MakerBot: Difference between revisions
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}}'''[[wikipedia:MakerBot|MakerBot Industries, LLC]]''' was an American technology company specializing in the design and manufacture of 3D printing peripherals and accessories. Originally | }}'''[[wikipedia:MakerBot|MakerBot Industries, LLC]]''' was an American technology company specializing in the design and manufacture of 3D printing peripherals and accessories. Originally an offshoot of the [[wikipedia:RepRap|RepRap]] project, MakerBot initially produced open-source kit printers and operated the public project repository Thingiverse, which MakerBot's founders created in 2008. In 2012, with the launch of it's Replicator 2 3D printer, MakerBot fully pivoted to closed-source consumer and enterprise machines. It was acquired by [[Stratasys]] in June 2013.<ref>https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyclay/2013/06/19/3d-printing-company-makerbot-acquired-in-604-million-deal/#4f6d94091ef8</ref> | ||
MakerBot was at one point, the market leader in desktop FDM 3D printers, but | MakerBot was at one point, the market leader in desktop FDM 3D printers, but its market dominance was steadily eroded by an explosion in popularity of less-expensive, open-source competitors.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20171027020235/https://fortune.com/2015/11/27/why-makerbot-and-3d-systems-are-losing-the-desktop-3d-market/</ref> Its closed-source machines and business practices proved to be unpopular with the largely DIY-focused maker community. Starting in 2015, MakerBot began to focus more on the enterprise and education markets, ultimately abandoning the consumer market by 2017. It also laid off hundreds of employees during this time.<ref>https://www.vice.com/en/article/makerbot-just-laid-off-20-percent-of-its-staff/</ref><ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20170702132043/https://fortune.com/2017/02/15/makerbot-3d-printing-layoffs/</ref> | ||
On August 31, 2022, Stratasys finalized a merger between MakerBot and its long-time market competitor Ultimaker.<ref>https://investors.stratasys.com/news-events/press-releases/detail/793/stratasys-completes-merger-of-makerbot-with-ultimaker</ref> The merged company is known as Ultimaker, with the MakerBot branding only retained for its Sketch line of education-focused 3D printers. | On August 31, 2022, Stratasys finalized a merger between MakerBot and its long-time market competitor Ultimaker.<ref>https://investors.stratasys.com/news-events/press-releases/detail/793/stratasys-completes-merger-of-makerbot-with-ultimaker</ref> The merged company is known as Ultimaker, with the MakerBot branding only retained for its Sketch line of education-focused 3D printers. | ||
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==Controversies==<!-- add a preamble here --> | ==Controversies==<!-- add a preamble here --> | ||
The company has been involved in a number of controversies dating as far back as 2012, spanning a variety of issues and subjects. | |||
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|MakerBot abandoned its original open-source business practices in favor of developing closed-source machines with proprietary components and software. | |MakerBot abandoned its original open-source business practices in favor of developing closed-source machines with proprietary components and software.<ref>https://www.cnet.com/tech/tech-industry/pulling-back-from-open-source-hardware-makerbot-angers-some-adherents/</ref> | ||
|The move was unpopular with consumers, and MakerBot began to lose its market share to less-expensive, open-source 3D printers over the course of the next decade. | |The move was unpopular with consumers, and MakerBot began to lose its market share to less-expensive, open-source 3D printers over the course of the next decade. | ||
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==References== | |||
<references /> | <references /> | ||
<references group="Video References" /> | <references group="Video References" /> | ||
[[Category:MakerBot Industries]] | |||
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