Autodesk acquires Alias

Autodesk today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Alias, a privately held developer of 3D graphics technology for $182 million in cash. "This acquisition will grow Autodesk's expertise and offerings for the design of consumer products and automotive as well as in the media and entertainment markets." Alias' product lines include sketching, animation, visual effects, design, modeling, rendering and reviewing solutions: Alias MotionBuilder is Alias' 3D character animation product, Alias FBX is widely used in the exchange and use of 3D content, and Maya is the company's award-winning 3D application. AutoDesk says these products will augment its offering in the film and video and interactive games segments and that StudioTools, software for design tasks from 2D sketches to production models, will add industrial design and high-end visualization capabilities to Autodesk's manufacturing solutions. Autodesk will continue to develop the Alias product lines in conjunction with Autodesk's complementary products and technologies.

Alias MotionBuilder is Alias' 3D character animation product, Alias FBX is widely used in the exchange and use of 3D content, and Maya is the company's award-winning 3D application. AutoDesk says these products will augment its offering in the film and video and interactive games segments and that StudioTools, software for design tasks from 2D sketches to production models, will add industrial design and high-end visualization capabilities to Autodesk's manufacturing solutions.
"This acquisition brings to Autodesk a highly talented group of individuals, a wealth of technologies and a great set of products," said Carl Bass, COO of Autodesk. "Alias' technology spans several of our most important markets and augments the synergy between our design and media businesses. Our design customers are demanding more powerful visualization, animation and publishing capabilities. Our media and entertainment customers are increasingly using the data created by our design applications for broadcast, film and games projects. By combining the technology and talents of our two companies, we will be better able to continue delivering solutions that address our customers' complex needs."

Founded as Alias Research in 1983, Alias is headquartered in Toronto, Canada. Alias customers are some of the world's premier entertainment and manufacturing companies, including Industrial Light & Magic, DreamWorks SKG, Nintendo, General Motors and BMW. Alias revenues were $83 million in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2005.

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