Editing Polaroid Corporation (section)

== History ==

===Founding and success===
{{expand section| Content on the firms introduction of revolutionary instant photography which is completely absent from this history|date=April 2022}}
[[File:Polaroid-1960.svg|thumb|250x250px|Polaroid logo from 1962 to 1991, designed by [[Paul Giambarba]]<ref>{{Cite web|date=2019-09-19|title=Vintage Polaroid Branding and Packaging by Paul Giambarba|url=https://imjustcreative.com/original-polaroid-branding-by-paul-giambarba/2019/09/19|url-status=live|access-date=2021-10-23|website=The Logo Smith|archive-date=2021-10-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211024001120/https://imjustcreative.com/original-polaroid-branding-by-paul-giambarba/2019/09/19}}</ref>]]
[[File:Polaroid 80B Highlander instant camera.jpg|thumb|Polaroid 80B Highlander instant camera made in the USA, circa 1959]] [[File:Polaroid 3000 Speed Type 47 Rollfilm Expired June 1962.jpg|thumb|Polaroid 3000 Speed Type 47 Rollfilm Expired June 1962]][[File:Polaroid Automatic 350 instant camera.jpg|thumb|Polaroid Automatic 350 instant camera, made from 1969 to 1971, MSRP $150]] [[File:Polaroid 430.jpg|thumb|Polaroid 430 Land Camera]] [[File:Polaroid SX-70 Land Camera model 2 instant camera.jpg|thumb|Polaroid SX-70 Land Camera model 2 instant camera, made in the USA circa 1972 to 1974]] [[File:Polaroid Sun Autofocus 660 instant camera.jpg|thumb|Polaroid Sun Autofocus 660 instant camera, circa 1987]] [[File:Polaroid OneStep Autofocus SE.jpg|thumb|Polaroid OneStep Autofocus SE instant camera, made in the United Kingdom circa 1997]]
[[File:Polaroid Snap Android Smartphone (16675935440).jpg|thumb|Polaroid Snap Android smartphone]]

The original Polaroid Corporation was founded in [[Cambridge, Massachusetts]], by Edwin Land and George W. Wheelwright III in 1937.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Rael|first=Trula J.|date=November 9, 2017|title="Just One of the Boys": Edwin Land and The Polaroid Corporation|work=The Harvard Crimson|url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2017/11/9/edwin-land-and-the-polaroid-corporation/|access-date=2020-08-13|archive-date=2020-08-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806074245/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2017/11/9/edwin-land-and-the-polaroid-corporation/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Deutsch|first=Claudia H.|date=2001-03-03|title=G. W. Wheelwright III, 97, Dies; Co-Founder of Polaroid|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/03/business/g-w-wheelwright-iii-97-dies-co-founder-of-polaroid.html|access-date=2020-08-13|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=2020-09-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200911091440/https://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/03/business/g-w-wheelwright-iii-97-dies-co-founder-of-polaroid.html|url-status=live}}</ref> It has been described by ''[[The Boston Globe]]'' as a "juggernaut of innovation", and "the [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] of its time" with a "leader in [[Edwin Land]], a scientist who guided the company as the founding CEO for four decades".<ref name="boston-history-polaroid" /> Polaroid’s initial market was in [[polarized sunglasses]] — spawned from Land’s self-guided research in light [[Polarization (waves)|polarization]]. Land, having completed his freshman year at [[Harvard University]], left to pursue this market, resulting in Polaroid's birth. Land later returned to Harvard to continue his research.<ref>Mervis, Stanley H. "Memorial Tributes" National Academy of Engineering 7 National Academies Press, 1947: page 129. {{ISBN|978-0-309-05146-0}} {{doi|10.17226/4779}}</ref> Polaroid, owning patents to its polarizer technology, got its start by employing polarization in products that included 3-D movies and protective goggles for [[Dogs in warfare|military dogs]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Earls |first1=Alan |last2=Rohani |first2=Nasrin |title=Polaroid |date=2005 |publisher=Arcadia |location=Charleston, SC |isbn=9781531621797 |page=41}}</ref> During World War II, Polaroid designed and manufactured numerous products for the armed services including an infrared night viewing device. He led the company as CEO for 43 years. He headed the Polaroid Corporation, developing it from a small research and marketing firm into a well-known high-tech company. [[Kodak]] was a customer for some of Land's polarizing products. Recognized by most as the father of instant photography, he included all the operations of a darkroom inside the film itself. He gave the first public demonstration of his new [[Land Camera]] in February 1947; from then until 1972, the user had to release the film manually, pull a tab, and peel the negative from the finished positive print—the first version to eliminate these intermediate steps was the SX-70 of 1972, which ejected the print automatically.<ref>{{cite book |last=Buse |first=Peter |title=The Camera Does the Rest: How Polaroid Changed Photography |date=2016 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=9780226312163|pages=5, 9}}</ref> Land was pictured on the cover of ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' magazine in 1972 with the inscription, "A Genius and His Magic Camera".

