Licensing has become an important tool in the emergence of 3D printing as a consumer technology, with a variety of 3D printing companies using licensing as a means of standing out in a crowded market. Recent agreements help attract customers to different facets of the industry, including:
- Online personalization and ordering. Source3, a 3D printing rights-management company, signed a license with the U.S. Army, via Beanstalk, for ornaments available through MyKeepsake.xyz. It also has a deal with Capcom for Street Fighter V figures produced by ZVerse and distributed through Amazon. Other online providers that have been involved with licensing include the service provider and marketplace Shapeways; it partnered with Hasbro to 3D print fan art based on its properties way back in 2014.
- In-store kiosks. Piecemaker is a company that provides 3D printers to retail stores to allow customers to purchase personalized plastic items such as toy trucks, character figures, or fashion accessories, watch them be made, and take them home in a half hour. (Metal items also are possible, with a turnaround time measured in days.) Piecemaker recently signed licenses with Nickelodeon and Ford. 3DMe is among the other on-site 3D printing purveyors that have worked with licensed properties; its licenses have included Star Trek.
- Home printers. Mattel introduced its $300 Thingmaker home 3D printer in February, accompanied by a user-friendly app developed with Autodesk. The app provides several templates as well as allowing for customization. When making its announcement, Mattel noted that it would add new design content going forward, “including branded options,” which likely would mean some of its own toy brands as well as, potentially, some of the many licenses it holds.
- Toys that emulate 3D printing. A number of toy makers are marketing pens or “ovens”—using a sort of goop that dries in LED light—allowing children to make their own plastic creations that look similar to rudimentary 3D-printed items and are billed as promoting STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) learning. Several have secured the rights to licensed characters, including Redwood Ventures’ IDo3D, with Yo Kai Watch, and Jakks’ 3DIT Character Creator, with Marvel, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and DC Comics characters. While these are not 3D printing, per se, they give kids a simple introduction to modeling and creating in three-dimensional form, a skill that is applicable to true 3D printing as well.
While the consumer 3D printing market is currently small, fragmented, and confusing to consumers and the licensing community alike, and while it presents a number of challenges, especially on the IP front, there are many opportunities for licensors who want to experiment. Several are dipping their toes into the arena with an eye toward positioning themselves for a possible future where 3D printing products and services, in their various forms, become mainstream.
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