Apple Inc. (AAPL) Acquires SnappyCam App From John Papandriopoulos, Credited in Rewriting JPEG Algorithms

Apple Inc. has made another acquisition, and it concerns a camera-function business.

According to The Guardian, Apple bought Snappy Labs, which consisted of one sole employee.

Snappy Labs launched SnappyCam in mid-2013 by John Papandriopoulos, an Australian Ph.D in electrical engineering currently living in San Francisco.

Papandriopoulos has been credited in rewriting the JPEG algorithm thus creating a faster camera app capable of capturing full-resolution photography at up to 20 frames per second. The creation by Papandriopoulos put the app on par with professional "burst shoot" systems, as The Guardian noted.

The SnappyCam app, which cost $0.99 to purchase from the Apple App Store, has since been removed for download. The app allowed iPhones to capture 20 8-megapixel photos per second.

The app on an iPhone was able to take photography at a better rate than the Samsung Galaxy S4.

As Papandriopoulos noted on his blog in 2013, "Let's put this into perspective. The closest competitor to the iPhone 5 is the Samsung Galaxy S4. Its 'best shot' camera feature shoots up to 20 pictures continuously at full-sensor resolution, with each photo 0.1333 sec apart: an average of just 7.5 photos/sec. SnappyCam is able to deliver over 250 [percent] faster continuous shooting performance on the iPhone 5, in pure software, on a hardware rig that's 10 months older than the Galaxy S4."

Apple delivered a generic statement regarding the purchase of Snappy Labs, stating, "Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans."

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