Copyright Law in the Future: 3D Printing

The Australian Law Reform Commission is conducting an inquiry into copyright law and the digital economy in 2012 and 2013, seeking to "find reforms that are responsive to this new environment, and to future scenarios that are still in the realm of imagination," says President Rosalind Croucher. 

In particular, the Commission will need to consider the role of copyright law with respect to the emergence of new technologies such as 3D printing, an area that is likely to see a surge in the coming years. The process involves making three-dimensional physical objects from digital models. Copyright owners fear that this will enable the unauthorised reproduction of copyright works, and this area is likely to become the topic of future lawsuits, especially in light of Australia's approach to the defence of fair use, which is less broad and robust than in the US. 

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