Epic Games has now bought Sketchfab for an undisclosed amount. The 3D modeling storefront is now under one of the biggest dev studios out there.
In an official announcement, Epic Games reveals its newest acquisition under its umbrella. Their newest acquisition comes in the form of Sketchfab, one of the bigger 3D modeling buy and sell platforms out there.
Epic known for buying up development service companies
Over the past few years, Epic integrated a number of companies and studios under their umbrella. The company does not focus on game studios alone, but rather on development services too.
Back in 2018, Epic acquired Cloudgine and Kamu. Cloudgine was a cloud-gaming developer, while Kamu developed the Easy Anti-Cheat Software. A year later, they also acquired digital human creator 3Lateral and Agog, a script engine creator.
The latest acquisition by Epic was ArtStation, which was another professional artists’ marketplace. ArtStation itself did not change much, but it seems now Epic is buying another design storefront.
“By joining forces, Epic and Sketchfab will be able to make 3D, AR and VR content more accessible and grow the creator ecosystem, which are critical to an open and interconnected Metaverse,” notes Epic in a prepared statement.
“Going forward we will continue to enable all of the integrations in place with Sketchfab’s technology, as well as ensure the company’s offerings will remain compatible with each of the different tools and platforms they support.
“This includes wholeheartedly supporting Unity and other engines. Sketchfab will continue to operate as an independently branded service while collaborating closely with the Unreal Engine team.”
Sketchfab to reduce fees to 12%
Epic Games is looking to maximize its acquisition of Sketchfab. For starters, they are also looking to reduce the store fees to 12%, which is standard for the company. They note that they are doing so “3D creators will get even more value when using Sketchfab.”
“We built Sketchfab with a mission to empower a new era of creativity and provide a service for creators to showcase their work online and make 3D content accessible,” noted Alban Denoyel, CEO and co-founder of Sketchfab.
“Joining Epic will enable us to accelerate the development of Sketchfab and our powerful online toolset, all while providing an even greater experience for creators. We are proud to work alongside Epic to build the Metaverse and enable creators to take their work even further.”
Regardless of the Epic Game Store, the success of Epic Games comes from its service-oriented approach. More news should come in the weeks to come.
Featured image courtesy of steamXO/Flickr