SM to lay-off 20% off workforce

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InfoCentral
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SM to lay-off 20% off workforce

Post by InfoCentral »

Stock has been taking a hit lately and is in danger zone of being delisted.

approved a plan of restructuring

SMSI was also removed from the Standard and Poors Small Cap 600. They do not qualify as a small cap company any more. Kindred will be added to the S&P SmallCap 600 Index, along with Lumos Networks Corp., S&P said. They will replace Smith Micro Software Inc. (SMSI) and Kid Brands Inc. (KID) in that measure, the statement said.
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rylleman
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Post by rylleman »

What do this mean for Anime Studio?
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Post by hayasidist »

this from SM website http://www.smithmicro.com/about/news/sm ... enues.aspx. More news expected on 2 November.

SM has a wide portfolio of software product - so not at all clear where the cuts will fall. Stock price has gone from a 12month high of nearly $17 to just over $1 today. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business/mark ... _month.stm. hmm..
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Post by InfoCentral »

I don't think we have anything to worry about as this isn't their big product line.
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Post by SvenFoster »

InfoCentral wrote:I don't think we have anything to worry about as this isn't their big product line.
Really? I interpret exactly the opposite.

If I was looking to increase revenue, I'd target the mass market stuff and dump the niche' low revenue stuff.(unless it pays well, which it might)

That said, when you basically have one developer on it I guess its pretty cheap to run.
--Sven
What *if* the Hokey cokey *is* what its all about?
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Post by InfoCentral »

Yeah, there are some on the Renderosity forum that think they might sell off Poser etc. The thing is that if your main product line and money maker isn't doing too well, do you really want to sell off your other product line? It would bring money in the short term but then you have nothing to back you up during the lean time.

Do companies do this? All the time but the ones that do I don't see them being around for very long. I worked for a company that followed this line of thinking. And once the big contracts went away they had nothing to fall back on and they collapsed.
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Post by neon22 »

IMHO they will keep Poser and remove all the low revenue s/w that has support and headcount costs associated with it.
I imagine this means Anime Studio will be sold or let go. :shock:

It may be time for it to move to a more ZBrush style model - but that's in my dreams for sure. It takes courage to make large fundamental changes to organisations...
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Post by dueyftw »

One of the problems with Smith Micro is their store. I been trying to buy Magna Studio, but can't because my zip doesn't match the credit card info. I have been putting in the right numbers.

I wonder how many customers they have lost because of such nonsense.

I'm going to find another program that does the same thing.

Dale
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Post by InfoCentral »

dueyftw wrote:...can't because my zip doesn't match the credit card info. I have been putting in the right numbers.
Why don't you try putting in the wrong numbers. That should work.
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Post by dueyftw »

Why don't you try putting in the wrong numbers. That should work.
Nope.
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InfoCentral
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Post by InfoCentral »

Well, if worst comes to worst you could pick up the phone and straighten out the credit card company.
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Post by dueyftw »

Their is nothing wrong with my card, it is the website. Used it a few days ago to buy motorcycle parts over the internet. The zip I'm using is correct. I have a statement in front of me. They just don't want my money:)

Dale
Last edited by dueyftw on Sun Oct 30, 2011 11:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by dueyftw »

Smith Mirco has to get their act together. From websites you can't buy from to programs that just get face lifts. So far Every new version of AS and Poser seems to be a Face lift and no real functionality added. The best new feature of AS is Morphs. The rest I could live with out. And some stuff is a downgrade. Like the hide unused channels.

Poser has simple problems, like a bug on the import of BVH files or no way to key and animation to the floor with out doing it to each frame.

They don't want to fix this stuff, so they lose costumers.

Dale
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Post by InfoCentral »

All software has bugs in it.
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Post by dueyftw »

Really? Without keying 'drop to floor' on every frame, most BVH imports don't work in Poser. Version 5 OK, still in version 8. Poser has a bug in the BVH imports that make me have to crop off the hand bones because it twist then 90 degrees. Did not have it in version 5. For 3d work I'm going to use Daz studio because Poser hasn't the tools I need. Shure Daz might not have them, but their is a good chance that they will eventually get them.

Even Anime Studio adds the extra work of 'hide channels'. Who thought that it was helpful? It just makes more work.

Useless things like 'Trace Image' that doesn't use a center-line trace. Again, what the funk?

Simple tools like a jog that allows one to skip by 2's, 3's or any setting would be more useful than a trace that I can't use.

In each new version most things that are added are for show, not any real help to making animation. It no wonder that anyone who has been doing animation with other programs and watching them evolved wonder why anyone would use AS.

Smith Micro has been reselling the same software with more bells and whistles and it is getting old.

Dale
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