MetaCreations Corp.

MetaCreations was a computer software company founded in 1997 by the mergers of MetaTools, Fractal Design Corporation, Ray Dream, Specular, and RTG. John Wilczak, and Mark Zimmer, headed up initial operations before Wilczak and Kai Krause left the company in 1998 and 1999 respectively.

MetaCreations was best known for its graphics applications, notably Ray Dream Studio/Infini D, Fractal Design Painter, Bryce, and Kai's Power Tools. In 1999 MetaCreations invested itself heavily in the newly developed '3d on the Web' technology "MetaStream" and began restructuring from graphics applications to Internet technology. MetaCreations formed a subsidiary company called MetaStream, acquired Viewpoint Digital, and ultimately merged all operations together to become the Viewpoint Corporation. The newly formed Viewpoint Corporation divested itself of all former MetaCreations graphics products to push MetaStream technology. Viewpoint is now the Consumer Products division of Enliven Marketing Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: ENLV). Viewpoint’s NASDAQ stock ticker symbol changed from VWPT to ENLV to reflect the Company’s name change in January 2008.^[1]

Today the former MetaCreations is a successful Internet marketing technology company. Viewpoint Corporation is probably best known for the Viewpoint Media Player installed inside AIM/AOL packages to help provide better 3D visualization for product tours and configurators on the web.

Current Disposition of MetaCreations Products

• Ray Dream Studio and Specular Infini-D were succeeded by Carrara, which was sold to Eovia and subsequently acquired by DAZ 3D.
• MetaTools' Bryce was sold to Corel and subsequently acquired by DAZ 3D.
• Fractal Design's Poser was sold to Curious Labs, which was itself acquired by e-Frontier and finally Smith Micro Software.
• MetaCreations' Canoma was acquired by Adobe Systems. It was discontinued and its technology folded into other products.
• Fractal Design's Painter was acquired by Corel.
• Fractal Design's Expression reverted to its original developer, Creature House, who later sold the product to Microsoft. It is now sold as Microsoft Expression Design, part of the Microsoft Expression Studio suite.
• Kai's Photo Soap, Kai's Power Goo (later SuperGoo), and Kai's Power Show were acquired by ScanSoft, Inc.. They have been discontinued.

Viewpoint Datalabs International

Viewpoint Datalabs was an American special effects/visual effects division of the Viewpont Corp. It started out with the special effects on Virtuosity, From Dusk Till Dawn and Godzilla. The studio made the 3-D Character Design and Visual Effects on Antz and 3-D Modeling for Pushing Tin as Viewpoint Data Studios. They also made the Visual Effects on Dungeons & Dragons. In 2001 the studio went bankrupt and Viewpoint Corps could not fund the company and the studio was closed.

External links and references

• MetaCreations: A Chronology (Scroll down)

Notes and references