A doctoral research project looking at adoption of 3D printing in the production of custom toys and merchandise. With thanks to Makielab and Lancaster University.

1. TOYETIC TOOLING:
3D PRINTING &
CONVERGENT
MEDIA PLATFORMS
NATASHA CAROLAN

2. ADDRESSES POSSIBILITIES FOR DEVELOPMENT
IN PRODUCTION OF MEDIA RELATED GOODS
(TOYS AND MERCHANDISE) ENABLED BY
CONVERGENCE OF 3D PRINTING WITH DIGITAL
MEDIA PRODUCTS.
TOYETIC TOOLING: 3D PRINTING & CONVERGENT MEDIA PLATFORMS

3. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. How convergence of 3D printing with digital media/
game products presents opportunities for development
in production of toys and merchandise?
Sub questions
2. What user interactions with media content are enabled
by convergence of 3D printing in the digital economy?
3. What are the implications for the various stakeholders
involved in production of media related goods?
TOYETIC TOOLING: 3D PRINTING & CONVERGENT MEDIA PLATFORMS

4. 3D Printing
ResearchToys &
Merchandise
Freebies, Omake,
Stickering
Convergence
Transmedia Toyetic
PotentialCharacter merchandising
Digitisation
TOYETIC TOOLING: 3D PRINTING & CONVERGENT MEDIA PLATFORMS
Loot boxes and
card collecting
Licensing &
franchising
Peer production
Democratisation of
media production
Democratisation of production
Implications for distribution
Fan art
Consumer/
Innovation
Research Media
Research
3D printing and process
innovation
Profession, Practice and
Training Implications
Mass customisation
Online communities
Communities of
practice
LITERATURE REVIEW
Digital
EconomyFan economies
Designer, Indie &
Vinyl Toys
User innovation
Toolkits for user
innovation
Toolkits for user
innovation
Feelies
Toys to Life
Interactivity

5. RESEARCH TIMELINE AND PARTNERSHIP

6. RESEARCH STRATEGY/DESIGN
STRATEGY & JUSTIFICATION
Methodological pluralism
Survey/Questionnaire - a quick and inexpensive way
to probe prospective consumers. A mix of questions,
across a range of areas. Qualitative and Quantitative
data produced. Coding and quantitative approaches
to analysis employed as appropriate.
Netnography - allowed for ongoing consideration of
activity amongst 3D printing communities and industry
trends. Inexpensive and accessible research approach.
Tracked a range of activity using coding and thematic
analysis where relevant to group findings.
Participant observation allowed for research with an
industry body enabling in-depth, participatory, active
and situated perspective. Data collection and analysis
involved identifying themes and synthesising findings.
METHODOLOGY
Netnography
Participant
Observation
Survey
FIELD STUDY ANALYSIS
THEMATIC
THEMATIC
QUANTITATIVE/
QUALITATIVE
THEMATIC
CODING

7. ‘Getting my own codename when I joined the Action Man club in the late 1980s.’
‘Yay! Really want to let my daughter have a hand at it. Looking forward to it as a father/daughter activity.’
‘MAKING STAR WARS MOVIES WITH MY COUSIN EVERY SUMMER
FOR YEARS.
LEGO FILMS SHOT ON A CHEAP POINT AND SHOOT WITH MY
NEPHEW.
TAUNTAUN RACES ON WHITE BED SHEETS O SLEEPOVERS.
CHRISTMAS MORNING THE CHRISTMAS AFTER EMPIRE- MY
BROTHER AND I GOT HOTH LUKE AND HAN.’
“In college, I remember the very first
Hellboy figure being really cool.
I posed it and took pictures.
Those were the first pics posted to the
Hellboy forum at the time.
Made me feel like part of the
community in a way I hadn't before.”
‘I WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO PAINT THE FACE (SELL ME A KIT OF EXCLUSIVE COLOURS!) AND CHANGE THE POSE...
SUCH AS GAS HEATING, AIR BRUSHING SPECIALISTS DO IT IN JAPAN.
I NEVER DID IT MYSELF THOUGH...MAYBE I WAS ALWAYS SATISFIED WITH WHAT THE "PROPER" DESIGNERS SOLD ME ;)
‘Mixed. I love it in theory, and I love the
idea of those 'kit-mash' customisations,
but I don't have faith in my ability to design
something cool.
Part of me feels more inclined to buy dolls/
figures designed entirely by the experts.
Maybe a tool belt/bag for the doll where I
could pick 'n' mix the accessory contents.’
‘AS A KID, MY FRIEND AND I SHOPPED
MORE AT THE LOCAL HARDWARE STORE
THAN THE TOY STORE, FOR GI JOE
ACCESSORIES.
WE HAD PULLEY DRIVEN TREE-HOUSES,
ZIPLINES, RAIL CARS.... ALL OF WHICH
WERE BUILT BUY HAND.
AFTER MY FRIEND'S OLDER BROTHER
MUTILATED GI JOE WITH A BUNSEN
BURNER,
WE CRAFTED OUR OWN CYBORG
PROSTHESES FROM STUFF FOUND AT THE
HARDWARE STORE!’
‘I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR KIDS TO BE ABLE TO SEE THINGS THAT LOOK JUST LIKE THEMSELVES OUT THERE IN THE
WORLD TO KNOW THAT THEY'RE NOT ALONE.’
‘I COLLECTED ALL OF THE THUNDERCATS ACTION FIGURES WHEN I WAS
ABOUT 10 -
COMPLETELY OBSESSED WITH THE SERIES, AND ALSO HAD TWO OF MY
LETTERS PUBLISHED IN THUNDERCATS MAGAZINE (
BOTH COMPLAINING ABOUT LACK OF FEMALE REPRESENTATION...)’
SURVEY OF PROSPECTIVE CONSUMERS

8. NETNOGRAPHY
FAN PRODUCED TOYS AND OBJECTS REFERENCING MEDIA
PRODUCTS

9. NETNOGRAPHY
3D PRINTING MARKETPLACES AND AN ECONOMY OF FAN
PRODUCED 3D PRINTABLE CONTENT

10. PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION
MEDIA COMPANY ADOPTED 3D PRINTING AUTOMATING PRODUCTION OF
TOYS FROM PLAYER CREATED IN-GAME ASSETS.

