Avid Technology

From Free net encyclopedia

(Redirected from Avid)

{{Infobox Company | company_name = Avid Technology, Inc | company_logo = Image:Avidlogo.png | company_type = Public | foundation = 1987 | location = Tewksbury, Massachusetts | key_people = | industry = Audio/Video | products = Hardware & Software | revenue = 775.44M | operating_income = 36.75M | net_income = 33.98M | num_employees = 2,613 | parent = | subsid = | homepage = http://www.avid.com | footnotes = }}

Avid Technology, Inc Template:NASDAQ is a US company specializing in digital non-linear media editing (NLE) systems, management and distribution services. It was created in 1987 and became a publicly traded company in 1993. Avid is headquartered in Tewksbury, Massachusetts.

Founded by a marketing manager from Apollo Computer, Inc., William J. Warner, a prototype of their first digital nonlinear editing system (the Avid/1) was shown in a private suite at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention in April 1988. At the NAB show in April of 1989, the Avid/1 was publically introduced. The first product was shipped by December 1989. The University of Hawaii was the first educational institution to get the Avid for its Media Lab ran by Patricia Amaral, also in 1989. Anthony Pennings, now at New York University, was the first academic to teach the Avid.

By the early 90's, Avid products began to replace such tools as the Moviola, allowing editors to handle their film creations with greater ease. In 1994 only two feature films tried to use the new digital editing system. By 1995 dozens were, and it signaled the beginning of the end of cutting celluloid. In 1996 Walter Murch accepted the Academy Award for editing The English Patient (which also won best picture), which he cut on the Avid. This was the first Editing Oscar awarded to a digitally-edited film.

Currently, most television shows, feature films, commercials and other media are created with an Avid product. More recently, Avid has released home versions of their professional line of editors, such as their Xpress DV. They also released Avid Free DV to allow people to familiarize themselves with the Avid editing style.

Avid has numerous developer programs:

Avid AVX
MetaSync Developer Program
Unity Workgroups APIs
iNEWS APIs
FireWire Device Certification Program

Some of the products by Avid:

Support and discussion about Avid and its products can be found on the Avid-L2 discussion group and the Avid Community Forums.

[edit]

Acquisitions

In 1995, Avid acquired Digidesign (makers of Pro Tools).

In 1998, Avid acquired Softimage from Microsoft.

In 2000 The Motion Factory

In 2000 Pluto Technology

In 2001 iNEWS

In 2002 iKnowledge

In 2003 2003 Rocket Networks

In 2004 NXN

In January 2004, Avid acquired Bomb Factory.

In August 2004, Avid acquired M-Audio.

In April 2005, Avid acquired Pinnacle Systems.

In August 2005, Avid acquired Wizoo.

In January 2006, Avid acquired Medéa Corporation.

[edit]

Current Executive Team

David A. Krall, President and Chief Executive Officer
Charles L. Smith, Vice President and General Manager, Avid Video
Paul J. Milbury, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Joseph Bentivegna, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Avid Video
David M. Lebolt, Vice President and General Manager, Digidesign
Michael J. Rockwell, Chief Technology Officer & Vice President of Software Engineering
Ethan E. Jacks, Vice President of Business Development and Chief Legal Officer
Patricia A. Baker, Vice President of Human Resources

[edit]