Ethical Problems of 3D printers. Social Sciences. Research Paper

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Ethical Issues in 3D printing
Technology continues to revolutionize the world. The age of 3D printing has come and some startups are pursuing 4d printing. Today there are restaurants selling 3D printed food, websites selling 3D designs of various products, humans living with 3D printed organs, and many other products that we use that are either partially or wholly 3D printed. As it happens today with music, many people are going to pursue the cheaper, faster way of getting products rather than buying them to the companies. These are some of the ways the technology will revolutionize the future and compound the ethical issues of the technology as it will not only disrupt the entertainment industry, but most other industries that produce products for mass consumption. As the cost of 3D printing falls, and the technology advances, these ethical issues will persist. At the moment, the legal framework on 3D printing is still sketchy and it also adds to the ethical issues of the technology.
One of the ethical issues of 3D printing is copyrighting of designs. At the moment copyright laws especially with 3D printing technology are behind the technology. It could lead to the same issue which confounded the entertainment industry when the age of internet came and when an individual’s computer could read and write DVDs. Enforcing copyright laws became increasingly difficult and most creators lost value of their creation to the technology. 3D printing technology is likely to continue the same trajectory. At the moment, there are websites and other online repositories which have 3D designs of various objects. For example, Thingiverse is a community of people who share their 3D designs of various objects. However, though some of them are unique and are not covered or coverable by copyright laws, some are not. For example, some of the products common in entertainment industry are owned by their respective creators and covered by copyright law, however, most of the copyright claims cover the digital version. Some people have created 3D versions of these characters used in entertainment industry and uploaded them on Thingiverse for free download to anyone. These designs can further be transmitted offline in digital version to other users who can print them. For example, in Thingiverse today is a 3D design of Yoda. Yoda is a character owned by the Star Wars franchise and the company continues to make sales from the merchandise. However, if the design exists in Thingiverse, some people can further produce their own versions of Yoda which hives of the profitability and value of the character. Additionally, some people have modified and create flower vases used on Yoda character. It is not easy to claim or prove that such modifications are infringement of the copyright law CITATION Mic18 \l 1033 (Henry). Thus, 3D printing will pose a new challenge to all creators and enforcers of copyright law as the line between copyright will b blurred and most people will operate in the grey area. Additionally, it will be very easy to modify designs and distribute them much to the detriment of the creator without ever giving them the credit they deserve. Therefore, 3D printing will create a new problem of enforcing intellectual ...