The topic Apple’s latest acquisition further confirms a new priority for the company is currently the subject of lively discussion — readers and analysts are keeping a close eye on developments.
This is taking place in a dynamic environment: companies’ decisions and competitors’ reactions can quickly change the picture.
Apple values secrecy, so the majority of its acquisitions are never officially revealed by the company. But thanks to the latest European Union update, we now know about a previously undisclosed recent acquisition—and it further confirms a new priority for the company.
As spotted by MacRumors, the European Union recently updated their list of acquisitions made by tech giants, including Apple.
The latest addition to the list is Patchflyer GmbH, which “develops Color.io, a web-based application for color management and grading of digital imaging.”
Patchflyer’s Founder and CEO Jonathan Ochmann has been hired by Apple, and the company has taken ownership of ”certain assets.”
Here’s more about Color.io, via Branden Zavaleta at The Phrasemaker:
Color.io’s reputation has long rested on its surprisingly deep technical underpinnings. Ochmann, who previously worked in VFX and soundtrack composition before moving into color science, built the entire platform solo.
Color.io grew into a favorite among more than 200,000 creators, known for its analog-inspired color science, volumetric film-grain engine and “Cinema RAW” log-encoded color space that gave users unusually filmic flexibility inside a web browser.
Color.io’s feature set seems a perfect fit for Apple Creator Studio, which launched earlier this year.
Ochmann’s tools could be added to Pixelmator Pro, Final Cut Pro, or perhaps bring a subset of features directly to the Camera app at some point.
If making an acquisition for Creator Studio sounds familiar, that’s because in March we learned that Apple acquired MotionVFX. Per our coverage at the time:
MotionVFX is a company that creates professional-grade visual effects templates, plugins, and motion graphics tools primarily for Apple’s Final Cut Pro, Motion, and DaVinci Resolve. The company’s portfolio includes transitions, titles, effects, and cinematic templates for video editors.
And of course, it was Apple’s acquisition of Pixelmator that was the first known purchase directly related to the forthcoming Apple Creator Studio bundle.
What does all of this mean? Simply that Apple Creator Studio is important to the company.
Apple clearly doesn’t intend to let its bundle of pro apps languish. Instead, it’s actively investing internal resources and making acquisitions to improve its toolset for creators.
Creator Studio gives Apple ongoing subscription revenue, and also complements the goal of making the iPhone camera system a favorite among creators. So it’s no surprise that Apple has made it a priority.