Avid to cut workforce by 360, sell consumer biz (to Corel!)

[Consultant]

Monday, July 2, 2012

Avid to cut workforce by 360, sell consumer biz


Burlington-based Avid Technology Inc. (Nasdaq: AVID) will announce in a noon conference call with investors Monday that it’s cutting its workforce by 20 percent, or 360 employees, through layoffs as well as the sale of its consumer audio and video businesses, in a $91 million deal to two other businesses.

Ian Bruce, spokesman for the company, told Mass High Tech that the total headcount for the company is 1,800, but he did not know how many of the 360 employees affected would be laid off versus how many transferred.

The company said in a statement Monday that the moves are intended to “focus the company on its media enterprise and post and professional customers,” and to improve its overall financial situation. In April, Avid reported a GAAP net loss for Q1 2012 of $15.6 million, compared to $5.1 million in Q1 2011, which Chairman and CEO Gary Greenfield blamed on “the creative enthusiast portion of (Avid’s) business.”

Avid says it is selling its consumer audio products to music production, performance and deejay company inMusic in Cumberland, R.I., the parent company of Akai Professional, Alesis and Numark, among others. Specifically, Avid will sell its M-Audio brand keyboards, controllers, interfaces, speakers and digital deejay equipment and other product lines, but says it will continue to sell its Pro Tools line of software and hardware, as well as associated input/output devices including Mbox and Fast Track.

Also, Avid’s consumer video editing line - including Avid Studio, Pinnacle Studio, and the Avid Studio App for the Apple iPad as well as other legacy video capture products - is being sold to Corel Corp., a consumer software company in Ottawa, Canada

The $91 million from both transactions, which are effective July 2, will help shore up revenue, which in 2011 was $677 million. Avid expects to pay between $19 million and $23 million related to the layoffs.

The company previously reduced its head count by 20 percent in 2008, when it sold its video-game animation business. At that time, the company reported its total full-time employees as 2,700.

http://www.masshightech.com/stories/...sumer-biz.html

[ggrantly]

They have been bleeding for a long time. Makes you wonder what will be left in a couple more years.

Grant

[eddavid]

it's sad. what is left? FCP X? Premiere pro? Not many options will remain.

[hendosan]

Media Composer is not part of their consumer biz - this is mostly their junk M-Audio stuff that sells for $100 and cheapo editors like Pinnacle.