Apple to Acquire Discreet Desktop Video division?

MacRumors · Dec 9, 2003, 02:55 PM

AppleInsider claims that Apple has been in negotiations to acquire several of Discreet's video products including Combustion, Cleaner and 3dsmax.

This is in the wake of recent rumors suggested that Discreet's Cleaner Video Application may be in jeopardy due to restructuring at the company.

Apple has had numerous software acquisitions over the past couple of years, including Emagic, Nothing Real, Silicon Grail, and Prismo Graphics

SumDumGuy · Dec 9, 2003, 03:00 PM

Oh goody! This will be quite a boon for content creation. With Apple at the helm, Cleaner could become usable again like when it was owned by Terran.

Phobophobia · Dec 9, 2003, 03:00 PM

Sweet--I hope apple will save cleaner.

Sonofhaig · Dec 9, 2003, 03:01 PM

What could this mean for Apple? Does anyone want to speculate?s this compa

spaced · Dec 9, 2003, 03:02 PM

Great move, Discreet. Threatening to close your floundering Mac division was the perfect bait to position Apple for a buyout. Bravo!

Bakey · Dec 9, 2003, 03:03 PM

Sod Cleaner, if there's any credence to this rumour then maybe [just maybe] there may be 3ds Mac!!

ennerseed · Dec 9, 2003, 03:07 PM

that would be great... although an alias acquisition would be better news.

srobert · Dec 9, 2003, 03:09 PM

Please excuse my ignorance on this topic... but is this a:

A) We're buyin' ya 'cause we really like your product and want to integrate it.

or

B) We're buyin' ya 'cause we don't like your product (even if it's a good one) because it is competing with one of our present or future product.

Any idea?

henryblackman · Dec 9, 2003, 03:09 PM

Let's hope Apple do acquire them, or at least their technology. Apple do NOT need any kind of knocks when they are pushing forward with video as a target market!

Of course, hopefully they'll discontinue the PC version and give them Mac Cleaner free with a purchase of a Mac - a la EMagic.

AmigoMac · Dec 9, 2003, 03:16 PM

Just a small step for apple but a big one for the computers community...

or was it the other way? ...

Some tools are needed to catch that expected market share increase... step by step ... if you want money, you have to invest...

nuckinfutz · Dec 9, 2003, 03:17 PM

Not too sure 3ds would be for sale. Who knows though.

I doubt this comes to fruition for the simple fact that Apple must tread lightly as far as software acquisitions. Microsoft can get away with competing with developers without punishment, Apple cannot.

Although if the price is right I say do it. Apple doesn't really need alot of extra video products but I'm sure they could poach the best code from many discreet products and strengthen DV on the Mac.

jettredmont · Dec 9, 2003, 03:18 PM

Hmmm ... seems to me that if Apple was buying Cleaner then the Cleaner development team wouldn't have already been laid off ... so one rumor or the other is inaccurate.

hkhaskell · 03:25 PM

I am not sure whether this would be a good thing or not.

There's no question that somebody who will actually develop it should buy the technology from Discreet. It's ridiculous that there's no Real Player or Windows Media 9 export on OS X, while the PC version has had both of these for a while now. It's not like the codecs haven't been available for almost a year now...

My fear is that Apple would not be very motivated to develop a product that exports streaming media to other formats other than QuickTime.

Makosuke · Dec 9, 2003, 03:33 PM

If Apple maintained Cleaner (or improved it) as a standalone product, that'd be very cool, particularly since they'd probably drop the price some, maybe putting it within the reach of cheap-o folks like me.

But if they wrapped it into/bundled it with FCE/FCP, that would be even cooler. It'd be nice to have a standalone version for postprocessing video, but (also, hopefully) having an integrated version would be very cool.

Who knows, if we're really lucky they'll just make it part of QuickTime Pro.

Longey Nowze · Dec 9, 2003, 03:36 PM

A lot of people I know wont buy a mac cuz it doesn't have 3ds max! I keep telling them about Cinema 4d, de éspirit (sp) maya and all the others that are better than 3ds max! so this would be a good thing! bring on G5 optimisation and altivec! and show us numbers that are 3-5 times faster than on windows!

I hope this is true... I'm excited!

ennerseed · Dec 9, 2003, 03:41 PM

Macromedia.
Apple (or someone worth a **** read NOT microsoft) needs to buy them.

