Avid Price Drops

I've been meaning to post something about this in the last few days. Avid is finally coming down to meet Final Cut Pro in the streets and I think consumers will be better off:

With a wide range of initiatives planned to roll out throughout the year, the company has today announced the following:

• The consolidation of software editing applications – merging Avid Xpress Pro software into the Media Composer product line, with new lower pricing to increase the accessibility of Media Composer to a wider range of users. The company will offer existing Avid Xpress Pro customers a pathway to upgrade to Media Composer software;

• New student pricing for Media Composer software – enabling any student at an accredited college or university with a valid student I.D. to purchase Media Composer software for $295 USMSRP;

• A new online community – introducing new ways for industry professionals to access and share tips and tricks, demonstrations, tutorials and media content; as well as opportunities to connect with both Avid and industry peers; and,

• Enhanced online customer support – delivering Avid® support customers easier access to more accurate and personalized answers to important product and service queries, 24/7, without having to call Customer Support.

--Avid's "New Thinking"

$300 is not bad for a full-featured program that works with Firewire or P2. (Well, 'works' with P2 may be going too far. I happen to have some inside info that Panasonic is pissed that Avid said they 'support' P2 even though it is a convoluted process involving transcoding to get P2 to play through Avid onto a monitor.) But if you want to monitor as you edit, you'll still need a Mojo box and if you want to monitor HD, you'll need an Adrenaline box.

The last two bullet points I think address the common frustration: getting Avid to work. FCP is not crash-less. But they encouraged an open and sharing community that could point the way to better workflows. Avid users tend to be more tight-lipped. They view their hard-won knowledge as a trade secret which allows them to charge more for their services. I should know, I'm one of them.

UPDATE: Frank Capria's thoughts