This half 2 of the Secret Historical past of Polaroid and Edwin Land. Learn half 1 for context.
Kodak and Polaroid, the 2 most well-known digital camera corporations of the 20th century, had an important partnership for 20+ years. Then in an inexplicable turnabout Kodak determined to destroy Polaroid’s enterprise. To at the present time, each story of why Kodak went to conflict with Polaroid is flawed.
The actual motive may be discovered within the extremely categorised world of overhead reconnaissance satellites.
Right here’s the actual story.
In April 1969 Kodak tore up a 20-year manufacturing partnership with Polaroid. In a shock to everybody at Polaroid, Kodak declared conflict. They terminated their settlement to produce Polaroid with adverse movie for Polacolor – the one colour movie Polaroid had in the marketplace. Kodak gave Polaroid two years’ discover however instantly raised the movie value 10% within the U.S. and 50% internationally. And Kodak publicly introduced they have been going to make movie for Polaroid’s cameras – a knife to the guts for Polaroid as movie gross sales have been what made Polaroid worthwhile. Shortly thereafter, Kodak introduced they have been additionally going to make instantaneous cameras in direct competitors with Polaroid cameras. In brief, they have been going after each a part of Polaroid’s enterprise.
What occurred in April 1969 they triggered Kodak to react this manner?
And what was the outcome?
Learn the sidebar for a Background on Movie and Prompt Images
At the moment we take with no consideration that photos may be seen and despatched instantaneously on all our gadgets — cellphone, computer systems, tablets, and many others. However that wasn’t all the time the case.
Movie Images
It wasn’t till the mid-19th century that it was potential to completely seize a picture. For the subsequent 30 years images was within the palms of an elite set of pros. Every photograph they took was captured on particular person glass plates they coated with chemical substances. To make a print, the photographers needed to course of the plates in additional chemical substances. Neither the cameras nor processing have been throughout the realm of a shopper. However in 1888 Kodak modified that once they launched an actual disruptive innovation – a digital camera preloaded with a spool of strippable paper movie with 100-exposures that buyers, somewhat than skilled photographers, might use. When the roll was completed, the whole digital camera was despatched again to the Kodak lab in Rochester, NY, the place it was reloaded and returned to the shopper whereas the primary roll was being processed. However the actual revolution occurred in 1900 when Kodak launched the Brownie digital camera with replaceable movie spools. This made images out there to a mass market. You simply despatched the movie to be developed, not the digital camera.
Up till 1936 shopper cameras captured photos in black in white. That 12 months Kodak launched Kodachrome, the primary colour movie for slides. In 1942, they launched Kodacolor for prints.
Whereas shoppers now had easy-to-use cameras, the time between taking an image and seeing the image had an extended delay. The movie contained in the digital camera wanted to be developed and printed. After you clicked the shutter and took the image, you despatched the movie to a drop-off level in a retailer. They despatched your movie to a big regional photograph processing lab that developed the movie (utilizing a shower of chemical substances), then printed the photographs as bodily photos. You’d get your photos again in days or every week. (Within the late Nineteen Seventies, mini-photo processing labs dramatically shortened that course of, providing 1-hour photograph improvement.) In the meantime…
Prompt Images
In 1937 Edwin Land co-founded Polaroid to make an optical filter referred to as polarizers. They have been utilized in photographic filters, glare-free sun shades, and merchandise that gave the phantasm of 3-D. Throughout WWII Polaroid made anti-glare goggles for troopers and pilots, gun sights, viewfinders, cameras, and different optical gadgets with polarizing lenses.
In 1948 Polaroid pivoted. They launched what would turn out to be synonymous with an “Prompt Digicam.” In its first instantaneous digital camera — the Mannequin 95 – the movie contained all the required chemical substances to “immediately” develop a photograph. The moment movie was fabricated from two components – a adverse sheet that lined up with a optimistic sheet with the chemical substances in between squeezed by a set of rollers. The adverse sheet was manufactured by Kodak. As a substitute of days or perhaps weeks, it now took lower than 90 seconds to see your image.
