Movie Studio and VEGAS

MAGIX_Redaktion wrote on 7/16/2021, 9:14 AM

Dear community,

With the discontinuation of VEGAS Movie Studio, we want to offer you two options:

We happily invite you to the new era of Movie Studio 18, which is based on the beloved Infusion Engine of Movie Edit Pro. Users love the intuitive user interface and simple workflows to create stunning videos. This software is designed for beginners and advanced users. Special prices start at $49.99. Find out more at https://bit.ly/36FArwZ.

If you want to stay in the VEGAS universe, we want to offer you alternatively to upgrade VEGAS Pro Edit which is the entry edition into VEGAS Pro. Here we have two special offers for you:

  1. VEGAS Pro Edit 18 only for $99.00. Find out more at https://bit.ly/3ky7pHA.
     
  2. VEGAS Pro Edit 18 and the next version of it for only 149.00$. Here's the deal: https://bit.ly/3hOzXev.

Feel free to reach to us for further questions.

Best wishes,

Your MAGIX Team

Comments

Kirk-Tougas wrote on 9/8/2021, 9:05 PM

This information that should have been provide BEFORE the so-called upgrade was released. It's similar to the fact that MAGIX never warned customers on the MSP17 "upgrade" that it would not handle my ProRes files (while MSP15 handles them fine). Duplicity!

I've been trying to get a refund for more than a month, then make the move to Vegas, but nothing but corporate stone-walling with customer service pretending that they don't know that MSP17 is flawed. Use Handbrake they say, but no refund. I suggested keeping the money but giving me an upgrade to an old version of Vegas (i guess 18 now) and keep a client in the Vegas update stream, but no to that as well.

Are you willing to make good ?

emmrecs wrote on 9/10/2021, 3:17 PM

@Kirk-Tougas

These are user to user forums so no one who posts here can directly help you or respond to your post, sorry!

Jeff

Forum Moderator

Win 11 Pro 64 bit, Intel i7 14700, 16 GB RAM, NVidia RTX 4060 and Intel UHD770 Graphics, MOTU 8-Pre f/w audio interface, VPX, MEP, Music Maker, PhotoStory Deluxe, Photo Manager Deluxe, Xara 3D Maker 7, Samplitude Pro X7 Suite, Reaper, Adobe Audition 3, CS6 and CC, 2 x Canon HG10 cameras, 1 x Canon EOS 600D, Akaso EK7000 Pro Action Cam

Kirk-Tougas wrote on 9/10/2021, 10:25 PM

I understand that Jeff. It's more of a wake-up message for users that Magix's deception in their promotions is an unfortunate sign of future corporate policy. When Magix announces a MSP17 "upgrade" (from 15 or 16) that removes the capability of handling files (ProRes) edited in 15 (and thus any adjustments to programs edited in 15), it's a "downgrade" that they're not telling you about. it also means that future "upgrades" may well doom work edited in previous versions of their software.

And by now everyone knows of the complete falsehood of MSP18 being an "upgrade" of Movie Studio when it's a completely different editing system with a re-branded fake name. this should have been fully declared on their "upgrade" to MSP18 promo materials. Again, for clients, an indication that Magix can't be trusted.

MAGIX_Redaktion wrote on 9/13/2021, 8:56 AM

Hi @Kirk-Tougas,

Thanks for your feedback and your opinion on our release. We know that our communication in regards to the release of Movie Studio 18 was not clear enough and we have already taken actions.

We learned a lot from the release and will be extra careful with future updates and changes.

Best wishes,
MAGIX Team

Christopher-Swartz wrote on 11/29/2021, 11:14 PM

Yeah...communication on Movie Studio 2022...which you sold me off the Vegas website...was not any better. Whatever action you took, was meager to useless. Absolutely, hands down, the worst video program I've use in 40 years of computing. Period. I've used Vegas since Vegas 4. This is a solid step down. Quicktime 3, keyboard editing, much better. If someone sees this and wonders about upgrading...buy Vegas Pro.

