I knew this day would come someday, I was prepared for this, there is nothing to be afraid of

 

sucks for everyone using anything from them.

 

I'm still taking bets on who will go bankrupt or be bought out next.

 

Someone will buy the whole thing or it will be picked apart by other companies, hopefully, most likely. This is why one should never buy hardware that becomes a doorstop if the company goes under. I just bought a Kontrol S88 MK3, and you can't use it without registering it online first (which should be written in BOLD right next to the product name. What if it at some point in the future it needs a factory reset and there's no online registration possibility anymore. Well, you live and learn.

 

What if the worst happens and you can no longer log in to unlock your device?

As a last resort, you can only file a complaint or a lawsuit. Some consumer protection groups share your view. In America, there are also class action lawsuits. You have to go to a lawyer with several affected parties and file a class action against NI. The goal should be for them to either unlock the device or remove the code from the software in the hardware.

 

https://blog.native-instruments.com/update-from-nick-williams-ceo-march-2026/

(bolded highlight mine)

"Strong interest from multiple parties" to acquire NI. I'm sure there's a lot of "interested" parties because NI owns some prime IP but we shall see if anything comes out of it.

 

Nick Williams, CEO of Native Instruments, says, and I quote verbatim:

" As part of the restructuring process, Native Instruments GmbH and some of our German subsidiaries will shortly initiate the expected legal steps, including, if necessary, the transition from preliminary insolvency proceedings to formal insolvency proceedings. These are the planned steps in the ongoing process. "

A lot of marketing fluff from the CEO—that's his job, after all, to present everything in a positive light.
The word "if necessary" is very vague and unhelpful. In short, nothing new!

 

Some 3rd party developers are already doing test migrations from Kontakt to Gorilla Engine and HISE. Kontkat is mature enough that we can get another decade of use with current version and available libraries. Apple Silicon is fully supported. Qualcomm PCs are another story.