Cringley: End Game: Why Apple Will Buy Adobe. Rumor # 6,738

[alfredo]

http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/2008/pulpit_20080111_003899.html


What I DO see happening is Apple buying Adobe, which would give it effective dominance of digital content creation and distribution on a global scale. Bruce Chizen suddenly stepped down as Adobe's CEO without warning: why? A caretaker CEO (my characterization -- no slight intended) is in place. Steve has always viewed Adobe co-founder and co-chair John Warnock like a father. Warnock and co-chair Chuck Geschke are losing interest in Adobe day-to-day as they move on with their lives. Acquiring Adobe would make Apple much more of a cross-platform company. The combined professional applications could be placed in the Adobe division of Apple where they could go up in price for some markets, becoming VASTLY more profitable. But most important -- keeping in mind the whole purpose here is driving content distribution -- merging Flash and QuickTime would make any other video standards (like Windows Media) simply immaterial.

If such an acquisition were to take place it would have to be in 2008 while Avid and Microsoft still present credible competition to keep the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission from opposing such a merger. It would go easier, too, on W's watch. I knew he was good for something.

[Andrea]

1. Boy, that's interesting

I hadn't heard anything about this. It would be great to have Flash and QuickTime merged. I'm going to keep an ear out for any further mention of this. Thanks.

[alfredo]

2. I think it would be a good fit, and Photoshop would get a much better

interface.