Polaroid Corporation was founded in 1937 by Edwin H. Land. It is most famous for its instant film cameras, which reached the market in 1948, and continue to be the company's flagship product line. The company's original dominant market was in polarized sunglasses, an outgrowth of Land's self-guided research in polarization after leaving Harvard University at the age of 17 (he later returned to Harvard to continue his research). Image File history File links PolaroidLogo. ... Edwin Herbert Land Edwin Herbert Land (May 12, 1909 â€“ March 1, 1991) was an American scientist and inventor. ... Instant film is a photographic film that is designed to be used in an instant camera. ... This article is about the photographing device. ... This article treats polarization in electrodynamics. ... Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses (RB2132 901L) Sunglasses are a visual aid, variously termed spectacles or glasses, which feature lenses that are coloured or darkened to prevent strong light from reaching the eyes. ... In electrodynamics, polarization (also spelled polarisation) is the property of electromagnetic waves, such as light, that describes the direction of their transverse electric field. ... Harvard University (incorporated as The President and Fellows of Harvard College) is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA and a member of the Ivy League. ...

After Polaroid defeated Kodak in a patent battle, Kodak left the instant camera business on January 9, 1986.^[1] Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE: EK) is a large multinational public company producing photographic equipment. ... For other uses, see Patent (disambiguation). ... An instant camera is a type of camera with self-developing film. ... is the 9th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ...

Polaroid managed to develop an instant movie system, Polavision, based on the Dufaycolor process. The product was too late to market and had to compete with the upcoming video based systems. As a result most of the manufactured product was sold off as a job lot at immense cost to the company. Polavision was an instant movie camera system launched by Polaroid in the late 1970s. ... Dufaycolor was an early British/French additive colour photographic film process for motion pictures. ...

The company entered the digital photography market late in the game, and as a result has neither a significant market share nor significant innovation in this area. 10 MP Nikon D200 and a Nikon film scanner The Canon EOS 350D The Canon PowerShot A95 Digital photography, as opposed to film photography, uses electronic devices to record and capture the image as binary data. ...

On October 11, 2001, Polaroid Corporation filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Almost all the company's assets (including the "Polaroid" name itself) were sold to a subsidiary of Bank One. They went on to form a new company, which also operates under the name "Polaroid Corporation".^[2] It continues to sell Polaroid-branded products and has extensively licensed the name to other companies. is the 284th day of the year (285th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... Chapter 11 is a chapter of the United States Bankruptcy Code, which permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. ... Notice of closure stuck on the door of a computer store the day after its parent company, Granville Technology Group Ltd, declared bankruptcy (strictly, put into administration—see text) in the United Kingdom. ... Bank One, based in Chicago, Illinois, was the sixth-largest bank in the United States. ...

The renamed "old" Polaroid now exists solely as an administrative shell.^[3] Its bankruptcy was widely believed to be the result of the failure of its senior management to anticipate the effect of digital cameras on its film business. Digital cameras are a remarkable advance in technology. ...

Bankruptcy and the "new" Polaroid Corporation

"Chapter 11" controversy

The original Polaroid Corporation filed for federal bankruptcy protection on October 11, 2001. The outcome was that within ten months, most of the business (including the "Polaroid" name itself^[4] and non-bankrupt foreign subsidiaries) had been sold to Bank One's One Equity Partners (OEP). OEP Imaging Corporation then changed its name to Polaroid Holding Company (PHC).^[5][6] However, this new company operates using the name of its bankrupt predecessor, Polaroid Corporation.^[2] Notice of closure stuck on the door of a computer store the day after its parent company, Granville Technology Group Ltd, declared bankruptcy (strictly, put into administration—see text) in the United Kingdom. ... is the 284th day of the year (285th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... Bank One, based in Chicago, Illinois, was the sixth-largest bank in the United States. ...

