Important Avid NEXIS Update

Clarification on Avid NEXIS storage engines expected life policy

This policy clarification is designed to help you convey important information to Avid NEXIS customers at the best time to minimize risk to their media workflow operations. To maintain reliable operation of their storage infrastructure, customers should refresh their storage hardware in alignment with its design lifespan. This includes hard drives, fans, power supplies, CPU and memory – all these components are generally designed for an operational life of 5 years.

This policy should be used to drive upgrade conversations with customers in year 4 or 5 of their current storage system’s operation for upgrade planning and budgeting.  

It also represents an opportunity to increase bookings and revenue by upgrading from an E-series renewal to an Avid NEXIS F-series or PRO+ sale.

Definition of Terms

· Final Sale Date is the last day a product is available for sale

· End of Support Date is the last day that Avid provides any and all forms of service and technical support for a product

• The End of Support dates listed on the Avid Knowledge Base apply to the units sold on the Final Sale Date
• Hardware-based products like Avid NEXIS storage have a designed operational life of 5 years
• After 5 years of operation, the storage system should be replaced as the risk of hardware component failure leading to potential downtime of media loss increased greatly
• Support is offered for Avid NEXIS storage for up to 5 years of operation or 6 years after purchase

FAQs

Q: My customer has not budgeted for storage replacement. Will Avid allow a renewal in year 6?

A: We will not refuse the renewal. It is better to have them on support than not.

Q: My customer added engines over a few years. Some engines are 5 years old, others are 2 or 3 years old, Does the whole system need to be replaced?

A: No, but the older engines should be replaced as they reach 5 or 6 years of operational use.  The older systems can be replaced without downtime or impact to media availability.

Q: My customer is on support that extends into year 6. Will Avid cut off support?

A: No, any contracts that are in place will be honored; however, we should avoid selling any new contracts that exceed 5 years.

Q: My customer requires 6 years of multi-year support for new infrastructure. Are we allowed to sell this now?

A: Yes, if it’s required as part of a larger contract, longer support can be sold (but not beyond the published end of support date). Avid Customer Support should be notified of any extended support contracts.

Q: My customer wants to know why Avid is putting this policy in place as they weren’t expecting this.

A: The hardware components of Avid NEXIS and any other servers have an expected lifespan of 5 – 6 years. This is an industry norm.