IronFilm Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 4 hours ago, Jim Feeley said: I'd think Blackmagic might be a more likely candidate, though I don't think they have as much cash floating around as they did before (no idea, really). I mean, they acquired Fairlight...and most of the engineers came along (and last I heard were fairly happy there), and eyeon software (developers of fusion) and at least some of the engineers are still at BMD and happy (I was acquitted with Steve Roberts, eyeon's CEO and original developer and we usually have a quick catchup if we see each other and NAB). Atomos recently had their founder return back as CEO, seems they're keen to get charging ahead again. And they're already dabbling in timecode with their TCS Ltd purchase. Maybe Aaton would be a natural acquisition for Atomos?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Documentary Sound Guy Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 Yeah, Wisycom seems like a good candidate. Nagra and Sonosax are way too small ... I can't see them affording it. I agree that Blackmagic is probably the best fit. The stability and bug-proneness of their hardware annoys me, but they strike me as genuinely engineering-driven, so I can see the appreciating what Aaton has (since they wouldn't be buying market share). And, as someone else mentioned, they don't play in the sound space right now. Atomos is interesting ... they have already dabbled in timecode, so the interest in sound might be there (though their TC boxes are aimed at solo shooters, so maybe not a high end brand). I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Sidus (parent company of Deity and Aputure). They seem to have money, already have a hungry growing audio brand in Deity, and don't have a recorder presence. They are actively pursuing the upper end of the market (pricing aside), their Theos wireless system is intended to compete at a high level, and from what I've seen, stands a chance of doing some damage). I'm not sure exactly what they'd be buying for though; they would probably want to design something from scratch that can easily be manufactured in China with the rest of their product line. I doubt they'd keep the UI. 5 hours ago, Jim Feeley said: Also Aiwa, Sonic Foundry, some semiconductor companies and manufacturing plants, Audeze, and a bunch of other stuff. So they do acquire companies even when they have some in-house expertise. But Aaton I'd guess serves too narrow a market for Sony to acquire. Ok, I didn't know about that. Sony has some pretty narrow verticals ... they aren't afraid of low-volume niche markets for their microphones or broadcast cameras. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 59 minutes ago, The Documentary Sound Guy said: Yeah, Wisycom seems like a good candidate. Nagra and Sonosax are way too small ... I can't see them affording it. Maybe they can swoop in to buy it for €1 from the French Govt? 1 hour ago, The Documentary Sound Guy said: I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Sidus (parent company of Deity and Aputure). They seem to have money, already have a hungry growing audio brand in Deity, and don't have a recorder presence. They are actively pursuing the upper end of the market (pricing aside), their Theos wireless system is intended to compete at a high level, and from what I've seen, stands a chance of doing some damage). That's a good point, they might be interested. 1 hour ago, The Documentary Sound Guy said: I'm not sure exactly what they'd be buying for though; they would probably want to design something from scratch that can easily be manufactured in China with the rest of their product line. I doubt they'd keep the UI. Buying it for the brand name? And maybe the recorder software could be kept for the next iteration to be used. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul F Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 Atomos does not seem like a candidate. They reported a loss of $61 million on a revenue of $42 million with a loss of $10 million the previous year. Their stock stopped trading a year ago @$.065. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Documentary Sound Guy Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 1 minute ago, IronFilm said: Buying it for the brand name? And maybe the recorder software could be kept for the next iteration to be used. They already have Deity so I can't see them keeping Aaton ... but maybe for the Cantar product line prestige? Having talked to Andy Jones about UIs in the past, I'm pretty sure he (Deity) is opinionated enough about UIs that he would prefer to start from scratch rather than keeping the software. I don't think it's rocket science to code it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 https://www.societe.com/societe/aaton-digital-794022384.html I think it might be all tied up legal in the french courts such as that there isn't even any IP to be bought out by someone else if they wanted to? It's just.... "gone"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dejan Ceko Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 8 hours ago, Mark LeBlanc said: With that I would see the only "Fit" to purchase the Aaton assets is a Wireless company looking to join the Ecosystem world.. Oh man , it would be great just to see chassis for fictitious Aaton wireless system Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Documentary Sound Guy Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 1 hour ago, IronFilm said: https://www.societe.com/societe/aaton-digital-794022384.html I think it might be all tied up legal in the french courts such as that there isn't even any IP to be bought out by someone else if they wanted to? It's just.... "gone"? If they are like North American courts, they would probably consider an offer for the IP as part of the receivership process to recover more value for the creditors (especially if a major creditor seeks out a buyer) as part of the liquidation process. But, you are right that an external company probably can't just step in and buy the IP ... any acquisition at this point would be mediated by the courts, and would involve paying the creditors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Tresch Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 13 hours ago, The Documentary Sound Guy said: Yeah, Wisycom seems like a good candidate. Nagra and Sonosax are way too small ... I can't see them affording it. Cantar is a niche product. Expensive to make due to R&D and software development. You better be small not to make bankruptcy or you would have to kill the product and make something for the masses on a lower budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Feeley Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 4 hours ago, Patrick Tresch said: Cantar is a niche product. Expensive to make due to R&D and software development. You better be small not to make bankruptcy or you would have to kill the product and make something for the masses on a lower budget. If someone acquires Aaton's assets, I don't think they'll revive Cantar as it stands now. I'd think a buyer would be after patents, people, and prestige. Sorry to keep bringing up BMD, but look at their acquisitions of da