Adobe acquired Macromedia in 2005 for about $3.4 billion, adding Flash to its products.
Macromedia was founded in 1992 through the merger of Authorware and MacroMind-Paracomp. It became known for web-creation and multimedia tools, especially Macromedia Flash, Dreamweaver, and Director.
Adobe announced the acquisition in April 2005, and the transaction was completed later that year. The purchase combined Adobe’s document and creative software with Macromedia’s strong position in interactive web design. Adobe’s own products included Photoshop, Illustrator, and Acrobat.
Flash became a widely used browser plug-in for animations, games, and video, although Adobe later ended support for Flash Player on December 31, 2020. The acquisition is therefore a historical milestone in web publishing, rather than a current product merger.