INDUSTRY REPORT
Nicole Segerer
SVP & General Manager,
Revenera
Executive Summary
501 product leaders responded to this year’s global survey of technology companies, and the findings reflect an industry balancing rapid innovation with the need for sustainable, profitable monetization strategies.
Key Findings
AI monetization is accelerating but squeezing margins.
80% of respondents already offer AI-enabled products or features, but 70% say delivery costs are eroding profitability. Rising cloud spend is cited as the biggest blocker to growth, with 52% specifically planning new monetization models to offset cloud costs.
Flexibility is reshaping how software is priced.
Subscription is currently the most common model for AI (42%), but pure subscription is projected to decline as usage-based approaches – prepaid, post-paid, and blended – are set to grow, with suppliers seeking to improve flexibility while ensuring profitability.
Usage-based monetization is now mainstream.
Usage-based pricing is now the most common approach for companies that primarily deliver software via public cloud, private cloud, or embedded deployments. In total, 74% of all suppliers have adopted usage-based models at least moderately, with 56% expecting usage-based revenue to grow by 2027.
Outcome-based models are losing momentum.
Plans to implement outcome-based pricing have declined from 60% a year ago to 38% today, highlighting the challenges of quantifying results – especially amid ongoing AI experimentation.
Data gaps amplify churn and retention challenges.
32% cite churn as a major blocker to revenue growth, and only 14% claim to have an efficient renewal process. A lack of centralized data is preventing companies from identifying at-risk accounts early and taking proactive steps to boost retention.
Price and value alignment remains elusive.
Only 36% of companies report strong alignment between pricing and the value customers receive – the same figure as last year. This lack of progress highlights the difficulty of proving value as customer expectations shift in a rapidly evolving market.
Software monetization is facing increasing complexity due to factors like the rise of AI, evolving pricing models, and the need for robust analytics. Key challenges include effectively pricing AI-powered features, optimizing subscription models, and leveraging data for revenue generation while maintaining user satisfaction.”
Operations Director SaaS/cloud-focused company with
$26-$100 million USD annual revenue
Contents
- Executive Summary
- Monetization & Deployment Trends
- Spotlight: Monetizing AI
- Current & Future: Software Monetization Models
- Current & Future: Software Deployment Models
- Monetization Initiatives for Software Business Growth
- Reasons for Changing Monetization Strategies
- Timeframe for Implementing New Monetization Models
- Challenges of Integrating Acquired Products into Monetization Platforms
- Spotlight: Churn Reduction
- Product Usage Data: Collection, Implementation, and Role in Revenue Generation
- Product Usage Data Collection & Implementation Trends
- Implementation of Product Usage Data
- Why Price and Value of Software Aren’t Aligned
- Best Practices: Process Improvements
- The Bottom Line
- Survey Background
The Revenera Monetization Monitor 2026 Outlook Series
This report is part of an annual series first published in 2019. Subsequent reports in this series will address Software Piracy & License Compliance and Software Monetization Analytics. All reports are based on 501 complete responses to a survey conducted by Revenera from April through June 2025.
Monetization & Deployment Trends
Spotlight: Monetizing AI
80% of survey respondents say their company already offers artificial intelligence (AI) features or products, reflecting the extraordinary pace of AI's rise across the technology landscape.
The leading factor for introducing AI, reported by 47%, is to increase the value customers receive. However, 70% say the cost of delivering AI functionality is cutting into profitability.
Balancing the books is top of mind for most, with 52% indicating they plan to add "new models to mitigate the impact of rising cloud or AI costs" over the next 18 months. For companies that primarily rely on public cloud deployments, this figure increases to 65%.
For companies that primarily rely on public cloud deployments, this figure increases to 65%.
70% say the cost of delivering AI functionality is cutting into profitability
Balancing value-based pricing with customer expectations while leveraging AI and analytics for smarter monetization remains our top challenge in software revenue growth.”
Finance Executive SaaS/cloud-focused company with more
than $250 million USD annual revenue
Top Factors Driving the Decision to Introduce AI Features or Products
#1
AI features/products would increase the value customers receive (47%)
#2
AI features/products would increase the value customers receive (47%)
As technology companies pursue AI profitability, key questions around customer value, revenue growth, and operational efficiency must be addressed:
57% of those offering AI expect reliance on public cloud services to grow by 2027. How will growing cloud costs be accounted for to protect margins?
What pricing models will ensure AI offerings deliver predictable value for customers while securing sustainable returns for suppliers?
Among all respondents, 42% see the lack of data as a blocker to aligning price and value, yet implementing AI functionality without the ability to analyze and understand usage may pose a significant threat to profitability.
We don’t [currently price our AI offering]. It’s bundled in the core product price as clients expect to have basic capabilities just like reporting.”
Director of Strategy SaaS/cloud-focused company with more
than $250 million USD annual revenue
Pricing AI Offerings
Subscription is currently the most common model for AI offerings, adopted by 42% of providers.
However, with rising delivery costs and growing demand for flexibility, pure subscription is projected to decline by five percentage points – to 37% – over the next 18 months. At the same time, blended subscription and usage-based models are expected to climb from 20% to 25%.
No matter how you dissect the data, usage-based approaches – whether prepaid, post-paid, or blended with subscription – are becoming a central pillar of AI monetization, signaling a decisive shift toward models that balance customer flexibility with supplier cost alignment.