In the 1940s, Polaroid purchased the [[B B Chemical Company]] building at 784 [[Memorial Drive (Cambridge)|Memorial Drive]] in [[Cambridge, Massachusetts]] for its headquarters. The landmark<ref name=MACRIS>{{cite web|url=https://mhc-macris.net/details?mhcid=cam.257|title=MACRIS inventory record and NRHP nomination for B & B Chemical Company|publisher=Commonwealth of Massachusetts Historical Commission|access-date=2019-09-19|archive-date=2022-05-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528160218/https://mhc-macris.net/Details.aspx?MhcId=CAM.257|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Streamline Moderne]] style structure would be added to the [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Cambridge, Massachusetts]] in 1982.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bulfinch.com/case_study/784-memorial-drive/ |title=784 Memorial Drive |publisher=The Bulfinch Companies, Inc. |access-date=2019-09-19 |archive-date=2020-08-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806152709/https://www.bulfinch.com/case_study/784-memorial-drive/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

When Kodak announced instant film cameras in 1976, Polaroid announced they were suing them, accusing Kodak of having stolen its patented instant photography process.<ref name="boston-history-polaroid" /> In the two years that followed the lawsuit, total sales of instant cameras climbed from 7.4 million cameras in 1976 to 10.3 million in 1977 and 14.3 million in 1978. The suit in federal court lasted 10 years. Polaroid asked for $12 billion for infringements of its patents by Kodak. The court ruled in favor of Polaroid and ordered Kodak to cease instant picture production, plus pay Polaroid $909.5 million of the $12 billion it had asked for.<ref name="boston-history-polaroid" />

===Decline===
In 1977, Land introduced the Polaroid Instant Home Movie camera named [[Polavision]], based on the [[Dufaycolor]] process. However, the product arrived on the market when videotape-based systems were rapidly gaining popularity. Thus it failed to sell well in retail stores and has been described as the swan song for Polaroid. After four decades as chairman, Edwin Land was coerced into resigning and leaving the corporation he had founded. He died in 1991. The ''Polavision'' debacle eventually caused the company to write off $89 million,<ref name="boston-history-polaroid" /> including most of the manufactured products. The underlying technology of Polavision was later improved for use in the [[Polavision#Polachrome and other 35 mm films|Polachrome]] instant slide film system.{{Citation needed|date=February 2015}}

William J. McCune Jr was appointed chief executive officer in 1980. He joined the company in 1939, two years after its founding. He led the company until end 1985 when I. M. Booth, 54, was appointed as Polaroid’s chief executive, McCune remained chairman.<ref>{{cite web |  title=McCune to Step Down as Chief of Polaroid | website=Los Angeles Times | date=December 18, 1985 | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-12-18-fi-26700-story.html | access-date=July 7, 2024}}</ref>

