Makers in Uproar over Thingiverse Models on eBay

[bulentyusuf]

Hi folks,

This has been a big issue over on Thingiverse for the past week:

Makers in Uproar over Thingiverse Models on eBay

Just wondering if the community here had heard about it, and had any thoughts on the issue.

Cheers,

B

[Left]

I Have heard about it. I also read a lot of comments on this topic today.

Below, the one I like most. (from: Geofro)

Hey There, I know how you feel. There are a lot of conflicting factors involved which is why it’s confusing, but you’ll be glad you’re dealing with this now rather than when you do something more complex later that potentially has more monetary value.
I’ve been in the same boat and I share a lot of my models. My most complex ones, you could likely print and sell. Like the Lightsaber and Ducati models. People have printed and sold the lightsaber for a pretty high price on ebay.
I also have models I don’t have available publicly, but I sell as physical painted objects, and I have things that aren’t for sale, digital or physical. I made only for charity for a special purpose.
What I can tell you is you really have to be honest with yourself if you’re actually ok with it being freely available. Free download on thingiverse means that people WILL take and monetize it if the opportunity presents itself. Going after copyright isn’t going to do anything but zap your time/energy. You need to determine early on before you put it up if you will accept all consequences of doing so. There’s obviously good and bad things that can happen but if you come to terms with it early on you can fully embrace the sharing. If it makes you resentful. Don’t do it. You can’t take the benefits of sharing publicly (the publicity, views, peoples thanks, helping, sharing) and none of the bad (poaching, non-crediting etc).
What you can do is learn from what people are doing with your object, if they’re trying to sell it a certain way and they’re successful, you can do it better because you have the design skills necessary to make a better version or something else entirely. You can keep your new thing exclusive to you and make better profit on it. Free objects on Thiniverse won’t be able to fetch the same price as an exclusive item since other people can just print it out or use 3D hubs.
If it bugs you that it’s being sold where you offer it free, let potential buyers know they’re being charged for a free thing. But there are probably better ways to spend your energy. The bottom line is you can’t control other peoples actions or ethics once it’s out in the wild, which means there’s no reason for you to be affected negatively by it regardless of how it appears.
Just think, the people that steal and sell your products do not generally have the skills & understanding required to improve/make new things. They have no next step, or a business model that isn’t predatory, no creative juice. They aren’t ones to envy, but to pity.
So move on. Make cooler stuff and leave this behind. Be flattered that someone has thought your design to be good enough to poach. Be at peace with your own ethics and lead by example because people will see great work and great people.
Be honest to yourself as to what you want to achieve with each creation. To make money, or to share, or to improve skills/lives and put them up on appropriate platforms. Let it run it’s course. Once you’ve determined and accepted that beforehand you’ll be happy to embrace whatever comes without the emotional anguish.

[AtomJaay]

I saw this come up about a napkin ring and didn’t bother checking the 2,000+ ebay listings. Now I have started and already found one of mine that is no-com cc and it is one I have listed on a store of my own.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3D-Printed-Fortune-Cookie-Holder-Ornament-/262193030785?hash=item3d0bec2681:g:RXMAAOSwSdZWcBb1

Fortune Cookie Fortune Display by ecafruoy

A customer choosing from thingiverse and contacting their LOCAL printer for mfg is totally different than listing things in bulk with no attribution to be made and shipped from PA no matter where customer is. I am not a fan of these guys at all.

I wonder if the image they used being off my instagram makes it easier for me to have them remove my items from their store?

[AtomJaay]

Attribution is the real issue here. If a person who lives a mile away from me comes across this ebay listing and the design is attributed to me under CC then they can look at the thingiverse page. They may go to my profile because I designed a thing they like and maybe I made more. They see I am an active 3DHubs printer and they click on my link. Hey, this guy is right in my town! What a great way to support my local community and take advantage of a local mfg solution.

No attribution and this pretty much becomes impossible and many resources are wasted getting the “part” from a centralized location out to customer.

[bulentyusuf]

I read this too, it comes from a Reddit thread on a separate incident (but identical situation) about a year ago. The Creative Commons licensing is a robust framework for disseminating intellectual property in the digital age, and I thought it was doing a pretty solid job. But I’m really surprised at the scale and speed at which these models are being appropriated with the designers’ permission or consent. And it’s a pity that designers have resign themselves to it happening.

[bulentyusuf]

Best option is to file a complaint with eBay, using their VeRO system. Details here: Verified Rights Owner Program | Seller Center

[AtomJaay]

It’s worth mentioning that if they get the asking price for most of these printed items, they are severely ripping of consumers and hurting 3DHubs printers by “poisoning the well”.