connection each on a PC and a notebook? Why don't you let ME decide HOW I WANT TO WORK ... instead of telling me how to work by cutting my abilities?

Am I the only person having this issue? Is there nobody using Teamviewer from different devices or from two devices in the same time? Yes, I know about Premium. Yes I know about Corporate. I'm a sole proprietor. I'm one single person, who has to own his money for living. I am not a company. I cannot afford 2.000 € for a remote software. I agreed to pay 200 € each year for the update. What more do you want from me? What more can you expect from me? If I can do all what I need without license, then let me continue doing this also as a licensed user. Comapnies who have enough money to really buy additional channels or a Premium or Corporate version will buy ti. Let them buy it. Butbeing alraedy an expensive software ... how much more can you squeeze a normal, single person ???

If Teamviewer is not thinking over this policy (13 is still beta, you have still time to make a U-turn), I will surely never buy any otehr upgrade. And if ever my Teamviewer 12 license will expire, I will look for an alternative solution. Or I will use Remote Desktop from Windows. But if you do this with your licensed users, you will not earn any more cent on me.

Comments

  • HajoBolle
    HajoBolle Posts: 11 ✭✭

    Let me shoot one reply to my own posting. Let me answer the question "Mr. Bolle, how can we make you more satisfied?".

    If you want to harden the license rules ... then do it. But make it appropriate. Don't limit your users by devices. People like me have multiple computers and multiple laptops, for different purposes. A small notebook for travelling. A big notebook for the living room. A PC in the living room and in the office room etc. I might also buy new devices frequently. And most of all I will use my client's computers. Why do I have to carry a bag of notebooks with me? I want to carry a bag of ideas with me and use the teamviewer software of any PC in the world.

    So: don't limit by the devices - but by the session. Limit the user to have 3 simultanous sessions. I will always have a session on my main main computer. From all other computers I will logout (from Teamviewer) when I am done with my remore session. This way I could use Teamviewer like I am used to - and you have still put a limit on the licensed user. Teamviewer was made to make the job of an administrator easier - with the new rules you make it impossible.

     A Business License ist about 600 € + 200 € each year for an update. For this money I want to have 3 session from any computers in the world, and on these 3 sessions I want to have whatever connections I need. I can expect this for the amount of money the license costs. Teamviewer is a great software. It is worth licensing.

    But you will not push me to pay to pay 500 € just to be able to use another of my notebooks (Premium). You will not push me to even pay 1100 € to be able to use a notebook and a PC in the same time (Premium + additional channel). And you will not push me to pay even 1.500 € more just to have unlimited devices and ... "3" (wow) channels. Plus the upgrades each year. From where shall I take this money? I can pay my rent for 2 months with this. I can pay 10 years of an Office 365 subscription with it.

    What you did is this: you gave your software without big limitations for years. You collected millions of customers (or it's already a billion by now). Now ... you have this billion of users ... who basically depend on you. Who have their list of computers, who have their clients. Now you come and say "sorry, but if you still want to do the same like before, you have to pay much, much more money". This is sneaky. This has happend in information technology before. And it was never leading to a good end. Teamviewer has a great reputation. It's what makes people using it. And with the step you did you start ruining your reputation. Today it's just me, a very angry client of yours. Because version 13 is new. Because it is beta. Because many people did not install it yet because they know they have to buy an upgrade INSTANTLY. Which I did. I thought "hey, ok ... there is the annual update and the annual license upgrade ... let's do it before it's christmas when I have no more money left". So I am one of the first to RUN into the limitations. As soon as the other people will learn the same as me - you will hear them shouting just the same way like I do.

    I want to stay a customer. But not with these conditions. Think them over.

  • bartlanz
    bartlanz Posts: 315 ✭✭✭

    They have changed a few things with their v13 licenseing. You are not alone in your struggle. I have been talking to my sales person because I am not happy with their new Subscription model even though I have upgraded every year since I started with them.

    If my post was helpful, Please throw me a Kudos.
    If my post fixed your issue, please mark it as the solution to help the next person find a solution quickly.
    Bart Lanzillotti
  • Esther
    Esther Posts: 4,052 Former Community Manager

    Hi @HajoBolle

    Thank you for your honest feedback.

    We appreciate the time and the effort you invested to letting us know your thoughts. I am happy to hear that you took the chance and talked to one of my colleagues about it directly.

    I just wanted to thank you for using the community to provide your feedback. Please let us know if there is anything else we can do for you.

    All the best, Esther

    Former Community Manager

  • gregghill
    gregghill Posts: 6 ✭✭

    I had this happen a few years ago when I made the mistake of attaching the license to my desktop under Extras > Activate license. That step locks one's license to **a** particular computer.

    My license lets me connect from **one** computer, but it never said anything about WHICH computer. I contacted tech support, and they did something to the desktop that removed the license. Now as long as I log into TV on ANY computer, I can use it normally. Tech support told me the license does NOT have to be activated to only one unique computer. I am now free to use it either from my desktop, laptop, or any other computer.

  • Scotty
    Scotty Posts: 493 Staff member 🤠

    Hi gregghill

    This is a bit of a different case.

    The Business license is restricted to 3 devices (previously 1 on V10 and lower).

    The premium and Corporate licenses are floating and can follow your account or be locked to a device, The supporter would have removed your device activation and changed you to an account based license which cannot be done in this case.

    -Scotty

    Senior Moderator
    Did my reply answer your question? Why not accept it as a solution to help others?
  • chrisn
    chrisn Posts: 3

    Couldn't agree more. I purchased my first business licence this week, only to find afterwards this 3 device login limitation. It defeats the whole purpose of the software. As you say, the limitations should be on concurrent sessions (one would be fine for me), but I need to be logged into 10 PCs all the time so that I can periodically log in and start models running on them.

    I asked for a refund within 12 hours of purchasing, but am yet to hear back from Teamviewer 36 hours later. Here's hoping they do the right thing.

    Very dissappointed - it's a great piece of software. But entirely unusable with the 3 login limit.

  • HajoBolle
    HajoBolle Posts: 11 ✭✭

    Well, as sad as it is that I gave up hoping that they change their policies ...

    But in the end I really bought a Teamviewer Corporate License, as it was the only which gives me the freedom I need.