DaVinci Resolve is Blackmagic Design’s application for editing, colour correction, visual effects, motion graphics, audio post-production and, from version 21, still photo editing, delivered as one program for Mac, Windows and Linux.[6] It is distributed in two editions: a free version and a paid DaVinci Resolve Studio that adds a defined set of features. The licensing questions that arise in practice concern how Studio is activated, how many people and machines it covers, how it differs on iPad and through the Mac App Store, how the Blackmagic Cloud licences work, and which features rely on third-party licences.
Editions
The installer read me for DaVinci Resolve 21.1.1 describes the free version as including all of the same processing as Studio and able to handle unlimited resolution media, while limiting project mastering and output to Ultra HD resolutions or lower and supporting only a single processing GPU on Windows and Linux.[3] The product page puts the same limit from the user’s side: the free version works with virtually all 8-bit video formats at up to 60 fps in resolutions as high as Ultra HD 3840 x 2160, and includes multi-user collaboration and HDR grading.[6]
The read me names the capabilities that require Studio: support for multiple GPUs, 4K output, motion blur effects, temporal and spatial noise reduction, multiple AI-based tools, HDR tools, the camera tracker, voice isolation, surround sound and immersive audio, multiple Resolve FX, 3D stereoscopic tools and remote rendering.[3] A fuller table, the Studio and iPad Features document, marks each feature as available in all editions or as a Studio feature. Entries marked Studio include:
- timeline and render resolution higher than UHD, timeline frame rates above 60 fps and sample rates of 96 kHz and above;
- multiple image processing GPUs;
- remote rendering, remote grading and remote monitor hosting (remote monitor viewing is not restricted);
- workflow and media asset management integration, the scripting API, encode plugin support and background rendering and analysis;
- stereoscopic 3D projects and immersive workflows;
- on the Fusion page, the camera tracker, the deep image compositing toolset, multi-layer pipelining and Cryptomatte workflows.[1]
For a licence manager, this table is the document to use when deciding whether a use case requires Studio. The read me directs users who need those features to upgrade to Studio.[3] The documents do not discuss enforcement or audits.
Activation methods on desktop
For standard installations the Studio and iPad Features document lists three licence methods: an activation key, a licence dongle and Blackmagic Cloud licensing.[1] The update description for DaVinci Resolve Studio 21.1.1 uses slightly different words for the same three: a DaVinci Resolve Studio licence dongle, a Blackmagic Cloud licence or a software activation code.[4] The update description for the earlier 20.2 release names only a dongle or a software activation code, so the cloud licence does not appear in that release’s description.[4]
The Help menu of DaVinci Resolve includes a Deactivate License command, which deactivates the Studio licence on the computer where it is run.[2] It is the only licence-transfer mechanism described in the manual. The documents reviewed do not state the number of computers on which one activation key may be active at once, do not describe how a dongle is shared between computers, and do not publish a policy for lost keys. These points are therefore left to the licence card, email or hardware product that carries the entitlement, and a record of that source is worth keeping with the licence.
The list price shown on the Studio product page is $295 in the United States at the retrieval date.[5]
DaVinci Resolve on iPad and through the Mac App Store
A separate set of rules applies to App Store purchases. The Studio and iPad Features document lists the Studio licensing method on iPad as an in-app purchase, and states that Mac App Store installations follow a separate App Store purchase based licence that is not interchangeable with other desktop or cloud based licences.[1] The same document records that the scripting API, workflow and media asset management integration and the Fusion VR and immersive toolset are not available in Mac App Store installations.[1] The practical consequence for inventory is that a Mac that has the App Store build and a Studio entitlement does not hold the same asset as a Mac that has the downloaded build and an activation key, and the two cannot be swapped.
The same document shows how features differ by iPad generation: M-series iPads offer Studio features after the in-app upgrade, and A-series iPads offer fewer.[1]
Blackmagic Cloud licences
Blackmagic Cloud Organizations are the mechanism for volume licensing. The reference manual describes an organization as a way to consolidate storage, permissions, licensing and billing, with members invited by email and required to hold a personal Blackmagic Cloud account.[2] Only members with Owner permissions can add or remove members.[2]
Licences are managed in the Licenses tab. Organizations have the option to rent individual DaVinci Resolve Studio licences on a monthly basis, and from the tab they can purchase, return and manage them.[2] The workflow is as follows.
- An owner chooses how many licences to rent and completes checkout.
- The owner assigns licences to a member or group; the tab shows who holds licences and the total count.
- A member opens DaVinci Resolve Studio, presses Use Blackmagic ID, signs in with the member credentials that have a licence assigned, selects the organization that holds the licence and continues once Resolve reports that an active licence has been found.[2]
- When licences are unassigned they return to the pool for other members and groups.[2]
- To reduce the rented count, the owner removes licences; the organization cannot remove more licences than are assigned, so further reductions require unassigning first, and the change updates billing.[2]
For counting, the cloud licence is therefore an assignable licence held by an organization and activated per member sign-in. The manual does not state the monthly price, a minimum quantity, or the number of computers on which a member may sign in.
Project libraries and storage
Cloud-related licensing also includes the project libraries that hold projects. The manual describes three kinds: local libraries on one computer, network libraries hosted by a computer running the DaVinci Resolve Project Server application on a local network, and cloud libraries stored in the Blackmagic cloud service.[2] Organizations buy cloud project libraries, choosing between Blackmagic-administered shared servers and a dedicated server, and members and groups are assigned at the library level.[2]
Two counting rules matter. Disabled cloud project libraries do not count towards the Project Library limit, are not deleted and can be enabled again, and an organization cannot reduce its libraries below the number currently active.[2] Storage is bought and removed in the Storage tab; storage cannot be reduced below the amount in use. The manual states that Blackmagic never deletes media and that an account that is unpaid after 15 days and three emails is disabled rather than deleted, and can be reactivated by calling customer service.[2]
Hardware bundles
DaVinci Resolve Studio is included with several Blackmagic cameras. The Pocket Cinema Camera page states that all models include a full version of DaVinci Resolve Studio,[7] and the PYXIS and URSA Cine pages say the same of those cameras.[8][9] The pages do not describe how the licence is delivered or whether it may be moved to a different computer, and a licence manager reconciling bundled entitlements should confirm that from the product packaging.
Third-party licences
Several workflows require licences that Blackmagic does not issue. Access to advanced Dolby Vision trim controls requires a separate licence from Dolby, and support for encrypted DCP requires a separate Easy DCP licence.[5] The reference manual explains that the fully functional version of easyDCP operates through licensing modules bought from Fraunhofer’s easyDCP and that every new DaVinci Resolve system (server) needs its own licence and certificates.[2] The DaVinci Resolve Renderer OpenFX plugin, used from other applications, requires a DaVinci Resolve Studio licence on the system that runs the third-party application.[2] That last rule extends Studio licensing beyond the machine that runs Resolve itself.
Practical points for software asset managers
- The free version has no key or licence record, so discovery has to identify the edition from the installed product.
- For Studio, record the delivery method (activation key, dongle, cloud licence or App Store) because they are not interchangeable according to the feature document.[1]
- Reconcile camera purchases against Studio entitlements.
- For each Blackmagic Cloud Organization, reconcile rented licences with assigned members, project libraries and storage, and keep the owner list current because only owners manage membership.[2]
- Track Dolby, Easy DCP and other third-party licences separately.
Out of scope
This article does not describe the licence agreement presented in the installer, which is not published on the Blackmagic website pages reviewed, or any enforcement or audit practice, which the documents do not mention.