Vinci Systems, Fairlight, and eyeon; all makers of expensive niche products and the first two (at least) arguably with little chance of future sales. Yet all have contributed to Grant Petty's vision of world domination (or at least of his vision for low-cost yet capable post software). Also, I'm pretty sure BMD didn't pay much for those acquisitions. I don't know if Aaton has any valuable patents, and I don't know if the team has already dispersed. But I think the name still has some cachet. But again, I mainly hope the people associated with Aaton land in a good place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 2 hours ago, Jim Feeley said: Yet all have contributed to Grant Petty's vision of world domination Aaton I could imagine being part of the vision of world domination?? Imagine a world where the metadata on the sound recorders and the cameras get shared automatically! So you're always on the same scene/setup/take. (heck, even get the focal length too being recorded to both the sound recorder and the camera! And all the other data) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Tresch Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 So the most logic step considering : metadata between camera and sound with a world domination in the field of cinema production, would be for Arri to buy Aaton ... But usually Arri develops the idea from others to make "their" stuff. They don't like to buy companies. The king is dead long live the king. Pat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Documentary Sound Guy Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 Arri already partnered with Sonosax ... so that seems like a more logical route to shared metadata than anything with Aaton. Other than they are both French companies I suppose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Immoral Mr Teas Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 4 hours ago, Patrick Tresch said: So the most logic step considering : metadata between camera and sound with a world domination in the field of cinema production, would be for Arri to buy Aaton ... But usually Arri develops the idea from others to make "their" stuff. They don't like to buy companies. The king is dead long live the king. Pat 3 hours ago, The Documentary Sound Guy said: Arri already partnered with Sonosax ... so that seems like a more logical route to shared metadata than anything with Aaton. Other than they are both French companies I suppose. and unquoted from higher up - Nagra small? I thought they were a huge company? I guess I haven't really looked in a while as I'm more interested in their vintage pro audio reel to reels ... but why would they want to buy up a camera company? Is anyone talking about this on film/broadcast camera forums? I wonder what ideas are being flown there ... ? J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pt Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 6 hours ago, The Documentary Sound Guy said: Arri already partnered with Sonosax ... so that seems like a more logical route to shared metadata than anything with Aaton. Other than they are both French companies I suppose. Sonosax is Swiss Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Documentary Sound Guy Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 3 hours ago, pt said: Sonosax is Swiss Sorry, was intending to refer to Arri and Aaton ... meaning their common nationality was a reason for Arri to buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanieldH Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 Bavaria is not in France. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Documentary Sound Guy Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 Huh, I could have sworn Arri was French. I stand corrected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
borjam Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 2 hours ago, The Documentary Sound Guy said: Huh, I could have sworn Arri was French. I stand corrected. Aaton is French, they are in Grenoble. Arri is German. That said, being both in the EU old nationalities no longer matter much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted February 27 Report Share Posted February 27 Another German invasion of France! ARRI takes over Aaton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Perkins Posted February 27 Report Share Posted February 27 Probably a good thing for the sound side of Aaton, and probably the end of any support for their cameras (if they were still doing any). MANY years ago Arri sold a reel-to-reel recorder under their name that was pretty good, simpler and cheaper than Nagra. It was a re-badged Tandberg that was sold through Arri dealers ("Arrivox-Tandberg"), so there is some precedent for Arri selling audio gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrimic Posted February 28 Report Share Posted February 28 Here is the message posted on LinkedIn by the team of Aaton Digital: We are sad to announce that the Aaton-Digital adventure ended on February 15, 2024 by a court judgment. Three years of covid-19 followed by a long strike by cinema professionals have profoundly affected our sales. Faced with no prospects, the company was liquidated. We thank all our users and partners for their commitment and passion during the ten years we have gone through together Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramallo Posted February 29 Report Share Posted February 29 On 2/23/2024 at 10:40 AM, Tong0615 said: I think the cooperation between Steinberg and Yamaha is a positive example. Well, Yamaha and Steinberg IMMO is a bad example, they have just eliminated the Nuage ecosystem, leaving their users stranded In my opinion, there wasn't much of a market for a recorder worth more than €15,000, all the ones that had to be sold were sold. They also made a big mistake with the Cantar Mini, they limited it too much so as not to compete with the X3, and they killed it. 10 inputs (4x mic, x2 line and 4x AES) and 16 tracks was absurd, it took a long time to get the Dante option (And I could have it from the beginning) My feeling is with the Aaton workers, especially with Sebastian On 2/24/2024 at 11:55 PM, KC Kelly said: I don't know much about it, but wouldn't Sonosax or Nagra Audio be more likely to acquire rights to Aaton? Nagra is dead as a pro audio manufacturer, a long time ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJ MMF Posted March 11 Report Share Posted March 11 Was so sad to hear about Aaton. I hoped a Cantar would be my next recorder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Locatelli Posted March 15 Report Share Posted March 15 Hi all. As an Aaton user, without knowing what will happen to service repair facilities, the thing that scares me the most is braking the ON/OFF button. I had two broken buttons before, fixed one in France and the other broke time after, headphone volume. Now I try touch the machine as less as I can. everything with external keyboard. But the ON/OFF button... Does any one know if there is a combinations of buttons to turn it ON/OFF? Maybe an Aaton technician reads this lines and knows what to do in a case like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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