As part of the settlement, the original Polaroid Corporation changed its name to Primary PDC, Inc.^[5][3] Having sold its assets, it was now effectively nothing more than an administrative shell. Primary PDC received approximately 35 percent of the "new" Polaroid, which was to be distributed to its unsecured creditors^[5] (including bondholders.^[7]) As of late 2006, Primary PDC remains in existence under Chapter 11 protection, but conducts no commercial business and has no employees.^[6] An unsecured creditor is a creditor which is not a preferential creditor and which does not have the benefit of any security interests over the assets of the debtor. ... For alternative meanings, see bond (a disambiguation page). ... 2006 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Significant criticism surrounded this "takeover" because the process left executives of the company with large bonuses, while stockholders, as well as current and retired employees, were left with nothing.^[7]

Use of Polaroid brand following bankruptcy

Since the bankruptcy, the Polaroid brand has been licensed for use on other products with the assistance of Skadden Arrps Slate Meager & Flom. In September 2002, World Wide Licenses, a subsidiary of The Character Group plc, was granted the exclusive rights for three years to manufacture and sell digital cameras under the Polaroid brand for distribution internationally.^[8]Polaroid branded LCDs and plasma televisions and portable DVD players have also appeared on the market. Liquid crystal display television is, as indicated by its name, a television using LCD technology (generally TFT), as opposed to cathode ray or plasma for its visual output. ... A plasma display is an emissive flat panel display where light is created by phosphors excited by a plasma discharge between two flat panels of glass. ... The inside of a DVD player A DVD player is a device not only playing discs produced under the DVD Video standard but also playing discs under the standard of DVD Audio. ...

On April 27, 2005, Petters Group Worldwide announced its acquisition of PHC. Petters has in the past bought up failed companies with well-known names for the value of those names. The same year, Flextronics purchased Polaroid's manufacturing operations and the decision was made to send most of the manufacturing to China. ^[9] Polaroid continues to market many types of instant film and cameras for the time being, although new research and development on instant photography may be seen to be at a standstill, with no new products planned and many current products being phased out of production.^{[citation needed]} April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 248 days remaining. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Petters Group Worldwide is a privately-held company based in Minnetonka, Minnesota in the United States. ... Flextronics International Ltd. ...

Corporate sponsorship of motorsports

In the 1990s, Polaroid was involved in the corporate sponsorship of NASCAR racing. For several years, Polaroid was the principle sponsor of NASCAR's 125 mile Featherlite Modified race at Watkins Glen and it was called the "Polaroid 125"[1]. The Polaroid name was also used in sponsorship in the NASCAR Busch series. In 1992, Polaroid was the principle sponsor of female NASCAR driver Shawna Robinson's #25 oldsmobileShawna Robinson in the Busch Series. They continued as her principle sponsor when she moved to the other car numbers in 1993 and 1994[2]. Shawna Robinson (born November 30, 1964 in Des Moines, Iowa) is a NASCAR driver. ...

More recently, the Polaroid name has been associated with the NOPI drift series.

See also

• List of Polaroid instant cameras
• List of United States companies
• Instant camera
• Polaroid - a type of light-polarising material developed by Edwin H. Land
• 3-D Film
• Polacolor
• Zero-Ink Printing

This is a list of the instant cameras sold by the Polaroid Corporation. ... This is a list of companies from the United States: #Current companies #Former companies, including acquired and merged ones #By industry #By location #See also Contents: Top - 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U... An instant camera is a type of camera with self-developing film. ... Polaroid is the name of a type of synthetic plastic sheet which is used to polarise light. ... In film, the term 3-D (or 3D) is used to describe any visual presentation system that attempts to maintain or recreate moving images of the third dimension, the illusion of depth as seen by the viewer. ... Polacolor was a post-World War II motion picture color process developed by the Polaroid Corporation. ... For other uses, see Zink (disambiguation). ...

References

Also see: 2002 (number). ... is the 212th day of the year (213th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 334th day of the year (335th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 334th day of the year (335th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 334th day of the year (335th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 334th day of the year (335th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 39th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• The "new" Polaroid Corporation home page (polaroid.com)
  • Company history (polaroid.com)
• Primary PDC home page - Administrative shell of the "old" Polaroid Corporation; includes information on bankruptcy.
• Analysis of the Polaroid bankruptcy (cfo.com)- includes discussion of the role of Polaroid executives in the bankruptcy proceedings.
• Polaroid & Corporate Bankruptcy statement - by U.S. congressman, Bill Delahunt.
• 台灣拍立得攝影同好會 Taiwan Polaroid Photo Ruten Club
• The Branding of Polaroid - Paul Giambarba on Polaroid's branding, including background information on the company