The companies did not disclose how much Google had paid for Nik
Software, which has sophisticated photo editing tools and a strong
following among serious photographers.
Google said that it had acquired Nik Software, a company that
makes tools for editing and sharing photos. It is Google's latest
defensive move against Facebook and part of its strategy to become a
photo-sharing hub.
Facebook's dominance in photo uploading and sharing was
strengthened by its acquisition of Instagram, a deal that closed
this month. Meanwhile, Google Plus -- which announced Monday that it
had 400 million users, 100 million of them active -- has been trying
to attract professional and amateur photographers.
Though Nik, which is based in San Diego with offices in Germany
and elsewhere, is outside the Silicon Valley bubble, it has a
following among serious photographers. The companies did not
disclose the acquisition price, though one person briefed on the
deal said it was significant because Nik had more than 100 employees
and was 17 years old.
Nik's most popular product is Snapseed, a mobile app for editing
and sharing photos. Apple named it the iPad app of the year in 2011.
It has more sophisticated photo editing tools than Instagram, but it
is not nearly as popular. Snapseed is available only for Apple
devices but will be on Google's Android operating system soon (and
probably a lot sooner now that Google owns it). Many of Nik's other
products are aimed at professional photographers.
Facebook says its users upload about 300 million photos a day,
many more than on Google Plus or any other Web site. Google declined
to say how many photos its users uploaded.
But Google Plus does offer special tools for photos. For sharing
them, Google Plus's mobile app automatically uploads cellphone
photos to a private folder on Google Plus, so they are backed up and
can easily be shared. Users can also upload and download high-
resolution photos.
With Nik and other services, Google is trying to differentiate
itself from Facebook and other photo-sharing sites with more
advanced photo editing. Google, which owns Picasa and Picnik, the
online photo editor, has incorporated their high-end tools into
Google Plus, including adjusting light and pixel size, sharpening or
softening colors and applying filters.
Google seems most interested in Nik's mobile and online tools and
how they can improve Google Plus. Google declined to say whether or
when it would discontinue any of Nik's other products, like desktop
software for professional photographers.
"We want to help our users create photos they absolutely love,
and in our experience Nik does this better than anyone," Vic
Gundotra, senior vice president at Google in charge of Google Plus,
wrote on Google Plus.
