Adobe's Macromedia takeover clears final hurdle

Adobe's multi-billion dollar takeover of rival software developer Macromedia has received regulatory clearance, and is expected to be completed on 3 December.

Adobe announced late on Thursday that it and Macromedia have either received or been notified they will receive all regulatory clearances necessary to complete the acquisition, which will cost Adobe $3.4bn (£1.9bn).

This follows an investigation by the US Justice Department, which requested additional information on both companies' Web-authoring, design and vector graphics illustration products.

Adobe also said it would discuss the combined company's fiscal 2006 outlook on 15 December.

The takeover was announced on 18 April this year, when Adobe chief executive Bruce Chizen promised that it would yield cost savings. This sparked speculation that some software applications could be axed once it was completed.

In the graphics market, Adobe's Photoshop and Illustrator are the market leaders ahead of Macromedia's competing Fireworks and Freehand. In Web design, Macromedia has the established DreamWeaver against Adobe's more recent GoLive product.