Why can't it even organize its own windows? Everytime it launches it changes them, usually making them worse than the time before? Sometimes resetting them helps, sometimes it doesn't. Setting them to standard usually makes it worse? I thought it might not be able to figure out a HDPI display so I tried native res, I tried two other external monitors, it just can't seem to get there. I will reinstall my last version of Vegas Studio and pretend I never saw this mess.

The plugins that came with it are decent and worth the upgrade price I paid, so I'll just take my lumps, and uninstall Movie Studio 2022. As a business manager, who does video for fun, I would highly suggest you pull this mess from your Vegas site. To say that it diminishes the work you've done in earning the trust of your inherited Sony users would be a gross understatement. Your disclaimer does say Vegas Movie Studio is no longer being developed, but doesn't make clear that this is a new and different program, not the last version of Vegas Movie Studio. If you would have sent me to the Magix site, instead of selling it on the Vegas site, your message would have been much clearer. If I had realized at the time, this was Magix Movie Studio, I wouldn't have upgraded. But honestly, I've demo'd Magix Movie Studio before. It didn't use to be this bad?

Is this a beta release, expected to actually work sometime in 2022?

(I looked in my account, it ws actually Movie Edit Pro I demo'd, so maybe this has always been this bad?)

Martin-Lechowicz wrote on 12/6/2021, 10:13 AM

I just bought Movie Studio 2022, which was advertised as an upgrade to Movie Studio 16.

Movie Studio 16 is a brilliant program with the best, fast user interface one can imagine. I've been editing films professionally for nearly 20 years and Vegas programs were by far my favorite. Due to excellent, intuitive and responsive interface that makes my work so much faster then any other video program out there. So I kept upgrading.

Now I bought Movie Studio 2022 and I'm stunned.

What on earth is that?

Because I know for sure it is NOT upgrade to the Movie Studio. It is an entirely different program, with a different user interface. All the good stuff is gone. Even the standard mouse/keyboard operations have been changed even though they've been there for years. Mouse scroll up used to zoom, not it moves the timeline. Timeline marker was easy to click, hold and move, now you can do only in a narrow top area. Looping audio clips by simply stretching the right edge to the right? Impossible now.

Why on earth do you need multiple movies per project? Why those tabs that take space? Why are all the options gone? Why are keyboard shortcuts all changed in an absurd way? It was: G - for grouping, U - ungrouping. Since always. Now I pressed U and got surprised by "remove scene end". Why would anybody even think about making such changes? How is it better?

Any why, oh why, doesn't Movie Studio 2022 import project from the Movie Studio 16? So Movie Studio which is an upgrade to Movie Studio is now incompatible with... Movie Studio??? Don't you think you should mention it BEFORE you sell it as an upgrade?

I mean what is wrong with you people? Did you deliberately want to made this program so much worse than all versions before? Why do you keep lying it is an upgrade? It's not an upgrade, if it is not compatible with the previous versions, looks different, feels different and most of the unique, essential features are gone.

I came here to search for a refund. I will get one, because this is not a case of "I don't fancy a program" or "I changed my mind". It is a case of false advertizing and hiding important information.

If you want to resolve it through legal means, no problem for me. Meanwhile I'll keep warning other potential buyers that it is NOT an upgrade. Not even a downgrade. It is a different program sold under a name "Movie Studio" to suggest continuance and deliberately cheat people into expecting something else and paying for it.

It's hard to believe this is really happening.

I guess the company wants to make as much money as possible before killing the project, counting that nobody has enough determination to get a lawyer.

Either way, without great user interface of older Movie Studios, this new program has absolutely nothing to offer that would be better than a competition.

Really sad ending to a fantastic piece of software.

emmrecs wrote on 12/6/2021, 1:34 PM

@Martin-Lechowicz

Welcome to the Magix user to user forums, so not a contact for any Magix staff.

Movie Studio 18 is a rebadged version of Magix Movie Edit Pro. As stated in this forum, several times, Magix has decided that Vegas Movie Studio should be discontinued and that the new Magix Movie Studio (MMS) should be released, with the longer-term aim of uniting Magix Movie Edit Pro and Magic Movie Studio into one product.

You have actually bought Movie Studio 2022, which is the second version of this new product.

