CAD Tech News (#47)

▶ Autodesk Ends Suites, Introduces Collections

AEC, product design, and M&E professionals gain one way to access a portfolio of software tools, while another is taken off the market.

By Cadalyst Staff

On August 1, Autodesk began offering three Industry Collections — packages that make a bundle of its software solutions available through a single subscription. The Collections are available with single-user or multi-user access and include:

• Architecture, Engineering, and Construction Collection. A building information modeling (BIM) package for building, civil infrastructure, and construction. The collection comprises 22 products and services, including Revit, AutoCAD, AutoCAD Civil 3D, InfraWorks 360, and — like the other two collections — 25 GB of cloud storage.
• Product Design Collection. This 14-part package includes design and engineering tools for product and factory design, such as Inventor Professional, AutoCAD, and Navisworks Manage, as well as cloud-based Fusion 360.
• Media and Entertainment Collection. A 3D animation toolset for visual effects artists and game developers. Products and services include Maya, 3ds Max, and six others.

These new subscription packages take the place of Autodesk's Design and Creation Suites, which are no longer offered as of August 1. (New perpetual licenses for standalone products were discontinued on February 1 of this year.)

"When we introduced Suites ... we really simplified the process, or so we thought," said Carl White, senior director of business models at Autodesk. As it turned out, the tiered structure of access to applications within the Suites, which were offered in Standard, Premium, and Ultimate levels, created uncertainty about which applications were included in which package. "It actually became more confusing for our customers," White continued. In contrast, there are no tiers within the new Collections; the only variable is the subscription length.

Subscriptions to individual software titles are still available. Autodesk states: "To complement collections and address more specialized needs, customers can subscribe to individual products or cloud services, such as simulation or data management tools." Read more »

▶ WHAT’S NEW

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