In the 1980s, Polaroid tried to reinvent itself without Land at its helm by shifting away from a dependence on consumer photography, a market that was in steady decline. In 1984 Polaroid announced "that it would enter the United States
electronic video market with its own line of Polaroid videotapes."
<ref>{{cite news
|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]
|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/09/business/company-news-in-electronics-optimism-and-worry.html
|title=In Electronics, Optimism and Worry
|author=David E. Sanger
|date=January 9, 1984
|access-date=August 31, 2020
|archive-date=May 24, 2015
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524152409/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/09/business/company-news-in-electronics-optimism-and-worry.html
|url-status=live
}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
   |publisher=[[Associated Press]] (APnews)
   |url=https://apnews.com/a338d0309d61485a94033ccb82f62c5a
   |title=Polaroid, Fuji Reach Patent Agreement
   |date=July 25, 1986
   |access-date=August 31, 2020
   |archive-date=September 28, 2020
   |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928002014/https://apnews.com/a338d0309d61485a94033ccb82f62c5a
   |url-status=live
   }}</ref>

Polaroid was forced to make wholesale changes that included having to fire thousands of workers and close many factories. The 1980s saw the advent of new technologies that profoundly changed the world of photography — one-hour color film processing, single-use cameras from competitors, videotape camcorders, and, in the 1990s and 2000s, digital cameras.<ref name="boston-history-polaroid" />

The company was in fact one of the early manufacturers of digital cameras, with the PDC-2000 in 1996;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.epi-centre.com/reports/9604ahs.html|title=Polaroid PDC-2000 Digital Camera|work=Epi-centre.com|access-date=2015-05-09|archive-date=2015-09-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924001352/http://www.epi-centre.com/reports/9604ahs.html|url-status=live}}</ref> however, it failed to capture a large market share in that segment.

It also made 35&nbsp;mm and multi-format scanners, such as Polaroid SprintScan 4000 35&nbsp;mm scanner<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shutterbug.com/content/polaroid-sprintscan-4000|title=The Polaroid SprintScan 4000|date=1999-09-01|work=Shutterbug.com|access-date=2015-05-09|archive-date=2015-05-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518095351/http://www.shutterbug.com/content/polaroid-sprintscan-4000|url-status=live}}</ref> (the first scanner with a 4000 DPI CCD) in 1999, and the Polaroid PrintScan 120 in 2000. The scanners received mixed reviews and saw heavy competition from [[Nikon]] and [[Minolta]] products. The entire line was discontinued when Polaroid entered bankruptcy in 2001.{{Citation needed|date=February 2015}}

Prior to bankruptcy, the company sold its landmark, historic<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cambridgehistory.org/innovation/Polaroid.html |title=Polaroid 784 Memorial Drive |publisher=Cambridge Historical Society |access-date=2019-09-19 |archive-date=2020-08-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200815201802/https://cambridgehistory.org/innovation/Polaroid.html |url-status=live }}</ref> headquarters building and surrounding property to [[The Bulfinch Companies]] for $10 million.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2000/02/21/story4.html |title=Polaroid to sell landmark Cambridge headquarters |publisher=American City Business Journals |access-date=2019-09-19 |archive-date=2020-12-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201025845/https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2000/02/21/story4.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Bankruptcy (2001) ===
The original Polaroid Corporation filed for federal [[Chapter 11, Title 11, United States Code|Chapter 11]] [[bankruptcy]] protection on October 11, 2001. The outcome was that within ten months, most of the business (including the "Polaroid" name itself<ref name="pdcshare" /> 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''').<ref name="cfocom">Frieswick, Kris, [http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/3007726/1/c_3046585 "What's wrong with this picture?"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130721213718/http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/3007726/1/c_3046585 |date=July 21, 2013 }}, cfo.com. Article dated 2003-01-01, retrieved 2006-11-30. (p1: Sale of business/assets, controversy. p4: Renamed as Primary PDC, distribution to unsecured creditors).</ref><ref name="pdcfaq" /> However, this new company operated using the name of its bankrupt predecessor, Polaroid Corporation.<ref name="polapr01">[http://www.polaroid.com/global/printer_friendly.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441760524&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302023841&bmUID=1164973407121&bmLocale=en_US "Polaroid and One Equity Partners Complete Asset Acquisition"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130531235712/http://www.polaroid.com/global/printer_friendly.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441760524&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302023841&bmUID=1164973407121&bmLocale=en_US|date=May 31, 2013}}, New Polaroid Corporation. Press release dated 2002-07-31, Retrieved 2006-12-01.</ref>