For the subsequent 30 years Polaroid made evolutionary higher Prompt Cameras. In 1963 Polacolor Prompt colour movie was launched. In 1973 the Polaroid SX-70 Land Digicam was launched with a brand new sort of instantaneous movie that not needed to be peeled aside.
A Secret Grudge Match
To know why Kodak tried to place Polaroid out of enterprise it’s worthwhile to know a few of most categorised secrets and techniques of the Chilly Warfare.
Venture GENETRIX and The U-2 – Balloon and Airplane Reconnaissance over the Soviet Union
Throughout the Chilly Warfare with the Soviet Union the U.S. intelligence group was determined for intelligence. Within the early Nineteen Fifties the U.S. despatched unmanned reconnaissance balloons over the Soviet Union.
Subsequent, from 1956-1960 the CIA flew the Lockheed U-2 spy aircraft over the Soviet Union on 24 missions, taking photographs of its army installations. (The U-2 program was kicked off by a 1954 memo from Edwin Land (Polaroid CEO) to the director of the CIA.)
The U-2 cameras used Kodak movie, processed in a secret Kodak lab codenamed Bridgehead. In Could 1960 a U-2 was shot down inside Soviet territory and the U.S. stopped plane overflights of the Soviet Union. However fortunately in 1956 the U.S. intelligence group had concluded that the way forward for gathering intelligence over the Soviet Union can be with spy satellites orbiting in house.
Air Pressure – SAMOS – 1st Technology Picture Reconnaissance Satellites
By the late Nineteen Fifties the Division of Protection determined that the way forward for photograph reconnaissance satellites can be through an Air Pressure program codenamed SAMOS.
The primary SAMOS satellites would have a digital camera that might take photos and develop them whereas orbiting earth utilizing particular Kodak Bimat movie, then scan the adverse and transmit the picture to a floor station. After a number of rocket failures and realization that the decision and variety of photos the satellite tv for pc might downlink can be woefully insufficient for the sort and variety of targets (it might take 3 hours to downlink the photographs from a single go), the movie read-out SAMOS satellites have been canceled.
Sidebar– Kodak Goes to The Moon
CIA’s CORONA – 2nd Technology Picture Reconnaissance Satellites
It was the CIA’s CORONA film-based photograph reconnaissance satellites that first succeeded in returning intelligence photographs from house. Designed as a speedy low-cost hack, it was supposed as a stopgap till extra succesful techniques entered service. Fairchild constructed the primary few CORONA cameras, however in the end Itek grew to become the digital camera system supplier. CORONA despatched the uncovered movie again to earth in reentry autos that have been recovered in mid-air. The movie was developed by Kodak at their secret Bridgehead lab and despatched to intelligence analysts within the CIA’s Nationwide Photographic Interpretation Middle (NPIC) who examined the movie. (Whereas orbiting 94 miles above the earth the cameras achieved 4 ½-foot decision.) CORONA was saved in service from 1960 to 1972, finishing 145 missions.
Movie restoration through reentry autos can be the usual for the subsequent 16 years.
Sidebar – The CIA versus the Nationwide Reconnaissance Workplace (NRO)
With the CIA’s success with CORONA, and the failure of the Air Pressure authentic SAMOS program, the Division of Protection felt the CIA was usurping its function in Reconnaissance. In 1961 it was agreed that each one satellite tv for pc Reconnaissance can be coordinated by a single Nationwide Reconnaissance Workplace (the NRO). For 31 years satellite tv for pc and spy aircraft reconnaissance was organized as 4 separate covert packages:
Program A – Air Pressure satellite tv for pc packages: SAMOS, GAMBIT…
Program B – CIA satellite tv for pc packages: CORONA, GAMBIT, KEENAN…
Program C – Navy satellite tv for pc packages: GRAB, POPPY …
Program D – CIA/Air Pressure reconnaissance Plane: U-2, A-12/SR-71, ST/POLLY, D-21…
Whereas this setup was rational on paper, the CIA and NRO would have a many years -long political battle over who would specify, design, construct and activity reconnaissance satellites. The CIA’s outdoors knowledgeable on imaging reconnaissance satellites was… Edwin Land CEO of Polaroid.