I'm sorry if you feel you were misled into believing that MMS 2022 was indeed an "upgrade" to your former VMS 16; I am not sure where this is actually stated. I think you will find that it was offered as an upgrade to MMS 18.

Can you point to where the statement is actually written that MMS 2022 is an upgrade to your older version?

The fact that older VMS projects cannot be opened in the new MMS has been accepted and a solution is, I know, being "worked on".

If you wish to request a refund for your purchase you need to follow the procedure set out in the relevant sections of this web page.

Jeff
Forum Moderator

Win 11 Pro 64 bit, Intel i7 14700, 16 GB RAM, NVidia RTX 4060 and Intel UHD770 Graphics, MOTU 8-Pre f/w audio interface, VPX, MEP, Music Maker, PhotoStory Deluxe, Photo Manager Deluxe, Xara 3D Maker 7, Samplitude Pro X7 Suite, Reaper, Adobe Audition 3, CS6 and CC, 2 x Canon HG10 cameras, 1 x Canon EOS 600D, Akaso EK7000 Pro Action Cam

Martin-Lechowicz wrote on 12/6/2021, 5:08 PM

Well, great. Vegas Movie Studio is discontinued, who knows why. But still, the new Magix Movie Studio has been advertised to me as an upgrade. A news window popped out in my Movie Studio 16 few days ago. I haven't made a copy, but maybe you recall where it said: "this is an entirely different program" or "this program does not even read project files from your current version" or "this Movie Studio is entirely different product than your Movie Studio although we keep the same name because why not"? I haven't seen any warning of any sort. Maybe I was too enthustiastic? Clearly I was.

But do you really want to tell me that the company kept the same name of the program which is supposed to be a completely different program, just to make sure that people like me do not get confused? How was I supposed to know it was not an upgrade? I did get a special price after all. And there was absolutely no warning that the change in program interface would be enormous.

You are right, I didn't read every fine print and every legal document out there. But do you know why? Because I TRUSTED the company that I supported for years. I payed gladly and I would gladly keep paying. But after this...

You think that saying "you renounced your rights to a refund" on the website is something that is a result of honesty? How do you think I feel when I realize there is no way to contact support to tell them I have a real problem with a program I payed for?

Now I've been a supporter of Movie Studio since version 8. I have 20 products listed in the Service Center panel. I'm not an enemy here. I feel like someone wanted to just grab my money and run. No support, no refund, no sign of any responsibility. From my point of view it looks as if the company doesn't care about its reputation at all. What would you react to something like that?

I want to find some good points of this program, I would buy it if I didn't hope for something good, would I? But editing in Movie Studio is really bad now. The only sensible thing left to do is switch to competition and tell the world to avoid the company and stay away from the program.

Would it be wise to make extra effort to keep the good reputation instead of pretending there is nothing is wrong here?

I will not follow your procedure, thank you. Because I do not work for you. We are not in an army either. I simply request a refund, please forward it wherever it should go, because I can't find a way to contact support directly on the website. I asked it in another thread, but I was not answered and the thread was closed immediately. So much friendliness here!

I will insist on the refund because until I'm convinced that there were no bad intentions here, my opinion remains that I was deliberately cheated into buying a program through a misleading advertising and omitting important information.

I have started a procedure with PayPal. You follow their procedure.

If I don't get the result I will claim Section 3 of "Gesetz gegen den unlauteren Wettbewerb". Courts still work in Germany, don't they? Nobody has to prove anything to me, but the company will be requested by a court to explain how keeping the same name of an entirely different software was not "suited to materially distort the economic behaviour of consumers". Because it just did. It made me buy a program I would have never bought if I was clearly told it was a different program and should not be considered an upgrade. Was it clearly communicated? Was all necessary data provided? Will the company be able to prove it before the court?

I believe MAGIX Software GmbH has breached Section 5 ("Misleading commercial practices") in several points. And not the first time either, so it seems.

Let's not go this way. It is expensive. It's very satisfactory on the other hand. But it is also time consuming and time is precious.

The case is simple: what I've been sold was not even close to what I expected. So I just want my money back, that's all. It happens and usually hasn't been a problem with any other company. I can't comprehend why it is so difficult.

