07-21-2022: Epic Games acquired Sketchfab - the leading repository for 3D files on the web

Although Sketchfab was not a tool dedicated strictly to the 3D printing industry, many designers used it for promoting and sharing their products.

On July 21, 2021, Epic Games – one of the biggest players in the video game market, creator of UnrealEngine as well as Fortnite, GearsofWar, ShadowComplex, and InfinityBlade games, announced the acquisition of the Sketchfab platform. The New York-based startup provided a platform for uploading, downloading, viewing, sharing, selling, and buying 3D files.

Sketchfab is a 3D creation tool available on all major browsers and operating systems. It also works with VR headsets. Users can upload 3D models from 3D modeling apps, such as Blender, 3ds Max, Maya, Cinema 4D, and Substance Painter.

But Sketchfab, in addition to having a vast online portfolio of 3D designers, offers many social features, allowing for commenting on and curating published projects. Creators can easily post their work and draw inspiration from others. Users can upload their projects, buy 3D models from other creators, and build a community. In 2021, at the time of the acquisition, the platform hosted over 4 million 3D assets.

The acquisition of Sketchfab by Epic Games brought several benefits - the sales commission was reduced to 12%, and all features available in the Plus version were made free. This meant that uploading larger files no longer required additional fees. All users who had purchased the Plus plan were upgraded to the Pro plan, with the option to downgrade to the free version if desired. The Pro plan allowed for the upload of 50 3D models instead of 30.

Thanks to the financial and technological support of Epic Games, Sketchfab could develop its 3D and AR technologies, offering users advanced tools for creating, sharing, and displaying 3D models in augmented reality. The platform underwent several performance improvements, and new features were added, such as better collection management tools and more advanced model editing options.

Sketchfab users also gained access to some of the resources and tools offered by Epic Games - free 3D models that can be used in projects executed on the Unreal Engine.