Scenario

Instructions

This activity presents a case study of a fictitious $3$D printer and printer cartridge company called $3$DMall. $3$DMall has a patent on proprietary $3$D printing technology and has decided to sell its novel, user$-$friendly $3$D printers and cartridges to consumers. The unique benefit to using $3$DMall printers is that consumers do not have to design their own products by using complex scanning and design programs that require a certain level of technological expertise. Instead, they can choose to immediately print ready$-$made designs they find in $3$DMall$$s online store.

The designs in $3$DMall$$s store are provided by third$-$party organizations who submit these to $3$DMall for sale. $3$DMall hosts the designs, and consumers can browse and purchase them via an app or $3$DMall$$s store website. When a consumer purchases a design through the $3$DMall store, they are purchasing a one$-$time$-$use design from a third party and using it to print the item immediately with their own printer. $3$DMall receives a percentage of every purchase made in the store. Once a consumer has purchased a design and uses it$,$ the design automatically deletes itself from their printer.

Read the case study below and answer the questions that follow. At the end of the activity, the instructor will review the steps of the activity and share the correct answers for each question. This case study will be revisited in later activities.

Case Study Information

$3$DMall continues to grow steadily in its EU and U$.$S$.$ markets, and a few more large firms have begun offering their designs for end$-$user printing. Also, several start$-$ups have offered products that can only be printed using the service, and a few have become popular enough to garner press on their success stories. Furthermore, the new model allows users to scan a person$$s foot, for example, and automatically be offered the right size shoe. $3$DMall has also developed a new set of cartridges that are larger to allow for more economical printing.

$3$DMall now wants to find new markets and customer segments to keep growing its customer base. The price of both the printers and the cartridges is too high for most consumers in developing countries to purchase. However, the organization engages in market research and discovers that in many regions, a need exists for basic products that can be produced for sale by entrepreneurs. There is$,$ however, the problem of limited or no internet access in many of these target markets.

Once you have answered all of the questions, click the Summary button at the bottom of the screen to view your final score and complete this activity.

Question

Question $1$ of $5$:

If $3$DMall wants to allow entrepreneurs in developing countries to get a discount to produce multiple copies of a particular product design, what sorts of products might be most likely allowed such a license?

Answers

Products in decline

Products in introduction

Products in maturity

Products in growth