Yamaha to acquire Disguise in expansion of visual technology business

Yamaha Corporation has announced plans to acquire visual technology company Disguise for approximately $283 million, expanding its business beyond audio equipment into visual production technology for live events, entertainment venues and film production.

The Japanese company agreed to acquire Butterfly Topco, Disguise’s parent company, from an ownership group led by Carlyle Group. The transaction was expected to close in December, with the final purchase price subject to adjustments at closing.

The acquisition would expand Yamaha’s presence in live entertainment and immersive experiences by combining its audio technologies with Disguise’s video production and visualization tools.

Yamaha planned to expand distribution of Disguise products and services across Japan, Asia and other markets. The companies also intended to pursue cross-selling opportunities and jointly develop products that integrate audio and video technologies.

The acquisition would also support Yamaha’s expansion into sports arenas, concert venues and other entertainment environments, as well as creative applications involving its Vocaloid software.

Disguise provides software, hardware and technical services for visual productions spanning concert touring, broadcast, film, theater and location-based entertainment. Its technology has been used on tours by Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny, as well as at venues including the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, Stade de France in Paris and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.

In broadcast production, Disguise has maintained a presence among high-end customers, particularly in virtual production and extended reality (XR) applications. However, its adoption has remained concentrated at the upper end of the market, where it has faced growing competition from alternative Unreal Engine-based production systems.

Disguise expanded its capabilities through acquisitions of Meptik, Polygon Labs, Mapping Matter and Previz, adding technologies and services for virtual production, creative development and visualization.

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Financial information disclosed by Yamaha showed Butterfly Topco’s consolidated annual revenue declined from £67 million in 2023 and 2024 to £60 million in 2025. Consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization fell from £7.6 million in 2023 to £4.6 million in 2025.

Carlyle, which invested in Disguise in 2021, reported that the company’s sales had more than tripled during its ownership and that EBITDA margins had improved substantially.

“Welcoming Disguise marks a major step for Yamaha as we move beyond the traditional boundaries of musical instruments and audio equipment to create new experiential value centred on sound and music,” said Atsushi Yamaura, president and representative executive officer of Yamaha Corporation.

“From our first conversations, it was clear Yamaha understood what makes Disguise special: our people, our customers, and our pace of innovation,” said Fernando Küfer, CEO of Disguise.

Küfer said Yamaha was committed to continued investment in Disguise’s employees, technology platform and partner network.

The companies said Disguise would retain its brand identity and existing customer and partner relationships following the acquisition. Additional details about a joint product roadmap were expected in 2027.