Adobe Completes Acquisition of Fotolia

Vibrant Image and Video Marketplace to Be Integrated as Key Part of Adobe Creative Cloud

SAN JOSE, Calif. � Jan. 28, 2015 � Adobe (Nasdaq:ADBE) has completed its acquisition of privately held Fotolia, a leading marketplace for stock content. Adobe announced its intent to purchase Fotolia in December 2014 and the acquisition cements Creative Cloud�s role as a vibrant market for creatives to buy and sell assets and services as well as showcase their talent to a worldwide audience. Work will now begin on integrating Fotolia into Adobe Creative Cloud. This will provide current and future Creative Cloud members with the ability to access and purchase over 35 million images and videos, significantly simplifying and accelerating the design process. Adobe also plans to continue to operate Fotolia as a standalone stock service, accessible to anyone.

Founded in 2004, with offices in New York, Paris and Berlin, Fotolia currently operates in 23 countries and has websites in 14 languages.

�We�re now hard at work to radically simplify the buying and selling of stock content,� said David Wadhwani, senior vice president, Digital Media, Adobe. �Fotolia is helping Creative Cloud become the marketplace for creatives to buy and sell high-impact assets, find talent and promote their work in front of an influential global community.�

With more than 3.4 million members, Adobe Creative Cloud features the world�s leading desktop tools, an array of complementary mobile apps, training content, creative assets and services and ready access to a dynamic community. Creative Cloud is transforming how creatives find inspiration and deliver their best work � and the value of Creative Cloud is increasing all the time through product updates and new capabilities.

Forward-Looking Statements Disclosure

This press release includes forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, including risks and uncertainties related to Adobe�s ability to successfully integrate Fotolia�s stock content service into Creative Cloud. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including statements regarding: the ease of use of any future Adobe stock content service, the functionality of the service�s commerce system, plans for integrating the service into Creative Cloud and other anticipated benefits of the transaction to Adobe; any statements of expectation or belief; and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. These risks, uncertainties and other factors, and the general risks associated with Adobe�s business, could cause actual results to differ materially from those referred to in the forward-looking statements. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to Adobe and are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. For a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties, individuals should refer to Adobe's SEC filings. Adobe does not assume any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements or other statements included in this press release.

3.4 million subscribers to CC? or they count anybody who has Adobe ID (I registered some Adobe products).

Fotolia under Adobe will rock... remember my words folks! 

Perhaps it's the other way round - what if Fotolia customers get free access to the Adobe Cloud, either for free or for a small extra payment.  That would 'lock' customers into both products.

Time will tell.

E.g. it might work like this: as a buyer you get an illustration from Fotolia to use on your website but it is really served from Adobe's servers (the way webfonts are). That means that if you stop your subscription to CC, the illustration disappears from your website. This could conceivably open up new kinds Rights Management. E.g. if you subscribe to Fotolia you get images to use, but only on a limited number of websites, and if you stop paying for the subscription you lose the images.

the big question what author will get.
I 've seen already 20 cents payments from Getty's "Premium Access"  deals

If there's no change in the way FT operates and no way to submit directly to Adobe, or without going through FT, this will mean nothing to many people who will never again work for FT whether it's for 20c CC subs or DPC or anything else.

Here's hoping Adobe recognizes that they are not going to get the best materials from all the potential top quality suppliers. Too many bad deals and hard feelings, lingering in the wake of FTs past management.

Quote from: michaeldb on January 28, 2015, 20:21

E.g. it might work like this: as a buyer you get an illustration from Fotolia to use on your website but it is really served from Adobe's servers (the way webfonts are). That means that if you stop your subscription to CC, the illustration disappears from your website. This could conceivably open up new kinds Rights Management. E.g. if you subscribe to Fotolia you get images to use, but only on a limited number of websites, and if you stop paying for the subscription you lose the images.

the big question what author will get.
I 've seen already 20 cents payments from Getty's "Premium Access"  deals

I have noticed just few minutes ago the Adobe logo on the Fotolia Homepage.

If there's no change in the way FT operates and no way to submit directly to Adobe, or without going through FT, this will mean nothing to many people who will never again work for FT whether it's for 20c CC subs or DPC or anything else.

Here's hoping Adobe recognizes that they are not going to get the best materials from all the potential top quality suppliers. Too many bad deals and hard feelings, lingering in the wake of FTs past management.

Quote from: U11 on January 28, 2015, 20:35

Quote from: michaeldb on January 28, 2015, 20:21

E.g. it might work like this: as a buyer you get an illustration from Fotolia to use on your website but it is really served from Adobe's servers (the way webfonts are). That means that if you stop your subscription to CC, the illustration disappears from your website. This could conceivably open up new kinds Rights Management. E.g. if you subscribe to Fotolia you get images to use, but only on a limited number of websites, and if you stop paying for the subscription you lose the images.

the big question what author will get.
I 've seen already 20 cents payments from Getty's "Premium Access"  deals

That's right Uncle.  I would never go back, nor be welcome, to FOTOLIA without a gutting of their currently self serving sponges that run the joint.  I can't wait for that thread to start: "Adobe cans all of FOTOLIA's staff".

I wonder if anyone has posted the DPC MSG thread in an Adobe forum or sent it to Adobe? Not that it will make any difference but who knows.

I will be honest about this, if management at Fotolia changes, I will try to get back in. Agree with Mantis.

I will too, Ron. I am not ashamed to admit i would go back, but i wouldnt today even if i were invited by "the chad". Mainly because these guys are all shady crooks. But if adobe replaces them with integrated management i would lobby to get back in. I would still opt out of dpc like i did.

I will be honest about this, if management at Fotolia changes, I will try to get back in. Agree with Mantis.

So will I.

You touch on some good points Jo Ann. I wonder about the legal implications for using our images. I assume adobe has to hold themselves to the FT T&C. Maybe they chose FT for that reason, their T&C are quite lenient and allow a lot of usage. Starting to sound like the DT/Google deal. One time payment, 100,000,000,000 times used.

None of my business really as I don't use Adobe products, nor am I with Fotolia.
However I can't help thinking that this has all the making of "Exciting News" for contributors.