Adobe Acquires 3D Sculpting Tool as Facebook Shifts VR Focus
Facebook sells its VR sculpting software Oculus Medium to Adobe, signaling a strategic shift away from non-gaming creative tools. The move allows Adobe to integrate the niche software into its existing product ecosystem.
Facebook sells Oculus Medium, a 3D virtual reality sculpting tool for creatives, to Adobe. This transaction signifies a broader rethinking within Facebook about which virtual reality projects the company tackles in-house. Oculus pours a significant amount of money into Medium over the years, and attaching a proper price tag to the niche software creates high expectations for its future performance.
Unlike the quiet shutdown of Oculus Story Studio, Facebook takes the time to properly spin out Medium to preserve the well-liked application. The tool finds a natural home at Adobe, where direct integration with the company's other creative products undoubtedly improves the software. While the financial terms of the acquisition remain undisclosed, the transition ensures the survival of the small but dedicated community that relies on the platform.
This sale, paired with the recent purchase of Beat Saber-maker Beat Games, clearly encapsulates the current VR content strategy of Oculus. Facebook pulls back investment from non-gaming creative tools and deprioritizes cinematic VR content in order to aggressively acquire game studios and scale gaming titles. This pragmatic approach suggests that the division feels content with its hardware progress and is now focusing entirely on gaming to drive user engagement.