Busy week in the CAD markets. First off, 3D Systems acquired Alibre design, bringing in their productivity tools to their rapidly growing CAD suites.
“With Alibre in our portfolio we are personalizing and integrating design and manufacturing productivity,” said Abe Reichental, President and CEO of 3D Systems. “The combined affordability and user friendliness of our expanded 3D content-to-print solutions offer a clear and compelling choice for engineers, designers and makers to create and make instantly, at work and home.”
Then, Autodesk took the surprising step of acquiring web-based image editing company Pixlr. Autodesk has been experimenting with Cloud-based technologies for the last few years (projects like Dragonfly and Photofly), so it’s interesting to see them moving straight into the acquisition space. Apparently Pixlr will be integrating with Autodesk’s Sketchbook product, making it easier to exchange and share images online.
“Lots of people–not just creative professionals—want to express themselves visually,” said Samir Hanna, vice president of Consumer Products at Autodesk. “Combining image editing capabilities with sketching capabilities provides new avenues for rich visual expression. We also intend to marry the Pixlr team’s web development experience with our expertise in mobile app development to help people everywhere be creative on the devices of their choice.”
A bit surprising, but worth keeping an eye on.
