SAN FRANCISCO--Aug. 7, 2001-- Discreet, a division of Autodesk, Inc., and Macromedia, Inc. today announced a strategic partnership that will accelerate the deployment of interactive 3D content to the Web by uniting the worlds of 3D authoring and Web design. By bundling a complete version of Macromedia Director 8.5 with the standard priced shipping version of its popular 3ds max animation solution, Discreet is empowering its large designer community with the 3D capabilities of the Macromedia Shockwave® Player, which is available on more than 200 million Web desktops worldwide. The co-marketing partnership and bundle arrangement is for 3ds max 4 and Macromedia Director 8.5, beginning in mid-August 2001. 3ds max has tighter integration with Director 8.5 than any other 3D software, allowing artists, designers and management to create content in 3ds max, add interactivity via Director 8.5 and then immediately deploy their 3D content to the Web via the free, 3D-enhanced Shockwave Player. The Shockwave Player makes interactive, streaming 3D capabilities available through a widely deployed multimedia player for the first time -- bringing a standard way for mainstream audiences to experience 3D within such Web content as bandwidth-friendly interactive games, entertainment, education and online shopping. "Discreet's 3ds max is one of the leading 3D animation tools, with an exporter that provides the greatest level of integration with Director to build 3D-enhanced Shockwave content, which is setting the bar for magnetic Web experiences since its release in April,'' said Peter Goldie, vice president and general manager, Macromedia. "This software bundle will bring the power of Macromedia Director and the reach of Shockwave Player to a large community of 3D developers.'' "As the leading 3D solutions provider, Discreet continually offers its customers new ways to publish 3D content to the Web,'' said Phillip Miller, vice president of product management, Discreet. "Macromedia Director 8.5 allows 3ds max artists to add rich interactivity to their 3D content and deliver it to millions of Web viewers via the Shockwave Player.''