6 ms·

DxO acquires Nik Collection assets from Google

89 points by petepete 9y ago

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
ninegunpi 9y ago
Well, Google levelled up their game on Snapseed at some point, so why milk the cow you don't know how to feed, makes sense.
- wlesieutre 9y ago
  The surprising thing here is that Google let DxO have it. I was expecting them to let the cow starve to death because they got bored with it.
  - tertius 9y ago
    Seems like Google and DxO work well together...
  - slantyyz 9y ago
    Well they did sell Sketchup to Trimble when they got bored with that.
dschuler 9y ago
This is fantastic! The Nik Collection can do some amazing things (and is worth spending some time with if you haven't already). Their contrast and polarizer tools are particularly good, as well as their B/W workflow. From what I was told by a former Googler, they acquired Nik for the team, but didn't really have a use for the tools they created - they were mostly interested in the skills for Google Photos. At least Google found a way to pass the software on to another owner that will likely keep developing these tools, although it took a couple of years for that to happen. PS - RAW editing tools seem to all have their own strengths and weaknesses. In my experience, Lightroom is the easiest to use (and gives good results overall), but Capture One (by Phase One) has much better color management. Skin tones just look 'right' with the default flow, and it's free (lite version) / discounted for Sony cameras. Canon's Digital Photo Professional is free (for supported cameras) and rather clunky, but it can produce very sharp results with some 'soft' lenses, like the 16-36mm f/2.8 II. If you have a photo you really like and have some time to get the most out of it, you could produce a TIFF via Digital Photo Professional (assuming you have a Canon), then process with Lightroom/Capture One for basic settings, and finally adjust to your liking with Nik Collection.
djaychela 9y ago
Not sure how to read the headline versus the content - my take is that the current version will remain free but the new version will not (so I don't see that there's much change there, given that probably everyone who wanted it has it already and it's widely available elsewhere?) "The current version will remain available for free on DxO’s dedicated website , while a new versionis planned for mid-2018" [1] - https://nikcollection.dxo.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Nik-Software-Press-Release-English.pdf https://nikcollection.dxo.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Nik...
- samastur 9y ago
  Last released Google version does not work on macOS Sierra (tried and failed). If they fix nothing else but support for all recent versions it will be a step forward.
  - asadlionpk 9y ago
    Hmm, works for me. How does it fail?
    - mattkevan 9y ago
      As far as I can see it’s not supported beyond Adobe CC 2015. Tried to apply a filter in Photoshop 2017 and it unexpectedly quit. Really glad that Nik is being maintained again. While I was happy that Google released it for free, it was essentially abandonware.
      - dwringer 9y ago
        I don't have a Mac and don't know if you've tried this, but you might still be able to run the standalone programs directly from the installation directory for making atomic edits to photos, then import those as new layers into your project. It isn't as good as using them as plugins, which lets you readjust settings on-the-fly, but it has worked for me as a hobbyist.
      - tomduncalf 9y ago
mbesto 9y ago
As a tech M&A guy, I'm actually surprised Google doesn't sell off more of it's corporate assets that it no longer wants to pursue. I suspect as revenues/profits start to normalize (i.e. don't grow at exponential rates), the street will put more pressure on them to do so.
- ronilan 9y ago
  The vast majority of what google has grown in the "moat" and the "scorched land" that surrounds "the castle" of search and paid clicks is at best useless and often toxic. And then there is YouTube. Edit: when useless, it is useless to a buyer, but not to a user. When toxic, it is toxic to both.
  - mbesto 9y ago
    > useless to a buyer To the potential buyer of the asset or a client buying a Google service? Good example, non-Google related - Pinboard buying Delicious.
    - ronilan 9y ago
      Excellent example. Can a one-man-show benefit from the disposal of a Google owned asset? Most likely. Parent was talking "tech M&A", "corporate assets" and "the street". Not same.
      - mbesto 9y ago
        I was the OP btw :) I'd have to dig further but I have to imagine there are products that are created by Google that don't reach $100M+ in revenue that Google eventually folds. Something more likely - a product that is $10M in revenue that plateaus and could be sold off as an asset. I honestly don't know, just throwing it out there.
        ronilan 9y ago
        Google doesn't operate that way. Almost everything that comes out is a loss leader in one way or another (and more often than not, in one way and another). You can dig, but it will most likely be extremely hard to find a stand alone product/service that plateaued at such a revenue level. Wishing that such a product would be "created by Google" puts the bar way way too high. The Nik Collection, for example, arrived via acquisition...
soperj 9y ago
What is the nix collection?
- detaro 9y ago
  Collection of image processing plugins for color manipulation, film simulation, sharpening, noise reduction, ... Highly regarded and expensive before Google bought them https://www.google.com/nikcollection/ https://www.google.com/nikcollection/
- camus2 9y ago
  Apparently a collection of plugins for Adobe Lightroom.
  - petepete 9y ago
    The tools can all be used standalone as well as directly from LR, Capture One and other processing/image editing software. Before Google made them free they weren't cheap, $500 for the collection.
- maxxxxx 9y ago
  It's a set of tools for photographers.
pdimitar 9y ago
Is there a CEO who is able to make an announcement without claiming they revolutionized something?
- pcunite 9y ago
  "The FileSearchEX product has greatly improved the search experience when using Windows 10. Others say it has revolutionized their time spent looking for files and folders."
- maxxxxx 9y ago
  Such an announcement would be really disruptive!
turtlebits 9y ago
Have to wonder if this has anything to do with DxO rating the Pixel 2 as the "phone camera with the best image quality".
- bitmapbrother 9y ago
  Do you think all of the reviewers gushing over the Pixel 2 camera are also in on it?
ethanpil 9y ago
Google's photo strategy is so strange. Photos is a great app and has universal appeal - powerful, intuitive editing, easy and smart search, free backup, etc. Snapseed is also one of the best mobile photo editing tools around, certainly the best free one IMHO. My guess is they used the Nik technology in these tools to make the editing and retouching functions work so well, and now they sold it with contingent that they can use it in perpetuity... Here is the weird part -why wouldn't Google merge Snapseed editing with Photos? It would be a killer combination and dominate the consumer space, locking in users to the Goole platform. Isn't that ultimately what they want?. I always assumed Snapseed and Photos would merge one day. Yet, it has never come, and instead Google is empowering others in the space with their tech. Maybe they have "good enough" dominance in the area and don't care anymore? Maybe all they care about is tying users into the Drive platform and Photos is just another funnel that did good enough and can be ignored?
- izacus 9y ago
  Why would they have to be merged? What would we, most of the users, gain by having a huge bloated gallery app dragging a whole editing software with it? Is installing that other app really such a completely exausting impossible endeavor? What's wrong with tools that do their core feature very well and can share data between them?
  - ethanpil 9y ago
    They dont share data well. I cannot select "Edit with SnapSeed" and have it roll back into google photos without getting a second copy of my picture. Would love to see that kind of integration - but they dont even have that.
- bitmapbrother 9y ago
  I also don't get the need to add additional bloat to an app just to add editing features a very small percentage will ever use. Unfortunately, the number of apps I use that are over 100MB seem to be increasing rather than decreasing.
therealmarv 9y ago
This is good news. As a professional photographer there at least 2-3 filters in the Nik Collection I could not find somewhere else. I was worried Nik will disappear (I still bought them expensive in former days).

