Thingyverse is owned by Ultimaker, Printables by Prusa and makerworld belongs to bamboo. I don’t really want to donate my models to a for profit company, so are there any similar community run alternatives where I can upload to? Cheers
Thingyverse is owned by Ultimaker, Printables by Prusa and makerworld belongs to bamboo. I don’t really want to donate my models to a for profit company, so are there any similar community run alternatives where I can upload to? Cheers
Prusa are 100% a for-profit organisation/company, they don’t attempt to sell printers or services at anywhere near cost, which is absolutely fine too. They are very much what the term implies, which is that they’re a business that has (and wants) to earn money. To say they’re not a for-profit company is absolutely delusional.
Yes having a semi-opensource approach is their gimmick to get goodwill from people to get them to buy their printers.
Ok, but I didnt say they are not a for-profit company
You said that they were not a “real” for-profit company, which is just plain wrong. They have even monetised their printables.com platform, if that’s not a for-profit move in the most classical sense I don’t know what is.
Even non-profits need to make a profit somehow. They have operating expenses and need to build a cash cushion much like a for profit business.
Now, Prusa is and always has been a privately owned business and Josef wants to makes money, got to keep the lights on somehow and pay his employees you know. So Prusa is a normal business with a generally “Do no Evil” company outlook and the constraints of trying to be a successful business in the EU.
And despite the higher price that gets forced by trying to operate in the EU, this should make Prusa a more desirable place to do 3D printing business for all those who want to be socially responsible over another very popular brand based in China. But, evidently a cheaper price cuts a lot of slack for most.
Full disclosure: I own a Prusa Mk3s and a Bambu Mini.