Autodesk axes MotionBuilder standard

#21


Pretty self-explanatory. Either you have the PLE, or you pay $4000+

Pricing and Availability

Autodesk MotionBuilder 7.5 is now available to MotionBuilder Platinum Members. The software is expected to become available worldwide in late March 2006. Autodesk MotionBuilder 7.5 suggested retail pricing (SRP), including one year of Platinum Membership, remains unchanged from version 7. Autodesk MotionBuilder 7.5 (node-locked) SRP is US $4,195 * and Autodesk MotionBuilder 7.5 (floating) SRP is US $4,795 * in North America. MotionBuilder software is available for both the Windows and Mac OS X platforms.

Note, there is no PRO or STD, only PLE or ‘Motionbuilder’. Also note how they cleverly avoid mentioning Std vs PRO in the FAQ, again only PRO vs PLE. Oops, sorry - my bad ‘Motionbuilder’ vs PLE. :stuck_out_tongue:

#22

Absolutely no surprise here at all. This was a given once autodesk bought alias. MB technology will be raided and incorporated into max and maya with FBX being an intertransfer file format.

#23

If they’re willing to scrap MB Standard theres no doubt in my mind Maya Complete is next on the chopping block. :confused:

#24

Why would they chop Maya Complete?? I think they will increase the price (justified imho) but why would they axe a product that sells so well?

#25

Because Autodesk aren’t into multiple tiered versions. They don’t do it with Max.
I think just marketing one version of Maya and Max will be confusing enough.

#26

:shrug:

I remember at Siggraph 2005’s Alias User Group meeting, the guy behind motion builder came out and during his presentation asked for a show of hands of how many people in the audience used motion builder… and only 1 or 2 people raised their hand in the audience of hundreds.

Sucks if you’re one of those one or two people I guess. :smiley:

#27

autodesk DID NOT buy Maya, they bought ALIAS, and they bought Alias because of Studio (where alias made 80% of their cash) and eventually to fiddle with motionbuilder and trying to get a stranglehold on mocap heavy setups, like games using max and… ops… character studio.

Maya is an unfortunate side-product that autodesk probably would have gladly left out of the business if they could get a discount on the whole price.

do you really think the actual all-in-one 3Dapps market makes that mcuh money for autodesk to give a flying damn about it? Tunnel-vision anybody?

#28

and that is why I hate these programs, making 3d out of the hands of everyone except the well off.

People do great work with it, but I would never touch it. They like to make things more expensive.

Man I remember when motionbuilder was 600 bucks
As soon as they got a hold of it, bam!! 4,000

Bleh, on them.

#29

Go to a Maya event then a StudioTools event and you tell me which event has more users.

#30

If you live in New Zealand (and probably anywhere else in the world) the price of Maya already went up. We used to be able to buy it for the $US price converted to $NZ, but since the Autodesk aquisition my dealer tells me that’s out the door. Which meant a 20% price hike the last licence I bought.

If they killed Complete or hiked the price too far, we’d be on XSI like white on rice. Not that I think they will, they’re not idiots.

#31

Or are they…

Dun dun duuuuuuuun (in a dramatic tone)

#32

For new users, sure, but for existing users, it’s a little harder. People have time invested in their own training, knowledge and competence in Maya. One doesn’t just jump ship. It takes a few years.

Anyways, many of us paid 40k for Maya, so 2k for Complete has been heaven for the last few years. Also if we get the free render nodes for MR like 3dsmax, then only having unlimited isn’t that bad. XSI render lics still cost $1k per node($2k for 64 bit node).

One thing I could see happening if they do decide to kill Complete is lower 3dsmax to $2k and lower Unlimited to something like $4-5k. The biggest trouble right now is according to Autodesk, 3dsmax is their “lowend” product for games and Maya is their highend for film. Well in marketing it isn’t usually good to have your advertised “lowend” product, costing more then your highend one (max is currently US$3.5k I believe).

#33

How much is Maya? $2000.
How much is Alias Auto Studio? $65,000 Studio? $28750 + Maintenances are more than $4,000/year.

A LOT of people who goes to Maya events are “unregistered” user or “students”. The number of people is meaningless.

Alias was originally a “CAD company”. Their flagship product always have been Studio Tools not Maya.

If you were a CEO of Autodesk, would you kill “have-been-profitable-my-own-child” or “never-been-profitable-step-child”?

You don’t know actual number, but Autodesk knows the numbers. If the number show “loss”, Autodesk surely kill the pruduct. If not so, they will keep. They decided to kill MutionBuilder Standard because of “the number”. Let’s see what will happen to Maya.

#34

Studio Tools prices are higher for a variety of reasons. One of which is because it has fewer but more specialized users that require exacting specs and support - just like the animation business in the 1990s. Maya is still Max’s main competitor. Of course they wanted Maya. It’s the same reason Apple bought Logic instead of Digital Performer. Logic ran on Windows. They acquired the users and killed a competitor in one shot. Now, Autodesk needs to make marketing sense of the product line or they won’t pull in new users. Alias product line stuff for industrial design and film and Autodesk product line stuff for games and architecture is clean. Kill Complete and lower the price of Unlimited a bit and you do just that. If the users start to buy that line, then you can start consolidating the development staff and save a ton of money. It’s neither good nor bad, it’s just a prediction.

#35

Well Auto Studio isn’t the only Studio Product. The modeling/design only package without all the engineering bits(Design Studio) is only $7500.

Also someone mentioned eariler that Studio was the money maker not Maya, well that was true 3-4 years ago, but not anymore. Alias’ biggest customer was GM, well they haven’t been doing too hot the last couple years. Only the Automotive companies buy the $65k version. All the product design companies stick with the cheaper Design Studio.

#36

Not in Australia the price has always been higher than the conversion rate, I priced buying Complete and Unlimited before even talks of the aquisition hit.
Complete was $3500 AUS compared to about $2700 for the coversion from US to AUS and Unlimited was $13000 AUS compared to about $9800 for the conversion.

I was able to get a couple of stockists down a little bit but they were nowhere near the conversion rates especially for Unlimited. Luckily I managed to to get into a training course only one of the few where I live and so ended up buying a student licence. But I’m dreading when my course finishes this year and I have to buy a commercial version.

#37

Sure but industrial design is surely a bigger niche than 3D, isn’t it?

#38

No I don’t think it is. Roughly the same size. Depends if you count archviz.

#39

I will keep my Kaydara V. 5.5, thank you.

Auto**** can keep theirs . 4k HAHAHAHA, they live on the planet Super-Rich…

#40

right. the names “flint, flame & inferno” dont ring any bells? multiple levels of revit? autocad LT vs. regular flavor? multiple flavors of land development/civ design?

if you look through their product catalog you’ll see tons of tiered options. autodesk is ALL about tiers. it just so happens that max (currently) doesnt fit that plan. maya is a footnote to their product line. they will keep tiers as long as it generates revenue for them… ince it doesnt, thats when the catalog gets simplified.