89 points by petepete 9y ago

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

Well, Google levelled up their game on Snapseed at some point, so why milk the cow you don't know how to feed, makes sense.

wlesieutre 9y ago
The surprising thing here is that Google let DxO have it. I was expecting them to let the cow starve to death because they got bored with it.
- tertius 9y ago
  Seems like Google and DxO work well together...
- slantyyz 9y ago
  Well they did sell Sketchup to Trimble when they got bored with that.

dschuler 9y ago

This is fantastic! The Nik Collection can do some amazing things (and is worth spending some time with if you haven't already). Their contrast and polarizer tools are particularly good, as well as their B/W workflow. From what I was told by a former Googler, they acquired Nik for the team, but didn't really have a use for the tools they created - they were mostly interested in the skills for Google Photos. At least Google found a way to pass the software on to another owner that will likely keep developing these tools, although it took a couple of years for that to happen. PS - RAW editing tools seem to all have their own strengths and weaknesses. In my experience, Lightroom is the easiest to use (and gives good results overall), but Capture One (by Phase One) has much better color management. Skin tones just look 'right' with the default flow, and it's free (lite version) / discounted for Sony cameras. Canon's Digital Photo Professional is free (for supported cameras) and rather clunky, but it can produce very sharp results with some 'soft' lenses, like the 16-36mm f/2.8 II. If you have a photo you really like and have some time to get the most out of it, you could produce a TIFF via Digital Photo Professional (assuming you have a Canon), then process with Lightroom/Capture One for basic settings, and finally adjust to your liking with Nik Collection.

djaychela 9y ago

Not sure how to read the headline versus the content - my take is that the current version will remain free but the new version will not (so I don't see that there's much change there, given that probably everyone who wanted it has it already and it's widely available elsewhere?) "The current version will remain available for free on DxO’s dedicated website , while a new versionis planned for mid-2018" [1] - https://nikcollection.dxo.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Nik-Software-Press-Release-English.pdf https://nikcollection.dxo.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Nik...