Does a man really need to go to court with every little problem these days?

I found today a YouTube video of a guy having exactly the same feelings about buying Movie Studio 18. So apparently it is no only me who can see the problem. The funny thing is that until today I really, really trusted the company. I would never expected it to play tricks on me.

emmrecs wrote on 12/7/2021, 3:51 AM

@Martin-Lechowicz

As I wrote earlier, these are user to user forums. No-one who posts regularly here, including ALL the moderators, is a Magix employee; I do not work for [Magix] either! I have no control at all over processes and decisions that MAGIX GMBH takes so I really can offer you no solution at all, other than what I have written above, sorry.

Whether you could look into taking legal action, and with what level of success, I have no idea but, as I believe you yourself wrote, Magix is a German company and so governed by German consumer laws. I know that for consumers in the European Union countries, EU consumer law is in force; my understanding for non-EU countries, and especially for users in the United States, is that their opportunity to request a refund is limited by local laws.

Jeff

Edit: to add, following a PM from another Moderator, I went to this page, where the following is written (immediately below the list of prices, at the top of the page) "the fundamentally new Movie Studio". I have bolded what I think are the key words.

Last changed by emmrecs on 12/7/2021, 4:07 AM, changed a total of 1 times.

Win 11 Pro 64 bit, Intel i7 14700, 16 GB RAM, NVidia RTX 4060 and Intel UHD770 Graphics, MOTU 8-Pre f/w audio interface, VPX, MEP, Music Maker, PhotoStory Deluxe, Photo Manager Deluxe, Xara 3D Maker 7, Samplitude Pro X7 Suite, Reaper, Adobe Audition 3, CS6 and CC, 2 x Canon HG10 cameras, 1 x Canon EOS 600D, Akaso EK7000 Pro Action Cam

Martin-Lechowicz wrote on 12/7/2021, 6:53 AM

Apparently some employer reads the forum, because Magix just refunded me. And they did it very quickly. Thanks, Magix!

So I guess if you bought a new "Movie Studio" and after buying you discovered it was not a program you expected, go for a refund through PayPal. Doesn't matter if you live in States or Europe.

Regarding consumer laws, it is not a civil law case (consumer vs company). It is state vs company type of case. The legal action of a consumer starts the process, in which the company and government are involved.

I've done it once already in Poland, where the consumer laws work in a similar way. It worked. It's quite effective.

Either way, do I understand it right, that original Sony Vegas Movie Studio (or whatever the name) is gone for good? But at the top of this thread they wrote:

"If you want to stay in the VEGAS universe, we want to offer you alternatively to upgrade VEGAS Pro Edit which is the entry edition into VEGAS Pro".

Does it mean that Vegas is not gone after all and will survive as Vegas Pro? So why do they talk about discontinuation? Is it discontinuation of names scheme or discontinuation of a software line?

emmrecs wrote on 12/7/2021, 9:58 AM

@Martin-Lechowicz

For a considerable number of years there was Vegas Pro and Vegas Movie Studio, the former being a much more feature-rich program than the latter. For some years now both products have been owned, and developed by Magix, following their sale by Sony, the original creator of both programs.

Vegas Pro continues to be developed; Vegas Movie Studio has been discontinued but is now Magix Movie Studio. As stated earlier in this thread, it is a rebadged version of Magix Movie Edit Pro.

Jeff

Win 11 Pro 64 bit, Intel i7 14700, 16 GB RAM, NVidia RTX 4060 and Intel UHD770 Graphics, MOTU 8-Pre f/w audio interface, VPX, MEP, Music Maker, PhotoStory Deluxe, Photo Manager Deluxe, Xara 3D Maker 7, Samplitude Pro X7 Suite, Reaper, Adobe Audition 3, CS6 and CC, 2 x Canon HG10 cameras, 1 x Canon EOS 600D, Akaso EK7000 Pro Action Cam

Martin-Lechowicz wrote on 12/7/2021, 10:34 AM

Here's the question though: wasn't old Vegas Pro and old Vegas Movie Studio the same program? Vegas Pro had more features of course, but the core of the program was the same, with exactly the same interface. Am I right?

