In an effort to facilitate the transition toward remote-work setups in response to COVID-19, Autodesk is extending free commercial use software licenses for some of its remote- and team-based products. 

Autodesk’s Extended Access Program, which launched in late March and was recently extended through May 31, 2020, offers free commercial use of programs that include BIM 360 Docs, BIM 360 Design, Fusion 360, Fusion Team, AutoCAD Web and Mobile, and Shotgun.

Andrew Anagnost, Autodesk’s President and CEO, explains in an update posted to the company’s website:  “Let me be clear: we’re not introducing this program to convert customers into paying users. Our goal, instead, is to get a program up and running as quickly as possible to provide customers increased flexibility in what’s become a challenging work environment.”

The process for signing up for the program is similar to that for trial use of Autodesk software. The program is available, according to Autodesk, for both new and existing customers.

In response to the unprecedented shift toward remote-work and remote-education that has taken place over the last two months, many software and technology companies have offered free use of their products to help with the transtion. 

Adobe, for example, recently extended free use of its Adobe Creative Cloud software suite to universities and their students to help students who rely on school computer labs continue to do their work at home. Slack, Microsoft, Google, and others have also offered temporarily free access to certain services for some business and educational users to facilitate remote work.