Raidiant · Dec 9, 2003, 03:44 PM

To add to the discussion, both combustion 3 and 3d studio max are extremely good and has a huge fanbase applications, alot of people actually don't want a mac for work because it can't run 3DSMAX, thats why all game developers use PCs....

I personally have not bought a mac desktop because of this.

rspress · Dec 9, 2003, 03:45 PM

This is great news! I hope Apple will purchase cleaner, combustion and 3dsmax.

God knows that Cleaner could use Apples magic touch and it should replace the lame Compressor program that ships with final cut pro.

Combustion is one of my favorite compositing and effects program and Apple could give this program the attention it deserves.

3DSMax on the other hand is a mixed bag. Powerful but with an interface the could stump even the most hardened 3d veteran. This program would benefit the most from Apples UI magic. Apple having this program on their shelves could alienate Alias Wavefront and other vendors..maybe this one will be resold to pixar.

These would be great additions to Apples Pro line of video authoring programs if they decide to purchase them...I can hardly wait for an Apple branded Combustion!

zedwards · Dec 9, 2003, 03:45 PM

First, DVD Studio Pro and Final Cut Pro come with a compression software already. So, most likely, most people will not need this. Combustion's competition is Shake, although about 8000 less.

Also, it is ironic that if this was Microsoft, people would be howling about the corportate conglomeration grabbing every software company.

D*I*S_Frontman · Dec 9, 2003, 03:52 PM

Seems to me they might gut Cleaner and take the best parts in order to beef up Compressor. That would be very cool for us DV editing guys. Compressor does some things well, but it isn't as flexible nor does it support as many formats (at least that is my understanding from playing around with both of them).

Sometimes it makes more sense to BUY R&D from a company with a proven product than to SPEND R&D yourself on a competing product. Much more efficient. Now everyone should well understand why Apple keeps a sizable cash warchest around--for just such an opportunity.

It would be fabulous if Apple bought MacroMedia. Even better incentive to go with Mac as a platform: all your major-league content-generating software made by the same compnay that makes your hardware. Stable and reliable beats cheaper 95% of the time for people who actually work in these fields.

BenRoethig · Dec 9, 2003, 04:01 PM

While Apple is into purchasing companies, how about XGI Graphics?

Dahl · Dec 9, 2003, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by zedwards
Also, it is ironic that if this was Microsoft, people would be howling about the corportate conglomeration grabbing every software company.

I guess most people still see Apple as a "small" company, I know I do.

hkhaskell · Dec 9, 2003, 04:04 PM

...is if Apple bought these three products and then resold 3dsMax to Alias Wavefront with the stipulation that they have to develop MAYA Unlimited for Mac OS X. It's just plain silly that they don't have it already, since the Mac platform accounts for 25% of their sales.

(Plus, they already make it for SGI and Linux. How hard can it be?)

P-Worm · Dec 9, 2003, 04:13 PM

A lot of people are talking about compressor, but I think that it is 3D Studio Max that is most important here. This program has a HUGE fanbase and there is no current Mac version. Now what would be sweet is if Appl bought 3DSMax and did the same thing to it as they did for Shake, cheeper for the Mac, and that is the only version we are going to support from now on.

P-Worm

ant_s · Dec 9, 2003, 04:19 PM

If Apple were to acquire 3DSMax, then they'd have to start shipping Power Mac G5 BTOs with nVIDIA Quadro (or equivalent) cards. That would be a benchmark worth watching!

Dec 9, 2003, 02:55 PM	#1
MacRumors macrumors bot Join Date: Apr 2001	Apple to Acquire Discreet Desktop Video division? AppleInsider claims that Apple has been in negotiations to acquire several of Discreet's video products including Combustion, Cleaner and 3dsmax. This is in the wake of recent rumors suggested that Discreet's Cleaner Video Application may be in jeopardy due to restructuring at the company. Apple has had numerous software acquisitions over the past couple of years, including Emagic, Nothing Real, Silicon Grail, and Prismo Graphics

Dec 9, 2003, 03:00 PM	#3
Phobophobia macrumors 6502 Join Date: Dec 2003	Sweet--I hope apple will save cleaner. __________________ "how do you win $ 1.6 M at a quarter slot? that's 6.4 millions coins shooting out of the slot. they could have killed her!!!" -- Don't Panic

Dec 9, 2003, 03:01 PM	#4
Sonofhaig macrumors regular Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Greenvale, NY	What could this mean for Apple? Does anyone want to speculate?s this compa __________________

Dec 9, 2003, 03:03 PM	#6
Bakey macrumors 6502 Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: O Donny Boy	Just Hold on a Minute!! Sod Cleaner, if there's any credence to this rumour then maybe [just maybe] there may be 3ds Mac!!

