Eliminate the shipping costs by (instantly-ish) remotely "printing" replacement parts at the customer's location. Holy shit man ... That's got potential!
-Stoic Joker
Not if the customer can't legally print a spare part because the 3D printer could conceivably be used to make contraband such as pirated cars and guns. -SeraphimLabs
The customer wouldn't. They would just 'expose' their printer/access to it publically, in an HP ePrint fashion. Leaving Tech Support a point of access to "send" the new part (printing instructions) after the '
appropriate charges' had been made.
Now as far as he big brother movement that wishes to cripple the device...well that's just stupid. and impossible. The technology is what the technology is, and any control circuitry can be circumvented. If they (yes the infamous classic SiFi them) wish to piss ther fortunes down the drain trying to prevent gasoline from being flamable ... Then I say let them squander their wealth all the way down into the Darwinian gutter.
My father once said that locks only keep honest people out. And that quite simply is the only real truth to any of this sillyness. If I have a skill, and a need ... Then I will damn well combine them into whatever manner of have I can muster. because the is the predatory nature of our species. Anyone that can't grasp that is a food animal.