Adobe to offer free, online Photoshop
Adobe CEO Bruce Chizen told CNET News.com that they are planning to release a free version of their widely popular Photoshop application; the new, hosted version will be available to use online before September 2007.
Chizen notes that this is only a part of a larger move to introduce online services for Adobe’s existing products. Adobe Systems Incorporated is pioneering a new way to deliver its industry leading creative software technologies online.
This move comes just a week after Adobe announced a partnership with Photobucket, giving their users direct, free access to world-class digital video editing tools by means of Adobe Remix.
The company expects to announce more partnerships with Internet companies and media properties over the coming months, which will all be funded by online advertising revenue.
“We aim to simplify the powerful editing and compositing capabilities that make Adobe software the undisputed creative leader, so that anyone can post eye-catching compositions online,” said John Loiacono, senior vice president of Creative Solutions at Adobe.
Similar to Adobe Remix, Adobe’s hosted Photoshop will be marketed as an entry-level version of Photoshop and Photoshop Elements; these versions will be less functional than the purchased software, but will provide users with a higher quality online application than free alternatives.
“That is new (for Adobe). It’s something we are sensitive to because we are watching folks like Google do it in different categories, and we want to make sure that we are there before they are, in areas of our franchises,” Chizen told CNET, “We recognize there is a customer there–we recognize they are not going to pay us, necessarily, directly. But we could use ad revenue as a model. Google has demonstrated that it works pretty well for certain types of applications.”
Chizen added that Google is the most likely prospect to compete in hosting media-editing applications, but feels users would probably go the Photoshop route because of their belief in the Photoshop brand and the quality associated with it.
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