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. The company announced a plan that gave the top 45 executives bonuses just for staying at their jobs. Meanwhile, other employees were restricted from selling their stock before leaving their jobs.<ref name="boston-history-polaroid" />{{rp|31}}

As part of the settlement, the original Polaroid Corporation changed its name to '''Primary PDC, Inc.'''<ref name="pdcmain" /><ref name="cfocom" /> 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 creditor]]s<ref name="cfocom" /> (including [[Bond (finance)|bondholders]]).<ref name="imaging">O'Neill, Jerry [http://www.imaginginfo.com/article/article.jsp?id=818&siteSection=27 "The New Polaroid: After Chapter 11"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611144238/http://www.imaginginfo.com/article/article.jsp?id=818&siteSection=27 |date=June 11, 2016 }}, "From the October 2002 Issue of Imaging Business" via imaginginfo.com. Article updated 2006-02-08, retrieved 2006-12-01.</ref> {{As of|2006|alt=As of late 2006}}, Primary PDC remained in existence under [[Chapter 11, Title 11, United States Code|Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection]],<ref name='pdcshare' /> but conducts no commercial business and has no employees.<ref name="pdcfaq" />

Polaroid’s bankruptcy is widely attributed to the failure of senior management — unable to anticipate the impact of [[digital cameras]] on its film business.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Tripsas |first1=Mary |last2=Gavetti |first2=Giovanni |title=Capabilities, cognition, and inertia: evidence from digital imaging |journal=Strategic Management Journal |date=October 2000 |volume=21 |issue=10–11 |pages=1147–1161 |doi=10.1002/1097-0266(200010/11)21:10/11<1147::AID-SMJ128>3.0.CO;2-R}}</ref> This type of managerial failure is also known as the [[success trap]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mawdsley |first1=Andrew |title=How can we understand the digital transformation of business? |url=http://www.hbs.edu/openforum/openforum.hbs.org/goto/challenge/understand-digital-transformation-of-business/despite-epic-head-start-in-digital-imaging-polaroid-fails-to-make-transformation-to-digital-cameras.html |website=Open Forum Project, Harvard Business School Digital Initiative |access-date=22 December 2018 |archive-date=26 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170326073743/http://www.hbs.edu/openforum/openforum.hbs.org/goto/challenge/understand-digital-transformation-of-business/despite-epic-head-start-in-digital-imaging-polaroid-fails-to-make-transformation-to-digital-cameras.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><!-- NOT really a good source, but it is what it is.--><ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Reeves |first1=Martin |last2=Harnoss |first2=Johann |title=Don't Let Your Company Get Trapped by Success |url=https://hbr.org/2015/11/dont-let-your-company-get-trapped-by-success |magazine=Harvard Business Review |access-date=22 December 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312044035/https://hbr.org/2015/11/dont-let-your-company-get-trapped-by-success |archive-date=2016-03-12 |date=November 19, 2015 }}</ref><!--better ref-->

=== Use of Polaroid brand and assets following bankruptcy ===
[[File:Polaroid branded TV.jpg|thumb|A Polaroid branded TV set from c. 2010]]
After the bankruptcy, the Polaroid brand was licensed for use on other products with the assistance of [[Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & 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.<ref name="wwlpr">[http://www.cool-icam.com/web/eng/press/PolaroidInt'l1.pdf Press release for camera licensing agreement (PDF)]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160104204731/http://www.cool-icam.com/web/eng/press/PolaroidInt%27l1.pdf |date=January 4, 2016 }}, World Wide Licenses Ltd. Article dated 2002-09-24, retrieved 2006-12-01.</ref> Polaroid branded [[LCD television|LCDs]] and [[plasma television]]s and portable [[DVD player]]s had also appeared on the market.

