Damage Award Against Autodesk Reduced.

SAN RAFAEL, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 6, 1997--Autodesk, Inc. announced today that the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont has reduced the damages payable by Autodesk in a 1994 trade secret case from $25.5 million to $7.8 million, plus interest.

Autodesk had appealed before the Second Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals after the original ruling in favor of Vermont Microsystems, Inc. (VMI) in December 1994. Autodesk took a one time charge in the amount of $25.5 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 1995, and has been accruing interest of approximately $500,000 per quarter since the original judgment. The new judgment was rendered at the direction of the Second Circuit, to reflect reasonable royalties from products using the VMI technology.

Autodesk Vice President of Business Development and General Counsel Marcia Sterling noted, "Autodesk, like the other companies in this industry, relies on protection of intellectual property rights to support continued investment in research and development. However, we felt from the beginning that the damage award in this case was excessive. We are pleased that our appeal to the Court was successful."

Autodesk is the world's leading supplier of PC-based design software and multimedia tools. The company's 2D and 3D products and data management tools are used in many industries for architectural design, mechanical design, mapping, film and video production, video game development and Web content development. Its Kinetix division is the leader in PC-based 3D modeling and animation software, providing a full range of products for digital media and design professionals. The fourth largest PC software company in the world, Autodesk has three million customers in nearly 130 countries. Autodesk products are sold through Autodesk Systems Centers, dealers and distributors worldwide. For more information on Autodesk, please call 415-507-5000, type GO ADESK on CompuServe, or visit its World Wide Web site at http://www.autodesk.com . Kinetix can be reached by calling 800-879-4233 or through its World Wide Web site at http://www.ktx.com . Autodesk shares are traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol ADSK. -0-

NOTE TO EDITORS: Autodesk, the Autodesk logo, and AutoCAD are registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks, and Windows NT and Windows 95 are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. CompuServe is a registered trademark of H & R Block. All other brand names, products names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders.

CONTACT: Autodesk

Christine Tsingos, 415/507-6704

Kathy Tom Engle, 415/507-6794