Jusletter IT

Since the beginning of the millennium the protection of intellectual property rights has been put under pressure by the digitalisation of information: photos, music, videos as well as texts became reproducible without restrictions, at almost no cost and may be spread worldwide through digital channels. 3-D print technology takes this idea one step further: by allowing the digitalisation and reproduction of physical objects, the technique connects the digital with the tangible world. Anyone shall be able to print its own designer furniture – or so at least the vision. What challenges does the new technology imply on intellectual property rights?