The NRO’s existence wasn’t even acknowledged till 1992.
Air Pressure/NRO – GAMBIT – 3rd Technology Movie Picture Reconnaissance Satellites
After the failure of the SAMOS on-orbit scanning system, the newly established Nationwide Reconnaissance Workplace (NRO) regrouped and adopted movie restoration through reentry autos.
Prodded by the NRO and Air Pressure, Kodak put in an “unsolicited” proposal for a next-generation imaging satellite tv for pc codenamed GAMBIT. Kodak cameras on GAMBIT had a lot higher decision than the Itek cameras on CORONA. In orbit 80 miles up, GAMBIT had high-resolution recognizing functionality – however in a slim subject of view. This complemented the CORONA broad space imaging. GAMBIT-1 (KH-7) produced photos of 2-4 ft in decision. It flew for 38 missions from July 1963 to June 1967. The follow-on program, GAMBIT-3 (KH-8), offered even sharper photos with decision measured in inches. GAMBiT-3 flew for 54 missions from July 1966 to August 1984. The decision of GAMBITs photographs wouldn’t be surpassed for many years.
CIA – HEXAGON – 4th Technology Movie Picture Reconnaissance Satellites
In the meantime the CIA determined it was going to construct the subsequent technology reconnaissance satellite tv for pc after GAMBIT. Hexagon represented one other technological leap ahead. In contrast to GAMBIT that had a slim subject of view, the CIA proposed a satellite tv for pc that might {photograph} a 300-nautical-mile-wide by 16.8-nautical-mile-long space in a single body. In contrast to GAMBIT whose cameras have been made by Kodak, HEXAGON’s cameras can be made by Perkin Elmer.
CIA Versus NRO – HEXAGON versus DORIAN
In 1969 the brand new Nixon administration was trying to reduce spending and the intelligence price range was an enormous goal. There have been a number of new, very costly packages being constructed: HEXAGON, the CIA’s college bus-sized movie satellite tv for pc; and a army house station: the NRO/Air Pressure Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) with its DORIAN KH-10 film-based digital camera (made by Kodak). There was additionally a proposed high-resolution GAMBIT-follow-on satellite tv for pc referred to as FROG (Movie Learn Out GAMBIT) – once more with a Kodak Bimat digital camera and a laser scanner.
In March 1969, President Nixon canceled the CIA’s HEXAGON satellite tv for pc program in favor of the Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL), the Air Pressure house station with the Kodak DORIAN digital camera. It appeared like Kodak had received and the CIA’s proposal misplaced.
Nonetheless, the CIA fought again.
The following month, in April 1969, the Director of the CIA used the advice of CIA’s reconnaissance intelligence panel – headed by Edwin Land (Polaroid’s CEO) to get President Nixon to reverse his choice. Land’s panel argued that HEXAGON was important to monitoring arms management treaties with the Soviet Union. Land mentioned DORIAN can be ineffective as a result of astronauts on the army house station might solely {photograph} small quantities of territory, lacking different issues that may very well be just a few miles away. In distinction, HEXAGON coated a lot territory that there was merely no place for the Soviet Union to cover any forbidden bombers or missiles.
Land’s reconnaissance panel beneficial: 1) canceling the manned a part of the NRO/Air Pressure Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) and a couple of) utilizing the DORIAN optics in a robotic system (which was in the end by no means constructed) and three) urging the President to as an alternative begin “highest precedence” improvement of a “easy, long-life imaging satellite tv for pc, utilizing an array of photosensitive parts to transform the picture to electrical indicators for speedy transmission.” (This is able to turn out to be the KH-11 KEENAN, ending the necessity for film-based cameras in house.)
