We provide an open, integrated, and comprehensive technology platform, along
with applications and services that enable the creation, distribution, and monetization
of audio and video content. Specifically, we develop, market, sell, and support
software and hardware for digital media content production, management and distribution.
Digital media are video, audio or graphic elements in which the image, sound
or picture is recorded and stored as digital values, as opposed to analog or
tape-based signals. Our products are used in production and post-production
facilities; film studios; network, affiliate, independent and cable television
stations; recording studios; live-sound performance venues; advertising agencies;
government and educational institutions; corporate communication departments;
and by independent video and audio creative professionals, as well as aspiring
professionals. Projects produced using our products include feature films, television
programming, live events, news broadcasts, commercials, music, video and other
digital media content.
Our mission is to create the most powerful and collaborative media network
that enables the creation, distribution and monetization of the most inspiring
content in the world. Guided by our Avid Everywhere strategic vision, we strive
to deliver the industry’s most open, innovative and comprehensive media
platform connecting content creation with collaboration, asset protection, distribution
and consumption for the media in the world – from the most prestigious
and award-winning feature films, music recordings, and television shows, to
live concerts and news broadcasts.
Technology has enabled almost every aspect of how we live to become increasingly
digitized, and acceleration of digitization is having a tremendous impact on
the media industry and altering the industry value chain. Today’s consumers
are empowered to create and consume content on-demand-anywhere, anytime. Organizations
are under pressure to connect and automate the entire creation-to-consumption
workflow. This consumerization has increased the cost and complexity of monetizing
assets, which in turn leads to demand for new platforms for distribution and
consumption. Organizations need to rely on partners with the strategic understanding
and technological expertise to help navigate the challenges they are facing.
We believe we are uniquely positioned as a proven and trusted leader to effectively
help our customers in the media industry navigate through this period of unprecedented
changes.
Our strategy is built on three pillars, Avid Everywhere, The Avid Advantage
and the Avid Customer Association (“ACA”). Avid Everywhere is our
strategic vision for connecting creative professionals and media organizations
with their audiences in a more powerful, efficient, collaborative, and profitable
way. Central to the Avid Everywhere vision is the Avid MediaCentral Platform,
an open, extensible, and customizable foundation that streamlines and simplifies
workflows by tightly integrating all Avid or third party products and services
that run on top of it. The platform provides secure and protected access, which
enables the creation and delivery of content faster and easier through a set
of modular application suites that together represent an open, integrated, and
flexible media production and distribution environment for the media industry.
The Avid Advantage complements Avid Everywhere by offering a new standard in
service, support and education to enable our customers to derive more efficiency
from their Avid investment. Finally, the ACA is an association of dedicated
media community visionaries, thought leaders and users designed to provide essential
strategic leadership to the media industry, facilitate collaboration between
Avid and key industry leaders and visionaries, and deepen relationships between
our customers and us.
Another key element of our strategy is our transition to a subscription or
recurring revenue based model. In 2014 we began offering subscription based
licensing options for some of our products and solutions. These licensing options
offer choice in pricing and deployment to suit our customers’ needs and
are expected to increase recurring revenue on a longer term basis. However,
during our transition to a recurring revenue model, we expect that our revenue,
deferred revenue, and cash flow from operations will be adversely affected as
an increasing portion of our total revenue is recognized ratably rather than
up front, and as new product offerings are sold at a wider variety of price
points.