Apple Acquires Camel Audio

[Deist]

Well I hope you're wrong as it would be wrong to screw those who added such value to Alchemy. But on the other hand if Capple wants to keep those soundsets that might mean there is a future for Alchemy or whatever it's called going forward......not that I'll be a part of that future since I won't ever own a Crapintosh........

In Apple's world, refusing to continue selling content to customers doesn't necessarily equals it actually IS content you have plans to use. Not selling what you never plan to use any other way anyways make also perfect sense to Apple (and many other big companies to be fair), on the basis of "We bought it, it's OURS! Now we're free to dump it if that indded be what pleases us. Using stuff in a creative and productive way is so overrated these days...".

Hopefully you're right though, I just wouldn't be willing to bet too much. Apple's not gonna care about added revenue from a few expansions if their plans regarding Alchemy another direction (like dismantle it and implement part of the tech here, part there...)

BTW, congratulations on vowing never to own a Crapintosh man: that's the spirit!

[Deist]

Weirder than that. Much weirder.

Remember, Apple prided itself at one time as being the main platform for any creative endeavor. Now, they want it back.

That at least would indicate that 1-They actually feel some shame about what things have become of them in terms of being creative, and 2- They plan to actually do something about it (be it "buy the actually creative talents and rebrand their stuff or the next genius thing they'll come up with").

[Hunter]

Wait...

...so it wasn't the UK tax thing?

I think it was NI

[trimph1]

Weirder than that. Much weirder.

Remember, Apple prided itself at one time as being the main platform for any creative endeavor. Now, they want it back.

That at least would indicate that 1-They actually feel some shame about what things have become of them in terms of being creative, and 2- They plan to actually do something about it (be it "buy the actually creative talents and rebrand their stuff or the next genius thing they'll come up with").

That could very well be. But I will have yet another issue here...I get too much G.A.S.!!!!

[samsam]

Playing a drinking game here.

Every time some whiney c**t points out how if he were CA, he would have done it all differently, take a drink.

Every time somebody Windows fanboy writes 'Crapple' (chuckle) or something similar, take a drink.

Every time somebody posts how they'll NEVER (it must be written in all caps) buy an Apple product, take a drink.

Completely f**king pissed, as you'd imagine

[trimph1]

Playing a drinking game here.

Every time some whiney c**t points out how if he were CA, he would have done it all differently, take a drink.

Every time somebody Windows fanboy writes 'Crapple' (chuckle) or something similar, take a drink.

Every time somebody posts how they'll NEVER (it must be written in all caps) buy an Apple product, take a drink.

Completely f**king pissed, as you'd imagine

Ev'body ending in a drunken bar room fight....

[samsam]

Playing a drinking game here.

Every time some whiney c**t points out how if he were CA, he would have done it all differently, take a drink.

Every time somebody Windows fanboy writes 'Crapple' (chuckle) or something similar, take a drink.

Every time somebody posts how they'll NEVER (it must be written in all caps) buy an Apple product, take a drink.

Completely f**king pissed, as you'd imagine

Ev'body ending in a drunken bar room fight....

That's the idea. And we all emerge bloodied, beaten, hungover but strangely bonded....

[trimph1]

Playing a drinking game here.

Every time some whiney c**t points out how if he were CA, he would have done it all differently, take a drink.

Every time somebody Windows fanboy writes 'Crapple' (chuckle) or something similar, take a drink.

Every time somebody posts how they'll NEVER (it must be written in all caps) buy an Apple product, take a drink.

Completely f**king pissed, as you'd imagine

Ev'body ending in a drunken bar room fight....

That's the idea. And we all emerge bloodied, beaten, hungover but strangely bonded....

aaaahhhhh....band of brothers...

[egbert]

That's the idea. And we all emerge bloodied, beaten, hungover but strangely bonded....

Cue ELO, Strange Bondage

[VariKusBrainZ]

Crapple
Never buying overpriced product
Windows is teh best 111!!!

Drink !!!

[samsam]

Crapple
Never buying overpriced product
Windows is teh best 111!!!

Drink !!!

Hic

[faun2500]

Anyone want to buy Alchemy with loads of sound banks?

Are you selling? This isn't marketplace, but feel free to go there and give your selling price (not that I'm buying, myself, at least not now...)

Ahh, Thank you so much!

...and you have my permission to carry on using the internet too.

[Teksonik]

Playing a drinking game here.
Every time some whiney c**t points out how if he were CA, he would have done it all differently, take a drink.
Every time somebody Windows fanboy writes 'Crapple' (chuckle) or something similar, take a drink.
Every time somebody posts how they'll NEVER (it must be written in all caps) buy an Apple product, take a drink.
Completely f**king pissed, as you'd imagine

Ev'body ending in a drunken bar room fight....

That's the idea. And we all emerge bloodied, beaten, hungover but strangely bonded....

You would end up bloody and beaten........only my knuckles would be a little sore.

[Teksonik]

We discussed this before briefly - no one has come up with actual hard info, but from what I know, I'm fairly sure that Camel paid the sound designers for the patches, at which point they become Camel property and would have been part of the assets Apple bought.

I can only speak from my perspective, but I contributed patches, sound data, and even some code to Cameleon CA5000, some of which eventually made it into Alchemy. My compensation for that, and for being a part of many early beta test campaigns, was that I was able to ask for NFR licenses for any Camel Audio plugins after that.

Given that it evolved as sort of a "handshake deal", I have my doubts that Apple will honor it now, 12 years after Cameleon's birth!

So far as "actual hard info", I still have a copy of the original Cameleon "Patch Programming / Sample Provision Agreement ". It's pretty much a straight-forward content-for-license exchange, worded with seemingly lawyer-drafted legalese. That said, it had no clauses for re-use of said material in subsequent products, nor for transfer of usage rights upon company sale.

My contribution of code was outside of that written agreement. Ben had asked for the source to some of my additive bitmap conversion routines, and I provided it. Beyond that, I can't say how much of it made it into Cameleon or was subsequently ported to Alchemy. (It was, after all, pretty hacky code, destined for refactoring!)

The agreement for Alchemy could've been vastly different, for all I know: I was never asked to re-sign it, but when I contacted Camel Audio upon Alchemy's release they didn't hesitate to provide me with an NFR license and their thanks.

Good bunch of folks, them Camels. I still get sad when I run across an old email from Tim in my folders. I've fallen away from the synth scene as of many many years back (doing my indie guitar rock thing), but I hope this deal gives them everything they need.

- m

Very informative post. I was on that early Chameleon beta team years ago thanks to Tim and Frank but don't specifically remember signing any NDA but it's always implied that you don't talk about a product in development and of course it goes without saying you don't ever share files.
Like you said the CA team always seemed like such great guys which is why I would have to think that those sound designers who contributed the fantastic sample and patch content that helped Alchemy gain such popularity would have or at least should have been compensated in some way. If for nothing else than to be given back the rights to their sample content to be sold on in future products since the .sfz format is supported by several instruments now and perhaps more in the future.

[Maadfoo]

Maybe Apple should have used this before paying too much:

http://kamelrechner.de/index_en.php