11. GAMES INCORPORATED FAN ACTIVITY WITH IN GAME TRADING AND
SUBSEQUENT PRINTING OF USER CREATED GOODS.

12. ▸ Makies developed what I describe as a
convergent media platform - in which
convergence of 3D printing with a digital
game made possible direct manufacture
of toys and merchandise.
▸ Makies games specifically facilitated remix
and reuse of game content through
provision of design tools and gameplay
mechanics.
▸ MakieLab designed these games as
platforms upon which user generated
content and fan art was co-opted, seeding
an in-game economy of digital and
physical fashion and accessory trading.
▸ MakieLab stood to gain, in various ways
from this captive form of trading, acting as
marketplace and manufacturer.

13. COMMODIFICATION
OF USER GENERATED
CONTENT & FAN ART

14. TEXT
3D PRINTING AND TRANSMEDIA POTENTIAL
▸ Role for 3D printing as a delivery channel
facilitating production and delivery of
transmedia content.
▸ Making possible on-demand manufacture
of objects to assist in transmedia
storytelling and related functions -
enhancing, facilitating or expanding game
play or story telling.
▸ Makes possible user generated feelies/
objects or dynamic updates to game
objects allowing objects to perform roles
related to proprietary rights, security, and
intellectual property controls for games.

15. DATA FRECKLES
MACHINE READABLE 3D PRINTED GAME PIECES

16. TEXT
TOYETIC POTENTIAL & IN-MEDIA MERCHANDISING
▸ Finds that 3D printing may be poised to disrupt traditional calculations of the
merchandise or toyetic potential of media products.
▸ 3D printing undermines the requirement for firms to meet minimum order quantities or
offset initial tooling costs associated with mass production.
▸ In the case of Makies, who developed an automated software processes allowing
automated translation of game assets to 3D printable formats this pipeline may be
automated negating associated toy/merchandise design costs.
▸ This allows media producing firms to control their own merchandise pipeline, reducing
the need for intermediaries and enables them to exploit a wider range of content.
▸ In the case of particular types of animated or digital game content this positions a
wider range of content as potentially 3D printable.
▸ Democratises or lower barriers to offering merchandise - as per Kerbal Space Program

17. COMMODIFICATION
OF CONSUMER
CREATION ACTIVITY

18. OPPORTUNITIES
▸ 3D printing and transmedia potential
Role for 3D printing as a delivery channel facilitating production and delivery of custom printable content and
transmedia content.
▸ Data freckles and between-media interactivity
A role for 3D printing in producing machine readable game pieces facilitating between-media or cross platform
interactivity.
▸ Recalculating toyetic potential and in-media merchandising
3D printing can disrupt traditional calculations of the value of content as merchandise or toy objects allowing
for one-off and batch manufacture, negating requirements for high initial tooling costs. In conjunction with
automated game asset to printable format processes merchandise production may be automated.
▸ Commodification of user generated content or fan art
Co-opting fan production of content, art or toys. Where Shapeways profits from selling fan produced 3D
printable, media related content, Makies controls the process of creating, trading, selling and manufacturing, all
as part of game play.
▸ Commodification of consumer creation activity - creating as consumable experience.
People may consume the process or experience of making as part of a retail or media experience.
TOYETIC TOOLING: 3D PRINTING & CONVERGENT MEDIA PLATFORMS

19. TOYETIC TOOLING: 3D PRINTING & CONVERGENT MEDIA PLATFORMS
LIMITATIONS
▸ Some consider 3D printing to be at its prime. However quality,
cost and colour issues remain problematic and continue to
impact development and associated research.
▸ MakieLab are a single industry example and research may be
considered to be limited in wider generalisability or
representativeness.
▸ MakieLab and many of the other 3D printing/media firms noted
in this research were early examples and have paused
development raising relevant questions relating to technology
readiness.

20. TOYETIC TOOLING: 3D PRINTING & CONVERGENT MEDIA PLATFORMS
FUTURE RESEARCH
▸ Disney are continuing research and development in this space,
acquiring a range of companies and securing patents across a range
of 3D printing futures.
▸ Evaluate and test operational aspects of toyetic and merchandise
potential and commodification of user generated content.
▸ Consider experience and service design for co-creation experiences.
▸ Consider and test or update alternatives to prohibitive intellectual
property approaches and develop recommendations for updating
intellectual property legislation in view of 3D printing.

21. ▸ Evidence of adoption of 3D printing
by the game industry.
▸ Early evidence of fan economies of
user generated 3D printable objects.
▸ Makies and SuperFanArt are two
distinct but interrelated ways of co-
opting fan production enabled by
3D printing.
▸ This convergence of 3D printing
with media products presents a
range of opportunities for digital
game and media companies as
avenues for manufacture, co-
creation and creative commerce.
SUMMARY

22. QUESTIONS