Apple buys MotionVFX: Provider of video effects and plugins
With MotionVFX, Apple is taking over one of the most important providers of video effects and plugins. The 70 employees are to move to the iPhone manufacturer.
Apple has recently released a Creator subscription bundle. MotionVFX could be a useful addition here.
(Image: Apple)
Apple has acquired the company MotionVFX, one of the largest providers of video effects, titles, and plugins. Many users of Apple's video editing software Final Cut Pro rely on the services of the company founded in 2009. According to some industry services, MotionVFX is considered the market leader in its segment. However, both companies are keeping their plans for what exactly Apple intends to do with MotionVFX open. The purchase price has also not been disclosed.
MotionVFX confirmed the acquisition as news on its website. According to media reports, the company was already a partner of Apple. Apple itself has not yet commented, but this is a common practice for the iPhone manufacturer. When it became known in November 2024 that Apple was acquiring the photo editing app Pixelmator, the buyer initially kept its plans open. Only a few weeks ago, Pixelmator was integrated into Apple's new Creator Studio.
MotionVFX content in Creator Studio in the future?
Apple's subscription bundle for creative content could also be the future destination for MotionVFX. So far, Final Cut Pro only offers a somewhat more extensive basic set of effects, overlays, and titles. MotionVFX could fill the shelves with numerous premium templates, making a Final Cut subscription more attractive than a one-time purchase. Currently, both options exist: users can rent or buy the software.
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With the purchase, Apple also indirectly diminishes the attractiveness of its competitors' video editing solutions. MotionVFX offered extensions not only for Final Cut Pro but also for DaVinci Resolve and Adobe Premiere Pro. As with the acquisition of the weather app Dark Sky in 2020, the offerings for competitors are likely to be discontinued sooner or later with the takeover. Currently, the complete previous offering is still available.
MotionVFX includes 70 employees, all of whom will move to Apple. The company, based in Bielsko-Biała in southern Poland, was founded by Szymon Masiak. Recently, it has also developed many extensions with AI support, including AI-assisted video upscaling, surface tracking, or automatic 3D tracking. This would also fit well with Apple's recent strategy of complementing Final Cut with machine learning features.
(mki)
