Antitrust Experts Eye Adobe Purchase of Macromedia

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Federal regulators are holding up Adobe’s proposed acquisition of Macromedia by requesting additional information and market studies to determine if the companies’ merger violates the Sherman Antitrust Act.

The planned purchase, announced in April and valued at $3.4 billion, would bring under one roof — cumulatively called Adobe — the immensely popular graphics, portable document format (PDF) and web-design capabilities of the two Northern California companies.

It also raises speculation about unfair market domination, despite what both Adobe and Macromedia call a “routine” second request for information from the Department of Justice.

Adobe chose to bid on Macromedia because many of the two companies’ products overlap in scope, and because they were both facing increased competition from open source providers. In addition, Microsoft recently unleashed a beta version of its own Adobe Illustrator-like vector graphics program, code-named Acrylic.

"It's not unusual to see a second [DOJ] request in cases where the parties serve the same market, especially in software," said Connie Robinson, an antitrust lawyer at Kilpatrick Stockton.

"Unlike a widget, where you can see it and touch it, software is harder to get your hands around and understand," she said.

Spokespeople for Adobe have speculated that any possible legal challenge will not keep the company from finalizing the purchase of Macromedia some time in the fall.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Whisper Fans Joins Pineapple Support as Supporter-Level Sponsor

Whisper Fans has joined the ranks of over 70 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support.

Utherverse Launches 'Red Light Center' Virtual World

Virtual reality and metaverse technology company Utherverse has launched its new virtual world, RedLightCenter.io.

European Commission Approves AV Guidelines, Unveils Prototype App

The European Commission on Monday released its final, approved guidelines for protecting minors online under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) and made public a “white label” age verification app intended to help sites and platforms comply with age verification rules under the DSA.

Show More