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.<ref>[http://www.rrpc-ny.org/Data/newsletter/27_sept_05nl.htm] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060413195906/http://www.rrpc-ny.org/Data/newsletter/27_sept_05nl.htm|date=April 13, 2006}}</ref> It stopped making Polaroid cameras in 2007 and discontinued the sale of Polaroid film after 2009 to the dismay of loyal consumers.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/08/polaroid-abandons-instant-photography/?hp|title=Polaroid Abandons Instant Photography|last=Lyons|first=Patrick J.|date=2008-02-08|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=2015-05-09|archive-date=2015-05-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518101513/http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/08/polaroid-abandons-instant-photography/?hp|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.manufacturing.net/News-Polaroid-Instant-Film-In-Demand.aspx?menuid=36|title=Industries Frantic To Find Polaroid Instant Film|date=2008-02-14|work=Manufacturing.net|access-date=2015-05-09|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111011162936/http://www.manufacturing.net/News-Polaroid-Instant-Film-In-Demand.aspx?menuid=36|archive-date=October 11, 2011}}</ref> On December 18, 2008, the post-reorganization Polaroid Corp. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Minnesota. The bankruptcy filing came shortly after the criminal investigation of its parent company, [[Petters Group Worldwide]], and the parent company founder, [[Tom Petters]].<ref name="petter">{{cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=afOdWSvgMXtM&refer=home|title=Polaroid in Bankruptcy Again, Cites Petters Charges (Update3)|last=Larson|first=Erik|date=2008-12-19|work=Bloomberg.com|access-date=2015-05-09|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613163056/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087|archive-date=2010-06-13}}</ref>

==== Auction for Polaroid Corporation's assets ====
On April 2, 2009, Patriarch Partners won an auction for Polaroid Corporation's assets including the company's name, intellectual property, and [[Polaroid Collection|photography collection]]. Patriarch's $59.1 million bid beat bids from PHC Acquisitions, Hilco Consumer Capital Corp and Ritchie Capital.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/polaroid-auction/update-2-patriarch-wins-polaroid-auction-idUSN0227748920090403 |title=Reuters |date=3 April 2009 |access-date=2020-06-18 |archive-date=2020-06-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200618114928/https://www.reuters.com/article/polaroid-auction/update-2-patriarch-wins-polaroid-auction-idUSN0227748920090403 |url-status=live }}</ref>

This led to some very contentious fighting and litigation, and Patriarch wound up walking away in early May 2009, and a joint venture between [[Gordon Brothers Group|Gordon Brothers Brands LLC]] and Hilco Consumer Capital LP picked up the pieces. According to a Reuters report:

<blockquote>The move by New York-based Patriarch, a private-equity firm, [to drop their claim], follows US District Judge James Rosenbaum's ruling on Thursday in Minneapolis that putting the purchase on hold during appeal would threaten operations at Polaroid, which is spending its cash at a rate of $3 million a month.{{Verify quote|date=July 2020}}</blockquote>

On April 16, 2009, Polaroid won US Bankruptcy Court approval to be sold to a joint venture of Hilco Consumer Capital LP of Toronto and Gordon Brothers Brands LLC of Boston.<ref>[http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2009/05/05/polaroid_sale_can_proceed_judge_rules/ "Polaroid sale can proceed, judge rules", ''The Boston Globe''. Retrieved on 7 May 2009.] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305042250/http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2009/05/05/polaroid_sale_can_proceed_judge_rules/ |date=March 5, 2016 }}.</ref>

Hilco Consumer Capital and Gordon Brothers Brands announced the closing of the purchase of Polaroid Corporation on May 7, 2009, placing Polaroid Corporation in joint holding under a parent company named '''PLR IP Holdings, LLC'''. Former executive vice president and general manager – Americas, Scott W. Hardy was named as the new president of Polaroid Corporation and PLR IP Holdings, LLC. The majority of employees remained in their positions at the company's Minnetonka, Minnesota headquarters as well as office locations in Boston, New York and Toronto.<ref>[http://www.polaroid.com/About/News/Press+Release:+Hilco+Consumer+Capital+and+Gordon+Brothers+Brands+Announce+Closing+of+Polaroid+Sale/39]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091223202109/http://www.polaroid.com/About/News/Press+Release%3A+Hilco+Consumer+Capital+and+Gordon+Brothers+Brands+Announce+Closing+of+Polaroid+Sale/39|date=December 23, 2009}}</ref>

