Concern over the Adobe-Macromedia merger
Adobe's (April 15, '05) announcement that it had reached agreement in principal to purchase Macromdia has caused a maelstrom of private and public opining about the motivations behind such a deal and its effect on technological innovation for designers like us.
Below are extracts which crystalize well the primary players' p.r. spin, and the digital design industry's questions / concerns.
The official word from Adobe posted on their site April 18, 2005:
Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq: ADBE) has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Macromedia (Nasdaq: MACR) in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $3.4 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, which has been approved by both boards of directors, Macromedia stockholders will receive, at a fixed exchange ratio, 0.69 shares of Adobe common stock for every share of Macromedia common stock in a tax-free exchange. Based on Adobe’s and Macromedia’s closing prices on Friday April 15, 2005, this represents a price of $41.86 per share of Macromedia common stock.
The combination of Adobe and Macromedia strengthens our mission of helping people and organizations communicate better. Through the combination of our powerful development, authoring and collaboration tools – and the complementary functionality of PDF and Flash – we have the opportunity to drive an industry-defining technology platform that delivers compelling, rich content and applications across a wide range of devices and operating systems.
By combining the passion and creativity of two leading-edge companies, we will continue driving innovations that are changing the ways people everywhere are experiencing and interacting with information.
The reaction of Macromedia product users:
FrankElly, a poster on the Cre8asite.com forum writes:
Macromedia is a smart, dynamic company brimming with people who understand their customers, understand the technology, and deliver top-notch products that really do what you need them to do. I buy their products because I truly like them. (Dreamweaver, Flash, Director back in the good old days.)
Adobe is a conservative, plodding company that too often puts company priorities above customer satisfaction. (Small example: an absolutely customer-hostile upgrade experience. And $150 for a .0x release of Photoshop.) I buy their products only because I have to have them. (Photoshop, Acrobat)
I fear for what this means for the Macromedia product line. A company like Adobe can suck all of the innovation out of a product line and drive out the vitality of its management.
...and a recent poll conducted by dmxzone.com:
I'm excited; can't wait!
11%
I don't want them to merge.
50%
I've always wanted them to merge.
3%
I will keep my thoughts till the merger is final.
26%
I'm confused!
8%