Dec 9, 2003, 03:07 PM	#7
ennerseed macrumors regular Join Date: Jan 2002	ROCK ON! that would be great... although an alias acquisition would be better news. __________________ Times are hard for dreamers - Amelie

Dec 9, 2003, 03:00 PM	#2
SumDumGuy macrumors regular Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Loserville	Oh goody! This will be quite a boon for content creation. With Apple at the helm, Cleaner could become usable again like when it was owned by Terran.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:02 PM	#5
spaced macrumors newbie Join Date: May 2002 Location: Raleigh, NC	Great move, Discreet. Threatening to close your floundering Mac division was the perfect bait to position Apple for a buyout. Bravo!

Dec 9, 2003, 03:09 PM	#8
srobert macrumors 68020 Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Montreal, Canada	Please excuse my ignorance on this topic... but is this a: A) We're buyin' ya 'cause we really like your product and want to integrate it. or B) We're buyin' ya 'cause we don't like your product (even if it's a good one) because it is competing with one of our present or future product. Any idea? __________________ Zapp: The alien mothership is in orbit here. If we can hit that bullseye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:09 PM	#9
henryblackman macrumors member Join Date: Nov 2002	Let's hope Apple do acquire them, or at least their technology. Apple do NOT need any kind of knocks when they are pushing forward with video as a target market! Of course, hopefully they'll discontinue the PC version and give them Mac Cleaner free with a purchase of a Mac - a la EMagic.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:16 PM	#10
AmigoMac macrumors 68020 Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: l'Allemagne	The return of the king... Just a small step for apple but a big one for the computers community... or was it the other way? ... Some tools are needed to catch that expected market share increase... step by step ... if you want money, you have to invest... __________________ No Mac no fun...

Dec 9, 2003, 03:17 PM	#11
nuckinfutz macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Middle Earth	Not too sure 3ds would be for sale. Who knows though. I doubt this comes to fruition for the simple fact that Apple must tread lightly as far as software acquisitions. Microsoft can get away with competing with developers without punishment, Apple cannot. Although if the price is right I say do it. Apple doesn't really need alot of extra video products but I'm sure they could poach the best code from many discreet products and strengthen DV on the Mac.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:18 PM	#12
jettredmont macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jul 2002	Hmmm ... seems to me that if Apple was buying Cleaner then the Cleaner development team wouldn't have already been laid off ... so one rumor or the other is inaccurate.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:18 PM	#13
hkhaskell macrumors newbie Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Mauldin, SC	Mixed feelings... I am not sure whether this would be a good thing or not. There's no question that somebody who will actually develop it should buy the technology from Discreet. It's ridiculous that there's no Real Player or Windows Media 9 export on OS X, while the PC version has had both of these for a while now. It's not like the codecs haven't been available for almost a year now... My fear is that Apple would not be very motivated to develop a product that exports streaming media to other formats other than QuickTime. __________________ If you say nothing, people question your intelligence. As soon as you open your mouth, you have removed all doubt. Last edited by hkhaskell : Dec 9, 2003 at 03:25 PM.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:33 PM	#14
Makosuke macrumors 68040 Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: The Cool Part of CA, USA	If Apple maintained Cleaner (or improved it) as a standalone product, that'd be very cool, particularly since they'd probably drop the price some, maybe putting it within the reach of cheap-o folks like me. But if they wrapped it into/bundled it with FCE/FCP, that would be even cooler. It'd be nice to have a standalone version for postprocessing video, but (also, hopefully) having an integrated version would be very cool. Who knows, if we're really lucky they'll just make it part of QuickTime Pro.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:36 PM	#15
Longey Nowze macrumors regular Join Date: Apr 2001	3dsmax! A lot of people I know wont buy a mac cuz it doesn't have 3ds max! I keep telling them about Cinema 4d, de éspirit (sp) maya and all the others that are better than 3ds max! so this would be a good thing! bring on G5 optimisation and altivec! and show us numbers that are 3-5 times faster than on windows! I hope this is true... I'm excited!

