Canva Affinity Studio adds arbitration clause: Difference between revisions

Serif, a UK based software development company, released the Affinity V2 Universal License in 2022 for their flagship brand Affinity, a professional photo editing, vector illustration and page design software. The cross-platform Universal License bundled Affinity Photo 2, Affinity Designer 2 and Affinity Publisher 2. Instead of subscription model payments, user access to the Affinity V2 suite could be purchased and installed and activated through Serif and Serif user accounts for a one-time payment.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |date=2024-03-25 |title=Canva Acquires Design Platform Affinity to Bring Professional Design Tools to Every Organization |url=https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240325965656/en/Canva-Acquires-Design-Platform-Affinity-to-Bring-Professional-Design-Tools-to-Every-Organization |access-date=2025-11-02 |website=BusinessWire |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260216022908/https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240325965656/en/Canva-Acquires-Design-Platform-Affinity-to-Bring-Professional-Design-Tools-to-Every-Organization |archive-date=16 Feb 2026}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-09 |title=Press Release - Affinity Version 2 sets new standards in creative software |url=https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/press/newsroom/affinity-v2-sets-new-standards-in-creative-software/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221109150704/https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/press/newsroom/affinity-v2-sets-new-standards-in-creative-software/ |archive-date=2022-11-09 |access-date=2025-11-02 |website=Affinity Serif}}</ref>

*First, users of Affinity Studio are required [https://www.canva.com/product-suite-integration/authn/affinity?redirect_uri=https://www.affinity.studio%2Fen%2Fdownload&source=download_login_redirect&locale=en sign into Canva's website] to download the new Affinity Studio application, linking it to either a Google, Facebook, or email account. Users must agree to both [https://www.canva.com/policies/terms-of-use/ Canva's Terms of Use] (last updated October 30th, 2025) and the [https://www.canva.com/policies/affinity-additional-terms/ Affinity Additional Terms]; the dialog also prompts users to read the [https://www.canva.com/policies/privacy-policy/ Canva Privacy Policy] ([http://web.archive.org/web/20260222212655/https://www.canva.com/policies/privacy-policy/ Archived]). By default, user data, (activity, content and media uploads) is being collected in order to train their algorithms, models and AI products and services. Users are able to opt out of these conditions. The ''Affinity Terms'' page also includes the following passage: <blockquote>If your Agreement allows multiple Users within your team to access the Affinity Software, then: […] Canva or its authorized agent will be entitled to enter onto your premises with reasonable notice to audit your use of the Affinity Software. This provision will survive termination of this License.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-10-30 |title=Affinity Terms |url=https://www.canva.com/policies/affinity-additional-terms/ |access-date=2025-11-03 |website=Canva |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260131204952/https://www.canva.com/policies/affinity-additional-terms/ |archive-date=31 Jan 2026}}</ref></blockquote>

There is still public concern over the longevity of the "free" software and whether existing features may one day get locked behind a paywall. The company claims that the app is free forever; in a social media post, Affinity says that there isn't a catch, that user data isn't being sold, that user creativity isn't being monetized, and that data isn't being used to train AI models.<ref name=":2" /> However, [https://www.canva.com/policies/privacy-policy/ Canva's Privacy Policy] ([http://web.archive.org/web/20260222212655/https://www.canva.com/policies/privacy-policy/ Archived]) indicates that information collected about their users is used for data analytics, service improvement (including analytics and machine learning), and for advertising purposes in addition to other purposes often included in a Privacy Policy.<!-- This could use further verification. I'm not a lawyer, and I'm not an expert on the newer Affinity Studio software released by Canva. -->

There's also concern as to whether the older versions of Affinity that provided a perpetual license may some day be revoked.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-10-03 |title=Revealing the future of Affinity |url=https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/235901-revealing-the-future-of-affinity/ |access-date=2025-11-02 |website=Serif / Affinity Forums |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251103042619/https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?%2Ftopic%2F235901-revealing-the-future-of-affinity%2F |archive-date=3 Nov 2025}}</ref> The EULA for the V2 Affinity applications indicate that Serif or Serif Licensors could suspend remove, modify, disable, or impose limits on access to Serif Software without notice or liability to the user, further increasing concern over if and when V2 or other Affinity Software may eventually be un-installable or otherwise rendered unusable for existing users.