The very real issue of Copyright on 3DMarvels.com

As the model count goes northwards here at 3DMarvels.com, one thing that is usually at the forefront of my mind is copyright issues, who owns what in by what way. Read boing-boing’s blog article relating to Thingiverse for context.

The massive disruption that 3D printing will have

I think 3D printing will be one of the most disruptive (in both a positive and negative way) technology to ever hit the modern era. There is no way to diminish the power that somebody will have at being able to create the items they need instead of going through the traditional manufacture —> distributor —> store buying process.

Major disruption #1

You need a new widget to hold toilet paper? Well, screw going to Walmart or Home Depot, just buy the shape from 3DMarvels.com and print it yourself for pennies on the dollar. All the middle men involved with keeping product circulation going around in an economy are completely cut out of this transaction. From the guy whose job it is to design a product in CAD to the gal who runs the plastic extruder to the guy who picks it up with his semi-truck to the gal who receives the order and distributes it to the stores to the guy who works as a stockholder to the gal at the cash register. All of this is GONE!

Major disruption #2

You make a living collecting a royalty on your patented idea? Good luck enforcing it with every person who buys a 3D printer. I remember a while back Adobe Photoshop and document scanners signed a deal with world governments which basically “disables” both of these systems from being able to make an accurate copy of any of the world’s currencies. This was done because people were scanning money, printing it with their inkjet printers (or laser back then) and trying to pass it off as real money. Unless you have every 3D printing machine connected to a vast online database that compares “your” design to all the designs in the world. The copyright issues involved with shapes is endless, you have derivative works, different licensing systems (creative commons etc.) and even colors in some case. Is a vase usually made in ceramic that is copyrighted also copyrighted if I take a picture and build a 3D model of that said vase using printed titanium particles?

Major Disruption #3

So, “retail” and copyright issues aside, what else can 3D printing disrupt that’s even bigger than these two? Well, the way we view and dispose of “objects!” For instance, I need to get a widget, right now, I have to head in the car to the store and buy it. Once I have a 3D printer, the only thing I need to go out for is food and resin (for my 3D printer). I become my own little factory which I can then mass produce my ideas and sell them to others who, may use a 3D scanner and do just like me. What I’m saying is that much like the value of music dropped with the advent of online downloading, so will the perceived value of objects in general. This is massive! Just consider how much of our lives are dictated by the objects we have, from recognizable brands to base materials… any change in these will cause a seismic shift in global perception.

You can’t hide behind ignorance

Something to think about… what makes this all the more interesting is that most futurists, business consultants and advisors don’t even have the vaguest concept of the 3D printing revolution about to hit their clients at light speed from the shadows of their own ignorance! You can’t hide from what I wrote, nor can you really prepare for it… but at least knowing will help you maintain some extra ballast while the other ships around you slowly sink into oblivion.