Paris-New York. Well known to archaeologists, artists, but also art historians interested in digital technology, Sketchfab is one of the main sites for hosting and viewing 3D files online. Launched in 2011-2012, between Paris and New York, the platform has gradually established itself as a major player in this sector and today has more than ten million users. It notably houses a “cultural and historical heritage” section which, in 2019, exceeded the milestone of 100,000 models hosted.
From the Rosetta Stone (see ill.) to the famous Polar bear from Pompon, through a multitude of archaeological sites, historical monuments and works of art of all kinds, Sketchfab is a directory of 3D files of great richness and variety. It is powered, on a collaborative model, and used by individual users, private companies, but also by numerous cultural institutions.
Modeling of the castle of Monrecour (Dordogne).
© Sketchfab
Free and open file hosting
Although a private and commercial platform, Sketchfab offers the possibility of hosting and sharing reusable content for free and with open access thanks to the Creative Commons licensing system. Thus, in 2019, the “cultural and historical heritage” section housed more than 20,000 models which were available to everyone and immediately downloadable. They can easily be used beyond Sketchfab and be reused in various ways, from teaching and research to creating a video game or even printing a 3D model. This positioning is the result of a strategy aimed at reaching a critical mass of users and data as quickly as possible in order to make itself indispensable, despite economic losses financed by fundraising, with the aim of being able to monetize as best as possible. their solution.
Driven by the co-founders of Sketchfab, Alban Denoyle, Cédric Pinson and Pierre-Antoine Passet, this strategy has made it possible to become the main existing 3D player and also to establish itself as the number one site in this field. This tactic was embodied in the heritage field with the establishment of a multitude of partnerships making it possible to host and present vast digitized collections as well as portfolios from numerous museums, universities, but also artists, designers and architects to across the world.
This accessibility model has nevertheless been strongly called into question for some time with the acquisition of Sketchfab by Epic Games in 2021. Heavyweight in the video game sector, this company is known worldwide for “Fortnite” or the “Gears of Wars”, she is also the owner of the Unreal Engine. Epic Games launched its new unified platform – FAB – in October 2024, within which the publisher brings together all its digital resource offerings (Quixel, ArtStation Marketplace, etc.) including those offered by Sketchfab. Problem: this forced migration is not complete, Epic Games specifies that models shared under free and open access licenses (CC0, CC BY-ShareAlike, CC BY-NonCommercial, or CC BY-NoDerivatives) cannot be transferred to FAB, since at this stage, the new platform does not manage these distribution methods. There are therefore many concerns among Sketchfab users, most of whom are skeptical of the new model proposed, and fearing the shutdown of the platform, which, according to them, would lead to a vast loss of precious data.
A petition to maintain the platform
At the initiative of a user (Emily Esser), a petition, entitled “Keeping Sketchfab alive: Preserving free access to 3D art and museum collections” was launched. According to its instigator, stopping this platform and changing its model would be “the virtual equivalent of the burning of the library of Alexandria”. For its part, the American giant is procrastinating and wants to be reassuring. Questioned by Games Industry, Bill Clifford, vice-president of Epic Games specifies that “we will not remove anyone’s content under any circumstances, it is not our responsibility to do so”. Still according to him, Epic Games would have “ clearly stated that nothing will change today on Sketchfab outside of the store”.
Beyond the concerns and the mobilization around this platform, alternatives and counter-models exist and are trying to be put in place, particularly in the field of archaeology, with the National Conservatory of 3D Data (CND3D). Likewise, the DSIUN of the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne is currently working on the creation of its own hosting and distribution solution according to Vincenzo Capozzoli, lecturer in digital archaeology.