samastur 9y ago
Last released Google version does not work on macOS Sierra (tried and failed). If they fix nothing else but support for all recent versions it will be a step forward.
- asadlionpk 9y ago
  Hmm, works for me. How does it fail?
  - mattkevan 9y ago
    As far as I can see it’s not supported beyond Adobe CC 2015. Tried to apply a filter in Photoshop 2017 and it unexpectedly quit. Really glad that Nik is being maintained again. While I was happy that Google released it for free, it was essentially abandonware.
    - dwringer 9y ago
      I don't have a Mac and don't know if you've tried this, but you might still be able to run the standalone programs directly from the installation directory for making atomic edits to photos, then import those as new layers into your project. It isn't as good as using them as plugins, which lets you readjust settings on-the-fly, but it has worked for me as a hobbyist.
    - tomduncalf 9y ago

mbesto 9y ago

As a tech M&A guy, I'm actually surprised Google doesn't sell off more of it's corporate assets that it no longer wants to pursue. I suspect as revenues/profits start to normalize (i.e. don't grow at exponential rates), the street will put more pressure on them to do so.

ronilan 9y ago
The vast majority of what google has grown in the "moat" and the "scorched land" that surrounds "the castle" of search and paid clicks is at best useless and often toxic. And then there is YouTube. Edit: when useless, it is useless to a buyer, but not to a user. When toxic, it is toxic to both.
- mbesto 9y ago
  > useless to a buyer To the potential buyer of the asset or a client buying a Google service? Good example, non-Google related - Pinboard buying Delicious.
  - ronilan 9y ago
    Excellent example. Can a one-man-show benefit from the disposal of a Google owned asset? Most likely. Parent was talking "tech M&A", "corporate assets" and "the street". Not same.
    - mbesto 9y ago
      I was the OP btw :) I'd have to dig further but I have to imagine there are products that are created by Google that don't reach $100M+ in revenue that Google eventually folds. Something more likely - a product that is $10M in revenue that plateaus and could be sold off as an asset. I honestly don't know, just throwing it out there.
      - ronilan 9y ago
        Google doesn't operate that way. Almost everything that comes out is a loss leader in one way or another (and more often than not, in one way and another). You can dig, but it will most likely be extremely hard to find a stand alone product/service that plateaued at such a revenue level. Wishing that such a product would be "created by Google" puts the bar way way too high. The Nik Collection, for example, arrived via acquisition...

soperj 9y ago

What is the nix collection?

detaro 9y ago
Collection of image processing plugins for color manipulation, film simulation, sharpening, noise reduction, ... Highly regarded and expensive before Google bought them https://www.google.com/nikcollection/ https://www.google.com/nikcollection/
camus2 9y ago
Apparently a collection of plugins for Adobe Lightroom.
- petepete 9y ago
  The tools can all be used standalone as well as directly from LR, Capture One and other processing/image editing software. Before Google made them free they weren't cheap, $500 for the collection.
maxxxxx 9y ago
It's a set of tools for photographers.

pdimitar 9y ago

Is there a CEO who is able to make an announcement without claiming they revolutionized something?

pcunite 9y ago
"The FileSearchEX product has greatly improved the search experience when using Windows 10. Others say it has revolutionized their time spent looking for files and folders."
maxxxxx 9y ago
Such an announcement would be really disruptive!

turtlebits 9y ago

Have to wonder if this has anything to do with DxO rating the Pixel 2 as the "phone camera with the best image quality".

bitmapbrother 9y ago
Do you think all of the reviewers gushing over the Pixel 2 camera are also in on it?

ethanpil 9y ago

Google's photo strategy is so strange. Photos is a great app and has universal appeal - powerful, intuitive editing, easy and smart search, free backup, etc. Snapseed is also one of the best mobile photo editing tools around, certainly the best free one IMHO. My guess is they used the Nik technology in these tools to make the editing and retouching functions work so well, and now they sold it with contingent that they can use it in perpetuity... Here is the weird part -why wouldn't Google merge Snapseed editing with Photos? It would be a killer combination and dominate the consumer space, locking in users to the Goole platform. Isn't that ultimately what they want?. I always assumed Snapseed and Photos would merge one day. Yet, it has never come, and instead Google is empowering others in the space with their tech. Maybe they have "good enough" dominance in the area and don't care anymore? Maybe all they care about is tying users into the Drive platform and Photos is just another funnel that did good enough and can be ignored?

izacus 9y ago
Why would they have to be merged? What would we, most of the users, gain by having a huge bloated gallery app dragging a whole editing software with it? Is installing that other app really such a completely exausting impossible endeavor? What's wrong with tools that do their core feature very well and can share data between them?
- ethanpil 9y ago
  They dont share data well. I cannot select "Edit with SnapSeed" and have it roll back into google photos without getting a second copy of my picture. Would love to see that kind of integration - but they dont even have that.
bitmapbrother 9y ago
I also don't get the need to add additional bloat to an app just to add editing features a very small percentage will ever use. Unfortunately, the number of apps I use that are over 100MB seem to be increasing rather than decreasing.

therealmarv 9y ago

This is good news. As a professional photographer there at least 2-3 filters in the Nik Collection I could not find somewhere else. I was worried Nik will disappear (I still bought them expensive in former days).