Apple has acquired another company that could help it expand its Creator Studio subscription

Apple has acquired the company behind a color grading tool that could be included in a future version of Apple Creator Studio. According to an acquisition disclosure provided by the European Union, Apple in January acquired Patchflyer GmbH, the developer of a web-based color grading tool called Color.io. Color grading tools have been part of Creator Studio thanks to Final Cut Pro since the pack launched in January, but the acquisition will likely lead to even more professional features being added in the future.

The hire Apple is making alongside this acquisition also appears to be Jonathan Ochmann, the creator of Color.io, who announced he would shut down the tool in 2025 to join a company that would allow him to work “at a scale I could never achieve on my own.”

Whether Apple creates a custom color management tool with Ochmann’s help or integrates these features into existing Creator Studio apps, the company seems interested in strengthening its position as a competitor to Adobe. Prior to this acquisition, Apple acquired MotionVFX in March, a popular provider of visual effects templates and plugins. Creator Studio doesn’t have the same industry buy-in as Adobe Creative Cloud, but offering a slightly more affordable and user-friendly option might one day get people to switch – or never sign up for the Adobe subscription in the first place.

Creator Studio’s expansion also contributes to the company’s growing focus on services. Apple began offering more subscriptions under CEO Tim Cook to offset slowing iPhone sales and a regulatory environment less favorable to the company’s App Store model. Apparently, that won’t change once John Ternus takes over in the fall. The new CEO is reportedly excited to “continue to grow” the company’s services business, and improving Creator Studio may well be one of the first places the work happens.