Fender To Acquire PreSonus Electronics

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

VC's gobbling things up...it usually ends badly (see Roli)

It doesn't "usually end badly" It ends badly sometimes. Nobody notices it unless it does end badly. not the same thing.

Sure, maybe your right.

The music software and instrument worlds just seem like bad fits for VC money to me. The pandemic has certainly helped sell musical instruments and software with everyone at home, but it's not like these are industries flush with cash and growth opportunities. I could be wrong, I haven't looked at the data but from Gibson being run into the ground, Guitar Center constantly being on the verge of going broke, companies suddenly trying to monetize via subscriptions (e.g. Izotope), and Roli going under after acquiring a bunch of sh*t with no plan...it seems like VC's plus musical instruments/software is just a bad match. I feel like once this bubble [it seems to me] we are in bursts, we're in for a repeat of the great recession and then things are going to get very uncomfortable again.

Then again, these companies have actual products to sell, so I can see the appeal in that versus investing in companies that offer only services supported by ad revenue.

If you have data or long-term success stories of VC money entering the musical instrument/software market and being a positive force (great products, profitability, etc.), then I'd love to hear about them! It's easy to be cynical all the time when all you hear about is the bad news. So what're the success stories? Really asking. I assume most often, Venture Capital is all about casting a lot of nets, knowing most will fail ("usually ends badly"), then hoping a few will hit big enough to offset the losses.

[starflakeprj]

I don't think SB has suffered after its acquisition by Yamaha..

Well, SB has one of the slowest customer services I have ever been in contact with. Maybe they had the slowest one even before Yamaha?

[BertKoor]

And VC = Venture Capital?
SB = SteinBerg?

Just checking, I hate ambiguous acronyms with a passion. They leave too much to guess...

[zvenx]

I don't think SB has suffered after its acquisition by Yamaha..

Well, SB has one of the slowest customer services I have ever been in contact with. Maybe they had the slowest one even before Yamaha?

I haven't had to use it post yamaha, but before it really was luck of the draw to which country you had to use for support. Some countries were great (USA) but some were abysmal from stories I have heard.
rsp

[BoogerSnot]

I'm going to give it a chance, but right now I don't like it.

Given the current everything bubble and massively overinflated markets, a sale like this doesn't spell "moving up" it says bailing out.

[imrae]

Here's some information on the merger which still has to gain regulatory approval:

“Fender envisions an ecosystem that seamlessly integrates hardware and software to create an effortless end-to-end experience for customers at all levels in their creative journey,” the statement continued, “and joining forces with PreSonus makes that possible.”

I’m rather suspicious of “seamless integration”. It usually means “linking everything to a proprietary software platform, then deprecating it”. Call me old-fashioned but I prefer well-defined interfaces.

[Teksonik]

but honestly I'm using Reaper pretty much full-time these days so this wouldn't have a huge impact on me.

Well Justin Frankel did sell Nullsoft to AOL in 1999 and then...."On December 9, 2003 AOL shut down Nullsoft's San Francisco offices and laid off 450 employees".

So I don't suppose it's outside the realm of possibility that Reaper may one day go on the auction block.

I imagine nothing is forever in an uncertain world.

[jens]

Sounds great to me - very promising news, especially for guitar players...Presonus were already deep in the process of creating such an eco-system, but with the combined forces/ knowledge of both companies they very well might come up with even much cooler stuff...

[jens]

I imagine nothing is forever in an uncertain world.

Nothing is forever in any kind of world.

[Teksonik]

Here's some information on the merger which still has to gain regulatory approval:

“Fender envisions an ecosystem that seamlessly integrates hardware and software to create an effortless end-to-end experience for customers at all levels in their creative journey,” the statement continued, “and joining forces with PreSonus makes that possible.”

I’m rather suspicious of “seamless integration”. It usually means “linking everything to a proprietary software platform, then deprecating it”. Call me old-fashioned but I prefer well-defined interfaces.

Fender's announcement is classic Corporate speak written by public relations and run past the lawyers.

Trust me if I were a Presonus employee I would be freshening up my résumé and making sure all my suits were pressed.

Having experienced corporate douche baggery first hand I trust them not...one...bit.

[Teksonik]

I imagine nothing is forever in an uncertain world.

Nothing is forever in any kind of world.

This is true. It's just a matter of how much closer to forever one gets in any particular world.

[antic604]

I’m rather suspicious of “seamless integration”. It usually means “linking everything to a proprietary software platform, then deprecating it”. Call me old-fashioned but I prefer well-defined interfaces.

Actually it's the other way around - they probably saw a value in software platform that Presonus has built that neatly integrates their mixing desks, Studio One and iOS devices. Listen to their CTO talking about it (and many other things):

https://dawbench.libsyn.com/episode-11- ... ent-future

[McLilith]

Years ago, Fender acquired the last remnants of ARP. They brought the Fender Polaris to market (a design that started at ARP) and then quickly decided they didn't know enough about the synth business and didn't have the interest required to fill that knowledge deficit. So, they shelved all their synthesizer production soon afterward, and went back to concentrating on guitars and amps.

I hope their acquisition of Presonus goes much better, and Presonus continues to thrive and innovate. Also, I hope they can continue to offer decent support services to owners of existing Presonus gear. I know, that's probably a lot to hope for.

[fairlyclose]

In a year's time probably find a Strat bundled with every sale of Studio One

[vurt]

ooh presonus lego!