Still, it's good to know that Movie Studio is now Movie Edit. But I still think it should be clearly explained to users before they are offered to buy a new version. They have every reason to think they are buying an upgrade.

I mean if I had a cheap car company in Asia and bought a Ferrari company, I could sell my cheap cars as Ferrari. Sure, why not. But I would not sent an offer to a guy who has 10 cars of old Ferrari already, saying simply: "hey, we a new Ferrari!"

Not without explaining the situation first.

I would write:
"Fair warning: this is a different car now, so make sure you know what you're buying".
And I would use big font, good contrast and put it in a visible place. Because I really care about my reputation. I also believe in fair trade and honesty in business.

But that's just me. I wish there were more people and companies like me though.

Nalmcruto wrote on 12/14/2021, 7:18 AM

@Martin-Lechowicz The text on Movie Studio's website has changed so much that if you're going to take legal action, you should make sure you document enough evidence of "misleading consumption." This is important.

Martin-Lechowicz wrote on 12/14/2021, 7:37 AM

Noted.

MAGIX_Redaktion wrote on 12/20/2021, 2:22 AM

Dear users,

Please excuse the delayed response from our side.

We gladly confirm that VEGAS Pro is not dead. It is worked on with strong focus. We're happy to keep you on the VEGAS universe if you've been a fan of it. Here is the dedicated forum: https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/

As already explained, VEGAS Movie Studio has been discontinued in the summer to focus on VEGAS Pro and Movie Edit Pro - which is in the process of being rebranded.

If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact our customer service via infoserivce@magix.net. Our agents are happy to answer all your questions.

Best wishes,
MAGIX Team

mamsek987 wrote on 4/15/2022, 4:52 AM

Dear users,

Please excuse the delayed response from our side.

We gladly confirm that VEGAS Pro is not dead. It is worked on with strong focus. We're happy to keep you on the VEGAS universe if you've been a fan of it. Here is the dedicated forum: https://www.vegascreativesoftware.info/us/

As already explained, VEGAS Movie Studio has been discontinued in the summer to focus on VEGAS Pro and Movie Edit Pro - which is in the process of being rebranded.

If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact our customer service via infoserivce@magix.net. Our agents are happy to answer all your questions. There is https://create.vista.com/colors/ a lot of useful and informative here, in terms of colors and patterns and all that, in general, just super. There are also tutorials.

Best wishes,
MAGIX Team

Thanks guys, the information you share is very useful and just priceless, respect.

emmrecs wrote on 6/24/2022, 3:46 AM

@toryn.-t

I have hidden your post because it includes an unsubstantiated and potentially libellous statement. Please confine yourself to factual and constructive comments or criticism.

Jeff
Forum Moderator

Win 11 Pro 64 bit, Intel i7 14700, 16 GB RAM, NVidia RTX 4060 and Intel UHD770 Graphics, MOTU 8-Pre f/w audio interface, VPX, MEP, Music Maker, PhotoStory Deluxe, Photo Manager Deluxe, Xara 3D Maker 7, Samplitude Pro X7 Suite, Reaper, Adobe Audition 3, CS6 and CC, 2 x Canon HG10 cameras, 1 x Canon EOS 600D, Akaso EK7000 Pro Action Cam

ericlnz wrote on 6/24/2022, 3:48 AM

Magix's MSP17 "upgrade" (from 15 or 16) that removes the ability to manage ProRes files edited in 15 (and, as a result, the ability to adjust programs created in 15) is a "downgrade"

@toryn.-t My understanding of the situation is different in that the ability to manage ProRes wasn't intentionally removed by the Vegas team. There was a mishap with later builds of VMSP17 when other audio problems were being fixed that caused the QT plug-in to get broken. Sadly the problem wasn't fixed before VMS was abandoned. It also affects MOV files where the Format ID is identified as JPEG or PNG encoded video. It doesn't affect MOV files that have h.264/AVC encoded import.

Anyway Vegas products have an advantage in that you can have numerous versions installed so you can still use your earlier versions.

As for Magix's behaviour I agree that the way they have behaved over the past twelve months doesn't inspire confidence.