Cloud PC service Shadow significantly increases prices

The cloud PC service Shadow is massively increasing its prices after the takeover by entrepreneur Octave Klaba. Choice options will also be dropped in the future. Nothing is yet known about access to the retreaded service.

The previous model

By all accounts, the service’s previous model has not been particularly successful financially. Shadow previously offered three subscription options that differed in terms of the resolution offered, the graphics card available, the CPU, the RAM, and the internal storage, and were suitable for different application purposes. The prices were low compared to other cloud computing services: The cheapest package could be booked for just 13 Euros per month. Ultimately, however, Shadow filed for insolvency. Insolvency proceedings were conducted in both France and the USA. At the end of April, the service was bought out by Octave Klaba.

The new one-size-fits-all model

The change in pricing structure is accompanied by fundamental changes to the model. For example, the two higher-priced of the three subscription options will be eliminated without replacement. All that remains is the basic version, the price of which is being increased from 13 to 30 euros a month and thus more than doubled. New customers will now only have a system with a maximum resolution of 1080 pixels, a graphics card at the level of the GeForce GTX 1080, a quad-core processor with a clock speed of 3.4 GHz, and 12 GB of RAM. Only existing customers enjoy grandfathering and can continue their old subscriptions. In this case, too, prices will rise, in some cases drastically: the Ultra model, which was previously available for 30 euros, will cost 45 euros, while the Infinite subscription will cost 55 euros a month instead of 50 euros in the future.

Access to the service unresolved

Before the restructuring, it was considered almost impossible to grab a subscription to Shadow: Those who were interested could only sign up for a waiting list. Whether this circumstance will change with the introduction of the unified model and the significant price increase is not yet clear.