On June 19, 2009, the new holding corporation for Polaroid, PLR IP Holdings, LLC announced an exclusive 5-year agreement with Summit Global Group to produce and distribute Polaroid-branded digital still cameras, digital video cameras, [[digital photo frame]]s and PoGo-branded mobile products. Summit Global Group added several former Polaroid employees to their staff. The company expects the agreement to yield $1.3 billion in retail sales over an unspecified period beginning in 2009.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.polaroid.com/About/News/Press+Release:+Polaroid+Brand+Announces+Partnership+with+The+Summit+Global+Group+of+Companies/38 |title=Polaroid Brand Announces Partnership with The Summit Global Group of Companies |website=Polaroid |access-date=December 26, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091218094818/http://www.polaroid.com/About/News/Press+Release%3A+Polaroid+Brand+Announces+Partnership+with+The+Summit+Global+Group+of+Companies/38 |archive-date=December 18, 2009 }}</ref>

On January 5, 2010, Polaroid appointed [[Lady Gaga]] as "Creative Director" for the company.<ref>{{cite press release|title=Lady Gaga Named Creative Director for Polaroid Product Line|date=January 11, 2010|publisher=ImpactPR|url=http://www.impactpr.co.nz/News/ClientNews/tabid/99/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/157/Lady-Gaga-Named-Creative-Director-for-Polaroid-Product-Line.aspx|quote=PLR IP Holdings, LLC, owners of the Polaroid™ brand, today announced a multi-year strategic partnership with Lady Gaga, who will serve as creative director for a specialty line of Polaroid Imaging products.|work=Impactpr.co.nz|access-date=2014-02-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100301033934/http://www.impactpr.co.nz/News/ClientNews/tabid/99/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/157/Lady-Gaga-Named-Creative-Director-for-Polaroid-Product-Line.aspx|archive-date=2010-03-01|url-status=dead}}</ref> A press release stated that she would be the "new face" of Polaroid.<ref name="Press Release">{{cite press release|title=Lady Gaga Named Creative Director for Specialty Line of Polaroid Imaging Products|publisher=Polaroid|url=http://www.polaroid.com/About/News/Press+Release:+Lady+Gaga+Named+Creative+Director+for+Specialty+Line+of+Polaroid+Imaging+Products/4339|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140822150823/http://www.polaroid.com/About/News/Press+Release%3A+Lady+Gaga+Named+Creative+Director+for+Specialty+Line+of+Polaroid+Imaging+Products/4339|archive-date=2014-08-22}}</ref> In a 2014 interview an account supervisor at R&J Public Relations, the PR firm for Polaroid, stated that the company is no longer working with Lady Gaga.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lenzo |first=Krysia |title=What happens when celebrities become creative directors |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2015/12/03/what-happens-when-celebrities-become-creative-directors.html |access-date=2022-11-03 |website=CNBC |date=4 December 2015 |language=en |archive-date=2022-11-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221103161755/https://www.cnbc.com/2015/12/03/what-happens-when-celebrities-become-creative-directors.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== 2017-Present: Acquisition by Smołokowski; collaboration with and rebranding of "Impossible" ===
In 2017, the holding corporation for Polaroid, PLR IP Holdings, LLC, was acquired by Polish investor Wiaczesław "Slava" Smołokowski.<ref name='pp_acquire'>{{cite web|last1=Zhang|first1=Michael|title=Polaroid Acquired by The Impossible Project's Largest Shareholder|url=https://petapixel.com/2017/05/12/polaroid-acquired-impossible-projects-largest-shareholder/|website=PetaPixel|date=12 May 2017|access-date=2018-02-18|quote=Polaroid’s brand and [IP] has been acquired by the largest shareholder of The Impossible Project [..] Now a single family has control of both the [Polaroid and Impossible] [..] [Owner of Polaroid..] brand and IP, PLR IP Holdings, LLC, was [sold to an] ownership group led by the Smolokowski family. [..] Wiacezlaw “Slava” Smolokowski [[:pl:Sławomir Smołokowski|pl]] acquired a 20% stake in The Impossible Project back [in 2012]. In 2014, [son Oskar became] CEO of The Impossible Project [..] The elder Smolokowski is now Impossible’s largest shareholder.|archive-date=2019-08-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190811104017/https://petapixel.com/2017/05/12/polaroid-acquired-impossible-projects-largest-shareholder/|url-status=live}}</ref> Smołokowski was already the largest shareholder in the [[Polaroid B.V.|Impossible Project]]—a company formed to continue production of Polaroid-compatible film after Polaroid themselves left the market—having been persuaded to invest in it by his son Oskar.<ref name='pp_acquire' /> The acquisition brought both companies under the control of the Smołokowski family.<ref name='pp_acquire' />

