Companies will resort to making patent or trade dress claims against people who offer 3d printing schematics.
When the court system decides that Samsung can't make a phone that looks sort of like an iPhone, it's a good bet that courts will find that it's illegal to print, or assist printing of, a replica of some $megacorp object or part.
The question is, which will happen first -- viable 3d printing of useful items, or the generation that grew up on Napster getting old enough to write the laws?
Will the Napster generation be able to maintain its ideology for the 30-40 years it will take to get them into office? Will they just represent another archaic viewpoint when compared to their future grandchildren?
When the court system decides that Samsung can't make a phone that looks sort of like an iPhone, it's a good bet that courts will find that it's illegal to print, or assist printing of, a replica of some $megacorp object or part.