The outcome was:
Over the subsequent two years, Land lobbied in opposition to the GAMBIT follow-on referred to as FROG and after a contentious combat successfully killed it in 1971. However most significantly Nixon gave the go-ahead to construct the CIA’s KH-11 KEENAN digital imaging satellite tv for pc – dooming film-based satellites – and all of Kodak’s satellite tv for pc enterprise.
Why Did Kodak Go to Warfare With Polaroid?
Lastly we are able to now perceive why Kodak was livid at Polaroid. The CEO of Polaroid killed Kodak’s satellite tv for pc reconnaissance enterprise.
Kodak’s 1970 annual report mentioned, “Authorities gross sales dropped precipitously from $248 million in 1969 to $160 million in 1970, a decline of almost 36 p.c.” (That’s ¾’s of a billion {dollars} in right now’s {dollars}.)
The DORIAN digital camera on the Manned Orbiting Laboratory and the very high-resolution GAMBIT FROG follow-on have been all Kodak digital camera techniques inbuilt Kodak’s Okay-Program, a extremely categorised phase of the corporate. In April 1969 when MOL/DORIAN KH-10 was canceled, Kodak laid off 1,500 folks from that division.
Kodak additionally had 1,400 folks in a particular facility that developed the movie codenamed Bridgehead. With movie gone from reconnaissance satellites, solely small quantities have been wanted for U-2 flights. One other 1,000+ folks in the end can be let go.
Louis Eilers had been Kodak president since 1967 and in 1969 grew to become CEO. He had been involved about Land’s advocacy of the CIA’s packages that shut out Kodak of HEXAGON. However he went ballistic when he discovered of the function Edwin Land performed in killing the Manned Orbiting Lab (MOL) and the Kodak DORIAN KH-10 digital camera.
Kodak’s Revenge and Final Loss
In 1963 when Polaroid launched its first colour instantaneous movie — Polacolor – Kodak manufactured Polacolor’s movie adverse. By 1969 Polaroid was paying Kodak $50 million a 12 months to fabricate that movie. (~$400 million in right now’s {dollars}.) Kodak tore up that manufacturing relationship in 1969 after the MOL/DORIAN cancelation.
Kodak then went additional. In 1969 they began two tasks: create their very own instantaneous cameras to compete with Polaroid and create instantaneous movie for Polaroid cameras – Polaroid made their earnings on promoting movie.
In 1976 Kodak got here out with two instantaneous cameras — the EK-4 and EK-6 –and instantaneous movie that may very well be utilized in Polaroid cameras. Polaroid instantly sued, claiming Kodak had infringed on Polaroid patents. 
The lawsuit went on for 9 years. Lastly, in 1985 a courtroom dominated that Kodak infringed on Polaroid patents and Kodak was pressured to tug their cameras off retailer cabinets and cease making them. Six years later, in 1991, Polaroid was awarded $925 million in damages from Kodak.
Epilogue
1976 was a landmark 12 months for each Kodak and Polaroid. It was the start of their 15-year patent battle, however it was additionally the tip of movie images from house. That December the primary digital imaging satellite tv for pc, KH-11 KEENAN, went into orbit.
After Land’s pressured retirement in 1982, Polaroid by no means launched a very new product once more. Every little thing was a refinement or repackaging of what it had discovered already. By the early ’90s, the alarms have been clanging away; chapter got here in 2001.
Kodak might by no means depart its roots in movie and missed being a pacesetter in digital images. It filed for chapter safety in 2012, exited legacy companies and bought off its patents earlier than re-emerging as a sharply smaller firm in 2013.
At the moment, descendants of the KH-11 KENNEN proceed to function in orbit.
Filed beneath: Secret Historical past of Silicon Valley |
