HANNOVER, GERMANY--(Marketwired - Jul 31, 2014) - About 9,000 visitors came to the Maker Faire in Hannover at the beginning of July -- more than twice the number that came in the previous year. Spurred on by this good reception, the Hannover Heise Zeitschriften Verlag and Maker Media, Inc. from California have agreed on intensive cooperation. The aim is to strengthen the Maker movement in Germany and provide the Makers and all those interested with an information and networking platform.
Under the imprint of the newly-founded subsidiary Maker Media GmbH, the Heise Zeitschriften Verlag has combined the Maker Faire event with the magazine c't Hacks (online and in print) under a uniform marketing strategy. The magazine c't Hacks (online and in print) reports on the Maker scene and provides instructions for building exciting do-it-yourself projects as well as fundamentals for fledgling Makers. It is to be renamed Make: in three stages by January 2015. The German and the American Make: will be cooperating very closely in the future.
"However, Make: Germany is to remain independent and continue to produce content and articles of its own. We will even be expanding today's c't Hacks editing team for the purpose," stressed Dr. Alfons Schräder, manager of the Heise Zeitschriften Verlag. The publication frequency of the new German Make: is to be increased from four to six issues per year.
Here's some background information on the subject of Makers: the Maker scene is growing and is in full drive. In the US in the last year alone, a total of more than 200,000 visitors came to the two Maker Faire events held in the New York metro and San Francisco Bay Area. 2013 saw a total of more than 100 Maker Faires held around the world.
Maker Faire is a family-friendly festival with a focus on learning, building, inventing and experimenting -- and providing a lot of fun in the process. In addition to fantastic and creative exhibitions, visitors will find a large number of hands-on workshops covering the spectrum of technology, science and the arts as well as handicrafts. One of the most popular activities is the "Learn to Solder" area as well as the 3D printing pavilion. Robots and quadcopters (drones) and many other technical toys and tools inspire people to build the projects themselves, either at the Faire or when they get home.
The Maker Faire event as well as c't Hacks want to spark enthusiasm for technology, science, math and the arts and introduce the thrill and confidence that making inspires in young people in particular. This is important for Germany, where it is necessary to promote new generations of experts in these fields.
"We're delighted to welcome c't Hacks to the Maker Media family and look forward to supporting its transition to the Make: brand over the next 6 months. The growth of the Hannover Maker Faire is testimony to the emerging maker culture and movement in Germany. We are ardent admirers of the long tradition of craftsmanship, design and engineering that was inspired by Bauhaus, an early maker movement. It's entirely fitting that Germany should join our global network of makers and our strong branded content platforms," said Dale Dougherty, CEO and founder of Maker Media, Inc., publisher and founder of Make: magazine and co-founder of Maker Faire.
About MAKER MEDIA
Maker Media is a global platform for connecting makers with each other, with products and services, and with our partners. Through media, events and ecommerce, Maker Media serves a growing community of makers who bring a DIY mindset to technology. Whether as hobbyists or professionals, makers are creative, resourceful and curious, developing projects that demonstrate how they can interact with the world around them. The launch of Make: magazine in 2005, followed by Maker Faire in 2006, jumpstarted a worldwide Maker Movement, which is transforming innovation, culture and education. Located in Sebastopol, CA, Maker Media is the publisher of Make: magazine and the producer of Maker Faire . It also develops "getting started" kits and books that are sold in its Maker Shed store as well as in retail channels.
Contact: Vickie Welch (415) 806-0999 Email Contact