Dec 9, 2003, 03:41 PM	#16
ennerseed macrumors regular Join Date: Jan 2002	Next! Macromedia. Apple (or someone worth a **** read NOT microsoft) needs to buy them. __________________ Times are hard for dreamers - Amelie

Dec 9, 2003, 03:44 PM	#17
Raidiant macrumors member Join Date: Nov 2002	To add to the discussion, both combustion 3 and 3d studio max are extremely good and has a huge fanbase applications, alot of people actually don't want a mac for work because it can't run 3DSMAX, thats why all game developers use PCs.... I personally have not bought a mac desktop because of this.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:45 PM	#18
rspress macrumors member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Northern California	This is great news! I hope Apple will purchase cleaner, combustion and 3dsmax. God knows that Cleaner could use Apples magic touch and it should replace the lame Compressor program that ships with final cut pro. Combustion is one of my favorite compositing and effects program and Apple could give this program the attention it deserves. 3DSMax on the other hand is a mixed bag. Powerful but with an interface the could stump even the most hardened 3d veteran. This program would benefit the most from Apples UI magic. Apple having this program on their shelves could alienate Alias Wavefront and other vendors..maybe this one will be resold to pixar. These would be great additions to Apples Pro line of video authoring programs if they decide to purchase them...I can hardly wait for an Apple branded Combustion!

Dec 9, 2003, 03:45 PM	#19
zedwards macrumors member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: France	First, DVD Studio Pro and Final Cut Pro come with a compression software already. So, most likely, most people will not need this. Combustion's competition is Shake, although about 8000 less. Also, it is ironic that if this was Microsoft, people would be howling about the corportate conglomeration grabbing every software company.

Dec 9, 2003, 03:52 PM	#20
DIS_Frontman macrumors 6502 Join Date: May 2002 Location: Lombard, IL	Seems to me they might gut Cleaner and take the best parts in order to beef up Compressor. That would be very cool for us DV editing guys. Compressor does some things well, but it isn't as flexible nor does it support as many formats (at least that is my understanding from playing around with both of them). Sometimes it makes more sense to BUY R&D from a company with a proven product than to SPEND R&D yourself on a competing product. Much more efficient. Now everyone should well understand why Apple keeps a sizable cash warchest around--for just such an opportunity. It would be fabulous if Apple bought MacroMedia. Even better incentive to go with Mac as a platform: all your major-league content-generating software made by the same compnay that makes your hardware. Stable and reliable beats cheaper 95% of the time for people who actually work in these fields. __________________ Divine • In • Sight Spiritual Art Rock contact@spiritualartrock.com

Dec 9, 2003, 04:01 PM	#21
BenRoethig macrumors 68030 Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Dubuque, Iowa	While Apple is into purchasing companies, how about XGI Graphics?

Dec 9, 2003, 04:04 PM	#23
hkhaskell macrumors newbie Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Mauldin, SC	Actually what would be neat... ...is if Apple bought these three products and then resold 3dsMax to Alias Wavefront with the stipulation that they have to develop MAYA Unlimited for Mac OS X. It's just plain silly that they don't have it already, since the Mac platform accounts for 25% of their sales. (Plus, they already make it for SGI and Linux. How hard can it be?) __________________ If you say nothing, people question your intelligence. As soon as you open your mouth, you have removed all doubt.

Dec 9, 2003, 04:13 PM	#24
P-Worm macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Salt Lake City, UT	A lot of people are talking about compressor, but I think that it is 3D Studio Max that is most important here. This program has a HUGE fanbase and there is no current Mac version. Now what would be sweet is if Appl bought 3DSMax and did the same thing to it as they did for Shake, cheeper for the Mac, and that is the only version we are going to support from now on. P-Worm __________________ Follow my show The Movie Audit as well as watch my other videos on my YouTube Channel!

Dec 9, 2003, 04:19 PM	#25
ant_s macrumors member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Derby, UK	3dsmax If Apple were to acquire 3DSMax, then they'd have to start shipping Power Mac G5 BTOs with nVIDIA Quadro (or equivalent) cards. That would be a benchmark worth watching!

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