The Impossible Project (already led by Oskar Smołokowski) was rebranded as ''Polaroid Originals'', with the last factory producing Polaroid-compatible instant film cartridges in [[Enschede]], Netherlands being rebranded under the new name later in 2017.<ref name='po_letter'>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180219090130/https://magazine.polaroidoriginals.com/an-open-letter-from-our-ceo/|archive-date=2018-02-19|last1=Smołokowski|first1=Oskar|title=An Open Letter From Our CEO|url=https://magazine.polaroidoriginals.com/an-open-letter-from-our-ceo/|website=Polaroid Originals|access-date=2018-02-18}}</ref>

In March 2019, the new polaroid.com website listed instant cameras and supplies made by Polaroid Originals alongside its other products including digital cameras, sunglasses, the Cube action camera, and television units.<ref>{{cite web |title=All products |url=https://www.polaroid.com/products/category/all |website=polaroid.com |access-date=21 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190321180454/https://www.polaroid.com/products/category/all |archive-date=21 March 2019}}</ref>

March 2020, Polaroid Originals rebranded as simply Polaroid, with the Polaroid Now being the first instant film camera in years to have the Polaroid branding.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Holt |first=Kris |title=Polaroid Originals Rebrands As Polaroid With A New Autofocus Instant Camera In Tow |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/krisholt/2020/03/26/polaroid-originals-rebrands-as-polaroid-with-a-new-autofocus-instant-camera-in-tow/ |access-date=2022-11-03 |website=Forbes |language=en |archive-date=2020-04-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200402172203/https://www.forbes.com/sites/krisholt/2020/03/26/polaroid-originals-rebrands-as-polaroid-with-a-new-autofocus-instant-camera-in-tow/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Efforts to preserve and restore vintage Polaroid camera models ====
Polaroid B.V. and other companies, including [[MiNT camera|MiNT Camera]] (manufacturer of the reusable MiNT flash bar), refurbish and repair classic Polaroid products, with some companies modifying the hardware itself to add additional functionality.<ref>{{Cite web|title=MINT SLR670-S Noir is a refurbished Polaroid SX-70 with added auto modes|url=https://www.dpreview.com/news/2426932814/mint-slr670-s-noir-is-a-refurbished-polaroid-sx-70-with-added-auto-modes|access-date=2021-10-23|website=DPReview|archive-date=2021-10-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023233952/https://www.dpreview.com/news/2426932814/mint-slr670-s-noir-is-a-refurbished-polaroid-sx-70-with-added-auto-modes|url-status=live}}</ref> One such modification is the conversion of Polaroid SX-70 camera models to use the more common, and higher-ISO Polaroid 600 film.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Polaroid SX-70 to 600 Film Conversion Service|url=https://retrospekt.com/products/sx-70-to-600-film-conversion-service|access-date=2021-10-23|website=Retrospekt|language=en|archive-date=2021-10-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023233953/https://retrospekt.com/products/sx-70-to-600-film-conversion-service|url-status=live}}</ref>