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| Architosh News Reports | |
| Architosh Staff ([email protected]) |
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MacCAD News: Diehl Graphsoft acquired by Nemetschek AG
No. 1 Mac CAD vendor acquired by German software firm Just prior to our hiatus here at Architosh we were notified by Diehl Graphsoft of some exciting upcoming news. Leaving to California for a much needed break we wondered on the plane what news was coming our way and how it might affect Macintosh CAD users. Of all the guesses none of them came close to this announcement. Nemetschek AG buys Diehl Graphsoft for approximately $30 Million According to the press release, the IT/AEC software development firm, Nemetschek AG, of Munich, Germany, acquired Diehl Graphsoft Inc. (Nasdaq DIEG) for $9.50 per share in a cash deal. Under the terms Diehl Graphsoft will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the publicly held Nemetschek AG. This makes Diehl Graphsoft Nemetschek's sole US subsidiary, joining a network of more than 40 branches and subsidiaries throughout Europe. According to the press release:
The Affects on VectorWorks and Macintosh CAD To many VectorWorks users -- and especially Macintosh-based VectorWorks users -- one may be wondering what may happen to their software in the long run. Will Nemetschek's ALLPLAN high-end CAD software be integrated with Diehl Graphsoft's midrange product VectorWorks? According to the statements the answer is no.
Nemetschek plans on integrating Diehl Graphsoft's products into its product "portfolio" and Diehl plans on using its existing distribution channels to market Nemetschek's products here in the US. Richard Diehl says,
"the most immediate impact of the merger will be the availability of Nemetschek AG products via Diehl Graphsoft's international distribution channels. 'This acquisition allows both firms to maximize the synergy's each brings to the computer aided design and systems integration markets. We will all benefit from sharing our technologies and advancing the bar via new product development across several target markets'. Diehl Graphsoft reports that this acquisition will NOT affect its vertical market strategy with add-on products for VectorWorks -- such as its first product VectorWorks ARCHITECT. Diehl Graphsoft adds, that this first product has been received very well by the architectural CAD market. As many may know Nemetschek's ALLPLAN high-end CAD product for AEC is NOT available for the Macintosh platform at this time. Having a Wintel-only developer wholly-own the Mac's leading CAD company is probably unsettling to many Mac VectorWorks users and Diehl Graphsoft's press release offers no comments to this concern. On the other hand, Nemetschek's ALLPLAN and its developers may be interested in Diehl Graphsoft's cross-platform development experience and strategies. Could this raise hope that in the future the Mac CAD world could gain ALLPLAN to its list of options? Or should we as Mac CAD users be more concerned about the future of VectorWorks on the Mac? I suspect the answer to both of the questions is no and no. Questions will linger for Mac VectorWorks users Without a doubt questions will linger for Mac CAD users who are either longtime MiniCAD users or recent VectorWorks newbies who partly chose that program for its superior Mac support. For us, the concerns seem long term because ALLPLAN and VectorWorks -- regardless of their different price points -- are natural competitors in the AEC CAD marketplace. One can't help but think that in the long run these two different programs may develop into one program available at different scales and prices or that ALLPLAN may take-on technologies existent in VectorWorks. What this may mean for the Macintosh CAD market is probably not known by anyone at this time. However, Architosh will strive to bring more clarity to these potentially lingering concerns as time goes on. For more information click here.
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