But while Snapseed gives Google those sepia filters in a similar way to Facebook-owned Instagram does, it also raises eyebrows because its a direct competitor to Instagram, which Facebook bought for $1 billion in April. It is also providing Google with an arsenal of photography apps the company can use for its social network, Google+. Snapseed was previously Apple’s pick for the iPad App of the Year.
As part of the announcement, Vic Gundotra, Google’s senior vice president of engineering, posted the news about acquiring Snapseed creator Nik Software to his Google+ account, saying, “we want to help our users create photos they absolutely love, and in our experience Nik does this better than anyone.”
In a short note on Nik Software’s blog, the company said, “We have always aspired to share our passion for photography with everyone, and with Google’s support, we hope to be able to help many millions more people create awesome pictures.”
Image Credit: (PCWorld.com)
In many ways, Snapseed is very similar to Instagram, which Facebook bought earlier this year for 1 billion. The app allows users to edit photos and add filters as well as share them on Facebook, Flickr or via email — similar to Facebook’s recently acquired Instagram app. Besides, Google also has the opportunity to incorporate Snapseed filters, frames, and editing capabilities directly into its Google+ mobile app for iOS, while Snapseed also has an Android version in the works.
Among other things, Nik Software has a number of products that are designed to work with other industry-leading photo-editing programs such as Adobe Lightroom and Apple Aperture, but it also has its own image-adjustments program called Snapseed, which works on OS X, Windows, and iOS.
A photo edited with Snapseed. (Credit: Snapseed)
Even though Snapseed is not as popular as Instagram, the app has its own following among photo enthusiasts of around 9 million users and is a good match for Google+, which has an emphasis on photo sharing. While Instagram is free to download, Snapseed costs $4.99.
Google is no doubt trying to keep up with Facebook’s social prowess with this purchase. However, it is pretty indistinct though what kind of integration we will see from Snapseed and Google+. For example, although Facebook bought Instagram, the social network released a separate Facebook Camera app for iOS, complete with Instagram-like filters and so far kept Instagram independent.