Autodesk Shares Strategic Plans and Goals, along with Details Concerning Subscription Program on Investor Day 2003
[ Back ]   [ More News ]   [ Home ]
Autodesk Shares Strategic Plans and Goals, along with Details Concerning Subscription Program on Investor Day 2003



Autodesk Shares Strategic Plans and Goals, along with Details Concerning Subscription Program on Investor Day 2003

by Amy Rowell

During Autodesk's recent Investor Day, held on April 1, 2003 - Chairman and CEO Carol Bartz kicked off discussions with a warm welcome and a focus on 'solutions' and lifecycle management.

"Good morning everybody and thank you so much for joining us. Nice to see some familiar faces from the past, as well as some new ones. We've got a great day planned. This really is the day that my staff gets to shine! And you'll get first hand attention from them, demonstrations from their staff, and in general, get a good handle on the business," said Bartz.

"You're going to be seeing, starting with this quarter and moving into next quarter, a lot of products coming out of Autodesk. This is a very exciting time for us. In fact, it's interesting, we've actually stopped using the term product in the company, and instead, have moved to the term 'solutions' - because when you really look at the range of products available from Autodesk, we've got a lot more to sell. For the first time in Autodesk's history, we can really talk about breadth of product - so you're going to hear a lot about solutions," explained Bartz.

She went on to talk about the business climate. "My impressions - both about the environment around us as well as our business - starting with the environment, [are as follows,"] offered Bartz. "I think the environment and economy is what it is. We're not looking for sunshine around each corner. [Basically] we've buckled down and are doing the best we can," said Bartz. "One thing I can tell you is that our passion has not gone into recession - and I hope you see that today with each one of our presenters. What our customers are doing is very exciting. Whether you're interested in the feature film industry, the building industry, or in the products around you -- our passion for [all of these] businesses is stronger than ever," she explained.

"Another thing you're going to be hearing about is lifecycle management. It's very clear to us that when they have time to think, that our customers have got to think about how they can gain competitive advantage, and how can they get more profit. And [to that end], one thing that they've got to deal with is lifecycle management. There's a lot of data, but not necessarily a lot of information… [but] lifecycle management will help to address this," offered Bartz.

"To give you an example, in one company's first installation of Autodesk Streamline, not only did they get up and running in 10 days, they realized a 35 % increase in profits," said Bartz. She went on to add that the other thing that happens when you think about lifecycle management is that the richer the information is that comes out of design in the first place, the better you can manage the data downstream.

With that, Bartz concluded her introduction and introduced the first speaker. A webcast replay including audio and the slide presentations offered by each key speaker is available at: http://www.autodesk.com/investor.

Subscription Sales vs Upgrades

One area in particular in which investment analysts were especially interested was the Autodesk subscription program. Shown below are several slides that were made available during Carl Bass's presentation on this subject, outlining the differences between the existing upgrade program and the changes planned for upgrade and subscription pricing.




In short, in addressing its audience of investment analysts, Autodesk offered the following explanation. "In order to accurately compare the cost of subscriptions to the purchase of upgrades, keep in mind that in the future, major releases of AutoCAD will occur approximately every 12 months at a price of $495 if you upgrade from the most current version. If you upgrade from an earlier release the price will be $995 or more."

For additional details concerning Autodesk's Investor Day 2003, see Autodesk Extends Invitation to Join Webcast. (Note: The webcast replay is available through April 30, 2003.)

Comments? Feedback? Tell us what you think about this topic or if you have additional information you'd like to share on this subject! Submit your comments to: Email Contact.

Amy Rowell is the managing editor of MCADCafe, and the editor of MCAD Weekly Review. She may be reached at Email Contact.

Top Stories Product and Company News Special Notices Customer Wins [ more MCAD News]

Recommended Reading

FEA: Beyond the Analysts
Finite element analysis (FEA) is no longer a comparatively expensive, functionally limited tool with limitations with regard to both interoperability and accuracy. In fact, the software is simpler, better, and, yes, even cheaper. It is helping the virtual become real. And it can even be used by people who don't have the word "analyst" in their title

Automotive Design and Production, April 2003


Surfacing: More Than Skin Deep
Surfacing software developer ICEM Ltd. is already the market leader in its segment. Now, it is looking to expand its reach by offering new products that bridge the gap between engineers and stylists.

Automotive Design and Production, April 2003


Ordering prototypes should be easy
A new Web marketplace from XPress3D provides instant quotations and online ordering of rapid prototypes. If it works as planned, it could save money both for customers and prototyping service companies.

CADCAMnet, (3/27/03) $$


Pro/ENGINEER WILDFIRE
Pro/ENGINEER WILDFIRE by Joe Greco. PTC bets the company on its new web-centric MCAD application.

Desktop Engineering, April 2003


[ more Recommended Reading]

Events

O'Reilly Emerging Technology Conference, Westin Santa Clara, Santa Clara, CA April 22-25, 2003. Join the leaders from the many worlds of pervasive computing including Howard Rheingold, Alan Kay, Clay Shirky, Eric Bonabeau, Tim O'Reilly, and David S. Isenberg to discuss emerging technologies and the impact of these technologies on our lives.

PLM World '03, 28 April - 2 May, Anaheim, CA. PLM World is an independent, non-profit organization for CAD/CAM, CAE PLM industry professionals who use EDS-PLM Solutions software. Its mission is to be the Voice of the User in providing an open forum for the exchange of ideas within the EDS product environment. Citizenship is open to users of EDS Unigraphics, Metaphase, I-DEAS and iMAN software. Through networking, these users share best practices and technical techniques for implementing and using the software more effectively.

Rapid Prototyping and Manufacturing: Advanced Product Development Solutions Conference and Exposition, 12 - 15 May, 2003, Hyatt Regency, Chicago. Sponsored by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago. For more information: phone: 800.733.4763; website: www.sme.org/rapid

COFES2003: 4th Annual Congress on the Future of Engineering Software, 15-18 May 2003, Scottdale, AZ. The 4th Annual COFES event is set to bring you the latest and best information, understanding and clarity about the role engineering technology will play in your company's future survival and success.

2003 International Forum on DFMA June 17-18, 2003. Newport, RI. Sponsored by Boothroyd Dewhurst, Inc. The International Forum on DFMA is the foremost conference worldwide on early design analysis methodologies and implementation. Conference papers will discuss specific product development programs and examine cost reductions and efficiency gains at some of the world.s leading manufacturing companies, such as Raytheon, Hewlett-Packard Company, Harley-Davidson Motor Company, and Visteon Corporation, among others.

CIMdata PLM Conference June 23-25, 2003. Detroit, MI. "Unleashing the Value of Your Intellectual Assets." At PLMconference2003, attendees will be provided with a total view of the PLM picture including an industry vision, available opportunities, strategies for solution selection and implementation, roadmaps to move forward, pitfalls to avoid, and direction to help maximize the value and benefits of their investment.

[ more Events]