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The CEO of Australian start-up Clipchamp said Microsoft would help it seize new opportunities in the video market.
Microsoft is looking to help users embrace video editing with the acquisition of Brisbane-based Clipchamp. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Clipchamp develops in-browser video creation and editing software. The Australian start-up launched in 2014 and now has more than 17m registered users.
Its platform provides a library of filters, transitions and stock media, along with multi-track audio and video compositing tools. It was built with social media in mind, giving output styles and aspect ratios for different platforms including Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
In a blog post announcing the deal, Chris Pratley, corporate-vice president of Microsoft’s Office media group, wrote that video used to be a medium largely preserved for professionals.
“That has changed. More and more of us are feeling we can make watchable, useful or fun videos the way we might have typed an email before or snapped a photo. Video is establishing itself as a new type of ‘document’ for business, big and small, used inside and outside organisations to pitch an idea, explain a process or communicate with team members.
“Small business owners, marketers, influencers, students, educators, families and information workers of all types need the capability to make great videos with minimal effort. Whether it’s a 10-second social media ad, a two-minute pitch for a product, or a 20-minute instructional video, Clipchamp and Microsoft will provide the tools and experience you need.”
Pratley added that the web app would be a “natural fit” to extend Microsoft 365’s capabilities for personal, education and business users.
‘Abundance of opportunity’
Microsoft has already worked with the video-editing start-up. In July of this year, Clipchamp launched an app specifically for Windows users and it also introduced an integration with Microsoft OneDrive.
At the time of that announcement, Clipchamp revealed that video exports on its platform were up 186pc in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period last year. It attributed this rise to the increase in remote work during the pandemic, with businesses and the general population turning to video for communication.
It said more than 390,000 companies use its software, with customers including Zendesk.
In a blog post on the Clipchamp website this week, CEO and co-founder Alexander Dreiling said there is “absolutely an abundance of opportunity” in the video space.
“We just need to figure out how to seize it,” he added. “Inside Microsoft, we can approach seizing our opportunity in entirely new ways.”
Microsoft has eyed the growing video market in the past. In 2018, it acquired Flipgrid, which lets students record and share videos, and it also expressed an interest in taking over TikTok’s US business last year.
The news comes a few weeks after Adobe said it would buy video-collaboration software start-up Frame.io in a $1.275bn deal.
