Subscription or sell?

True subscription only works as a service, i.e. it requires infrastructure to manage the subscriptions and to ensure that the fonts are being used within the permissions of the subscription service. Usually, such services include things like hosting of webfonts, so that’s an added cost that the subscriptions need to cover. This is why font subscription services tend only to be offered by larger and well-established companies, resellers, or software providers.

Some foundries charge an annual fee for some use types—e.g. web or app embedding—, which is sort of like a subscription without the overhead. They mostly rely on customers to pay the license renewal fee and not to continue using the fonts beyond the license term, but have no technical mechanism to prevent infringement, only legal remedies (cease and desist letters, demands for fees for the unlicensed uses, taking customers to court).

Personally, I decided when we launched our retail licensing—after three decades in the business focused on custom fonts, so with an established reputation—, that we would use a one-time-fee perpetual license model for all use types. I am aware that some people will say that doing so is ‘leaving money on the table’, but I am okay with that. I don’t want to be a rentier, and would rather our customers know that they’re paying for what they need and won’t get charged againg for the same things down the road.