March 4, 2014 - In a virtual press conference this morning Autodesk announced their decision to laser focus their resources on enhancing Maya and 3ds Max while phasing out SoftImage.

SoftImage 2015 will mark the last release of this popular software product.  To smooth out the transition Autodesk is offering a migration path to either Maya or 3ds Max for existing customers and will continue to support SoftImage for two years.  They will also continue to issue SoftImage updates and service patches over this time period but won’t be doing any new feature development. 

During the two year transition Autodesk will also give existing customers the ability to purchase additional SoftImage seats or rental plans to scale to meet their current production needs

Easing the Transition

Autodesk is also providing a transition plan that will allow subscribers to migrate to either Maya or 3ds Max at no cost but their subscription to SoftImage

SoftImage subscribers will receive a special bundle that includes a license for SoftImage 2015 plus their choice of either a 3ds Max 2015 or Maya 2015 license.  These two concurrent licenses for the price of one will give customers two years to learn and ramp up their skills on 3ds Max or Maya while continuing to work on SoftImage, and this bundle will be available over the two year transition period.   Taking advantage of this transition offer makes sense since both Max and Maya will continue to evolve moving forward.

The New ‘Ultimate’ Design Suite

Autodesk is also discontinuing their Premium Suite, which was the same as their Standard Suite plus SoftImage, and replacing it with a new “Ultimate Suite” that will be in the same price range as the Premium Suite and that will, at the outset, include SoftImage over the transition period.    Bottom line is that all customers who have the Premium Suite will receive Ultimate Suite 2015, including SoftImage for two years.

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