The new v4.0.2/v8.0.2 editor files are available today, September 21, 2009.  

The following products are on the avid.com download page and the Support Download Center (login and password required) at this time. 

·         Avid Media Composer v4.0.2 (Mac and PC)

·         Avid NewsCutter v8.0.2 (PC)

Key Announcements with v4.x/v8.x:

-          Mix and Match format support

-          720P proxy transcode

-          GFCAM 100 mb decode

-          Panasonic AVC-I encode

-          Macintosh Media Composer as Pro Tools Video Satellite

-          Production Suite updates to Boris Continuum Complete, SmartSound SonicFire, and Sorenson Squeeze

-          Free upgrades for four years for any student who purchased and registered an academic version on or after March 1, 2009

Editor Pricing        

1.       Media Composer Software - $2,495 US MSRP

2.       Media Composer Software - $2,295 US MSRP Software Download Only – no hardcopy manuals or Production Suite             

3.       Mojo SDI - $2,495                  

4.       Production Suite applications - $195 US MSRP 3^rd party Software Only

Note:  For any pricing related to: NewsCutter, Mojo DX, Nitris DX, Symphony Nitris DX, etc. contact your reseller or Avid directly.

Editor Upgrade Pricing Update

** Upgrades from Avid Xpress Pro or Avid Xpress DV, to Media Composer Mojo DX or Media Composer Nitris DX, requires a two step process.  First, the customer must upgrade from Xpress DV or Xpress Pro to Media Composer Software-only, and then add the Mojo DX or Nitris DX.  Contact the reseller or Avid directly for pricing.

Note: For international pricing, please contact your reseller or Avid regional office.

Production Suite

The Avid Production Suite includes:

·         Boris Continuum Complete v6 (Mac and PC) – Comprehensive library of customizable video filters and transitions

·         Avid FX v5.8 (Mac and PC) – 2D & 3D compositing, titles, animation and effects

·         Sorenson Squeeze v5 (Mac and PC) – Multimedia export with customizable compression templates

·         Avid DVD by Sonic v6.1 (PC only) – Industry leading DVD and Blu-ray authoring

·         SmartSound Sonicfire Pro v5 (Mac and PC) – music creation software

Version Protection

Any customer that purchased a copy of Avid Media Composer Software after September 1, 2009 is entitled to a free upgrade from v3.5.x to v4.0.2.  The protection page will be live today September 21, 2009 at 3:00 PM ET at www.avid.com/protect  The upgrades MUST be obtained via download before September 30, 2009 as the page will be removed at that time.

SW Licensing and the Dongle

Much like with v3.5/v7.5, new unit purchases of Avid Media Composer v4.0, Avid Symphony v4.0 and Avid NewsCutter v8.0 will use software licensing.  Existing customers with a dongle can continue to use their dongle, and if they do so, they should download and install v4.0.2/v8.0.2, or transition to the SW licensing scheme.

New – 30 day Media Composer Trial

With the release of Avid Media Composer v4.0, we have introduced a trial version of the editor that activates for 30 days at no charge.  Customers can obtain the Avid Media Composer Trial software from the avid.com home page -  under “featured resources” once live.  Once downloaded, the user will be asked several questions and one of these is whether they would like to use the editor as a trial version.  If they select this option, they must register the product to activate the 30 day period.  After the 30 day period has expired, customers may purchase the complete Avid Media Composer product from the Avid.com webstore as a software download only or as a physical shipping kit with manuals and third-party applications, or they can uninstall the software. 

Please note:  Customers that already have Media Composer and are using a dongle should make sure they download v4.0.2. Failure to do so may deactivate their dongle.

Education

Note that purchases of educational products are not available through Avid’s web store.  Educational customers must contact their resellers or Avid directly for purchase information.

1.       Media Composer Software - $ 295 US MSRP Software only – no hardcopy manuals or Production Suite

2.       Media Composer Software Academic Individual Upgrade * - FREE Editor Software Only, no Productivity Suite, no hardcopy documentation

* For seats purchased and registered on or after March 1, 2009, students will receive free upgrades for four years after the date of software activation.  Details to follow, but note that the Edu upgrades and free site will launch on September 30, 2009.

Good info Carl.

camoscato:

Please note:  Customers that already have Media Composer and are using a dongle should make sure they download v4.0.2. Failure to do so may deactivate their dongle.

Hi Luca,

luca.mg:

Do I have to rush to download 4.0.2 in order to keep my dongle alive and well? Even if I keep using 3.5? Can You clarify?

I had 4.0 on my system for a few days and my dongle was unaffected.  However, I don't use my home system every day; I use it for playing around, and now I'm on 4.0.2, and the dongle still works fine.  

None of that will be of any help, however, to anyone who doesn't download 4.0.2 if something happens to your dongle, so I'd do what they say and download and install 4.0.2.

good luck,
Carl 

luca.mg:

Do I have to rush to download 4.0.2 in order to keep my dongle alive and well? Even if I keep using 3.5? Can You clarify?

As mention in the MC 4.0.2 Readme:

"In the v4.0 and v8.0 editing application release, choosing the trial version of
software activation on systems using a dongle would deactivate the dongle if you
subsequently chose to activate using the dongle. This has been fixed. Choosing the trial
option for systems with a dongle will no longer deactivate the dongle once you select the
dongle option."

luca.mg:

Do I have to rush to download 4.0.2 in order to keep my dongle alive and well? Even if I keep using 3.5? Can You clarify?

Ok, all the pricing information and version numbers should be up to date, and I've deleted all the posts with questions about them, so as not to sow confusion in the thread with quotes referring to information that's been updated.  If y'all see anything else wrong, shout out!

Carl

Win 7 as well as Sn'eopard are being tested, with no current announcement of a release date.  Keep checking these forums for news.

So I'm sitting here with 3.5.4 and wanting to upgrade to 4.0.2. I see that there's a special price for download only - 295.

But wait - one of the main reasons to update to MC 4.0 is the update to BCC - that's a separate product, right?

My question is - if I want the latest BCC, Squeeze, etc., should I go for the 495 package that includes the extras or can I buy the download version and the 200 kit separately?

Also - for any of you in the same boat, can we install BCC 6 over our BCC 5.0.4 installation or should we remove BCC 5.0.4 first.

Thanks for any help,

Steve

"... should I go for the 495 package that includes the extras or can I buy the download version and the 200 kit separately? ..."

The $295 download plus the $195 3rd party kit will cost the same as the $495 "Boxed Set".  You might as well get the $495 version, which also includes printed documentation.

"... can we install BCC 6 over our BCC 5.0.4 installation ..."

IMHO, it's always a good idea to uninstall old versions prior to installing a new one.

When the time will come I will clean install.

I would like to thank Marianna and company for the solidly and persistently work they have done behind the scenes for those of us wanting to keep the Dongle as well as those who have looked for an Avid upgrade pricing policy that reflected the upgrades existing clients have paid for.

This Releases has shown a welcome back down over the Dongle policy.

It also shows that those who paid for the 3.5 upgrade get a reasonable price break over those that did not. A very welcome change in direction from Avid in my opinion. 

Not even any regrets that personally the only paid upgrade in the last 10 years I did not pay for was the 3.1 to 3.5 . 

Thanks Marianna

What is the procedure for upgrading from 3.5 academic to 4.0 academic (since we are supposed to get 4 years free)?