Native Instruments file for insolvency...

[IvyBirds]

Obviously things were going wrong before founders left, but PE accelerated NI's demise.

Or PE gave them an influx of cash that delayed the inevitable for a few years and gave NI a few more years before they entered Insolvency

[mixyguy2]

You're actually reasonable. A rarity for KVR.

lol thx. I have my moments good and bad probably like most

And, yes, I agree there ARE a lot of decent sounds in the bundle. I just see the templated sample 'instruments' (not the sound sets but the products listed as sample instruments with an A and B sample section that can be mixed) as marketing gimmickry. They could have easily made a single instrument and built in the themed sample sets into it. Instead they split it up into almost two dozen individual products to pad the Instrument count. When they could have given us proper unique instruments.. again like an FM9 or Absynth all these years.

I think we're talking two diff things (Komplete vs Kontakt Factory)...

[dayjob]

Absynth 6.0.3 update is in Native Access. so, that’s nice.

[Grizzellda]

You obviously didnt even watch that video

No, because I'm not stupid enough to automatically buy into some goober on YT having "the truth." (Let me guess, the guy in the video is you)

Welcome to my foes - list btw.

LOL

That's about the level of intelligence and maturity I expected you were at. Oh no, how will I sleep at night now

Oh, you will likely sleep well!!

[Funky40]

I like this video.

What i don´t get is:
Private Equity can take a loan, buy companys, and the dept will stick to what you just bought up. It´s ridiculous......

First: turn to Franciso Partners.....they owe.
Everything else is law bended 180° around.....by law.



this NI debakle is opening my eyes even more vs. whats "really" going on in this world.

it IS shocking !

[parma]

This is a good, more optimistic take:

https://www.blinksonic.com/2026/02/02/n ... -grounded/

[IvyBirds]

I like this video.

What i don´t get is:
Private Equity can take a loan, buy companys, and the dept will stick to what you just bought up. It´s ridiculous......

First: turn to Franciso Partners.....they owe.
Everything else is law bended 180° around.....by law.



this NI debakle is opening my eyes even more vs. whats "really" going on in this world.

it IS shocking !

Watching that video without any bias you walk away with several points

1.)Izotope dumped a bunch of money into Spire Studio which bombed and put financial strain on the company

2.)in 2020 during COVID when as the creator states everyone was making music Izotope (and NI) were profitable

3.)During this time Francisco Partners purchased NI and Izotope merging the two companies together

4.)sales are down now because COVID isn't a thing, people are not making music and buying software like they were in 2020 and as a result profits are no longer there

5.)with declining sales and profits the new merged company can't pay its bills

If you want to know what is going on in the world it's simple. A lot of people were bored during the lockdowns and decided to meddle with making music in home studio. Those people had never done so before and they were able to buy Izotope and NI products via downloads without leaving their house

Now that the lockdowns are no longer a thing, those same people are not stuck in their house bored and are not buying software

Private Equity takes out loans to buy companies, around 3/4 of those companies DO NOT go bankrupt.

What's confusing for many is people with an agenda pretend that every company that PE buys is doomed and will automatically fail and want to blame PE. These people use their bias to pretend that PE is a demon hiding behind every rock and tree

Yes that means 1/4 fail and eventually go bankrupt, but here is the thing you have to understand. Companies that get purchased by private equity are already in financial dire straights and on the verge of failure. If they weren't then they wouldn't be selling themselves to private equity companies. They have to go with private equity because they are already in trouble and need money and get it from normal banks

As we see very clearly in that video Izotope got into financial trouble long before private equity got involved because they went all in with Spire Studio that then failed in the marketplace because it wasn't a good product as the dude in the video made very clear.

Izotope and NI were both always headed for Insolvency thanks to choices that were made before there was any involvement with private equity, and once the COVID era sales boom went bust

[agharta]

I thought that the PE group that bought them when interest rates were low, loaded NI’s balance sheet with debt and with interest rates going up so much in the five years since they bought them, NI can’t afford to pay the interest anymore.
So that seems like a very significant part of the problem, regardless of NI’s other issues.

[mcbpete]

Tim Exile's take of the situation (mainly the Reaktor side):

[El°HYM]

So NI's exile strategy is basically Reaktor, interesting.

[Sascha Franck]

This is a good, more optimistic take:

https://www.blinksonic.com/2026/02/02/n ... -grounded/

I think it's pretty much wishful thinking, ignoring some hard facts.

[IvyBirds]

I thought that the PE group that bought them when interest rates were low, loaded NI’s balance sheet with debt and with interest rates going up so much in the five years since they bought them, NI can’t afford to pay the interest anymore.
So that seems like a very significant part of the problem, regardless of NI’s other issues.

What debt got loaded on NI?

In 2020 in Germany and the US commercial paper was being sold for 1-2%. Distressed companies could get loans for 3-4%. Those rates have gone up by only by a small amount

Commerical paper is 2-3% and distressed companies can get loans for 5-6%. Francisco Partners isn't a distressed company and can get very favorable rates

How much debt do you think has been added to NI if that bump in rates has caused them to go insolvent

Even if they had $100,000,000 in debt added in variable rate loans (which they haven't been) that would only be an extra million or two in interest a year. That would not cause them to go insolvent

This whole idea that interest rates rising by 1-2% killed NI isn't based in reality, interest rates fell in the 2nd half of 2025 in America, Germany, and the EU and even before they did were still below historical norms

[Sascha Franck]

So NI's exile strategy is basically Reaktor, interesting.

Yeah, totally weird take. Reaktor is pretty much dead - and now it's supposed to raise from the ashes and rescue all of NI.
Right, sounds absolutely plausible.

[MirkoVanHauten]

Since all those cool kids can vibe code now their own synths, Reaktor as a framework might indeed be a good strategy to sell to this audience.

[Ficciones]

This is a good, more optimistic take:

https://www.blinksonic.com/2026/02/02/n ... -grounded/

I find that difficult to read because of all the telltale signs that it was at least partially written by AI.