A reader was wondering if I had any press releases from the original IntelliCADD company (before it was purchased by Softdesk). I might, but if I did, they would be locked away in my long-abandoned CompuServe account.
I wondered which might be the oldest press release in my electronic archive, going back to when I first got onto the Internet. (I still use Eudora as my email client, and its Press Release folder now contains 15,696 press releases going back to December 1995.)
The first one was from Cadkey (now Kubotek USA) from the days when they still owned DataCAD (now independently owned). The contents are interesting enough that I reproduced the entire text below -- except for phone numbers and email addresses, since they are no longer valid.
Windsor, CT--(December 15, 1995)--Cadkey, Inc.,
pioneer in 3D PC CAD, has unveiled a new "software publishing" business and distribution strategy
that will dramatically extend its reach into new markets. Through a combined
punch of accelerated new product introductions, mass market pricing, and
expanded distribution, Cadkey intends hopes to expand the market for
Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and related software to include many new business,
professional and consumer users.
Multiple product offerings will play a key part of
Cadkey's new marketing strategy, according to President and CEO Livingston Davies. "We plan to
offer CAD and related software titles developed by Cadkey and other companies.
Over the next few months we will release more than ten CADKEY and related
software titles. The keys to Cadkey's new positioning as a publishing house are
popular prices and increased software selection for the worldwide,
enterprise-wide engineering office environment." Mr. Davies noted that Cadkey, Inc. intends
to keep developing software for its traditional AEC and mechanical markets, as
well as reach out to new types of users.
To support the accelerated product rollout schedule,
Cadkey has more than doubled its product development staff through its use of off-shore,
outsourced software development.
OEM agreements will also play a key role in Cadkey's
strategy to offer multiple software titles. The company has just signed an OEM contract
with HighRES, Inc. of La Jolla, California. The product, HighRES, is a system
for generating a 3D surface model of a physical object, such as a doll's
face. HighRES will impact a wide variety of industries, from manufacturing,
to industrial design, to virtual reality, to 3D effects for motion
pictures.
Other new products, such as DataCAD 7.0 (a
professional level architectural CAD package), Cheapware-CD (tools for DataCAD users),
Plan Designer (CAD for the home craftsman), and the CADKEY 3D Display List will
all ship before the end of the year. Cadkey intends to focus its development on
the Windows 95 and NT operating systems.
Cadkey, Inc. pioneered 'mass market' pricing of
professional, industrial-strength CAD products 20 months ago, when it dropped the price
of its flagship CADKEY and DataCAD products from thousands of dollars per copy to
a few hundred dollars per copy. Cadkey's total unit sales increased by a factor
of seven when the company re-priced its products in line with other
Windows business software. In the last year CADKEY's user base has increased over
50%.
Cadkey intends to further increase market share by
lowering the price of its first CADKEY 7 for Windows Release, version 1 from 795 to U.S. $495.
This version is ideal for general purpose CAD applications, such as
creating technical illustrations. The current version (Cadkey 7 for Windows version
2) includes additional modules for drafting and surfacing, and will remain at
U.S. $795.
Cadkey plans to expand its Value-Added-Reseller
channel and is actively recruiting VARs and Corporate resellers. According to Davies, broad
availability of Cadkey's products is a services revenue opportunity for VARs.
"Support, training and consulting services offer the best profit margin to VARs.
Typical VARs often make 70% or more profit on services. CADKEY is committed to
providing products that will allow a VAR to maximize his profitability by
providing opportunities for high-margin corollary services".
The VAR channel will be supplemented with retail,
direct mail and Internet distribution. According to Davies, Cadkey will develop more
customers that can be turned over to the VAR channel by offering low-end products
through 'mass marketing' channels. For example, a low-end version of its DataCAD
product (called PlanDesigner) is now sold in selected Home Depots for $49.00.
The company expects that the Internet may become a viable distribution channel
in the coming year, especially for software updates. Some Cadkey products
can currently be ordered directly through its World Wide Web page.
CADKEY's low cost, easy-to-use developer's tools and
large user base (195,000) should attract new third party developers and OEM arrangements. CADKEY supports CADKEY LISP and Cadkey Dynamic Extensions (CDEs). Developer kits
can be obtained by calling Cadkey or downloaded from Cadkey's Web page: http://www.cadkey.com.
Cadkey, Inc.'s award-winning CAD products are some
of the most widely used and highly acclaimed professional software programs available
today. Cadkey, Inc. has sold its products to over 250 of the Fortune 1,000 list
of companies. With over 240,000 installations worldwide, it is the third
largest supplier of Mechanical CAD PC software (Daratech 1993).
CADKEY is optimized for 2D and 3D mechanical design,
drafting, 3D solids and surface modeling, and engineering analysis. CADKEY software is used
by industrial designers, mechanical designers and technical illustrators in a
wide range of industries and applications. Products designed with CADKEY
software include aircraft, automobiles, trucks, medical products, naval
vehicles, satellites, consumer products, apparel, furniture, toys, sporting goods,
and electronic products. CADKEY 7 for Windows version 2 retails for
$795.
DataCAD software is ideal for 2D and 3D
Architectural, Engineering and Civil design and rendering applications. DataCAD is used by
professional architects, interior designers, builders, remodelers, as well as a
growing 'do-it-yourself' home user market. Some products designed with DataCAD
software include structural blue prints, interior designs, landscaping,
accident reenactments, TV and set designs, graphics designs and more. DataCAD products are ready to use right out of the box. DataCAD 7's list price is
$249.95.
All products are sold with a 45-day money-back
guarantee and 30 days free technical support. Software may be purchased from authorized dealers or directly from Cadkey by calling 1-800-394-2231.
Cadkey, Inc., with headquarters in Windsor,
Connecticut, develops, manufactures, and markets productivity-enhancing software worldwide.
Cadkey's home page address (Universal Resource Locator) is: http://www.cadkey.com.
I wondered which might be the oldest press release in my electronic archive, going back to when I first got onto the Internet. (I still use Eudora as my email client, and its Press Release folder now contains 15,696 press releases going back to December 1995.)
The first one was from Cadkey (now Kubotek USA) from the days when they still owned DataCAD (now independently owned). The contents are interesting enough that I reproduced the entire text below -- except for phone numbers and email addresses, since they are no longer valid.
N e w s R e l e a s e
For Immediate
Release
CADKEY, INC. UNVEILS NEW "SOFTWARE PUBLISHING" BUSINESS STRATEGY
ACCELERATED NEW PRODUCT INTRODUCTIONS AND OEM AGREEMENTS KEY TO NEW
STRATEGY
MASS-MARKET PRICING
EXPANDED DISTRIBUTION
NEW OEM OPPORTUNITIES
BACKGROUND
-###-
CADKEY is a registered trademark of Cadkey, Inc. Microsoft is a
registered trademark and Windows, Windows 95, and Windows NT are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. All other trademarks are property of their respective
owners.
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