Try as you might to ignore it, 3D printing doesn't look like it's an idea that is going to pass quietly into the ether any time soon. This realisation dawned on me the other day when I was watching Lisa Harouni's compelling and thought provoking TED talk about how this disruptive technology might change the manufacturing model as we know it.

In the 1960s a music listening post constituted a sound proof booth equipped with a turntable that shoppers could play records on. Over time these posts evolved into digital MP3 players replete with headphones capable of storing thousands of songs. But what will a listening post of the future look like?

Experiential marketing. It was big in 2011 and it's set to get even bigger in 2012 as brands eschew more traditional advertising forms in an attempt to get a greater bang for their buck.

For four day's this Christmas, eBay (the largest online buying and selling facility in the world) opened up it's first pop-up store in London's Soho district, bringing together the boundaries of online and in-store shopping through the platform of print.

Caspar Williamson, a London-based illustrator and screen-printer who runs the print and design firm Flying Machines, published the book Reinventing Screenprinting last month, which celebrates the work of some of the world's most innovative and creative screenprinters. We caught up with him to find out his thoughts on the printing techniques recent revival and what the future has in store for screenprint lovers.

It's been a tumultuous week for the printing industry. On Friday Manroland, the world's third largest press manufacturer, filed for insolvency. The reason behind its financial decline: a lack of orders for new equipment. An official statement issued by the German company on Friday underlined the full extent of the problem. In it Manroland explained that it had experienced a "dramatic downturn" in orders since July, a trend that had accelerated in recent months.

Social media channels are great for tracking down former school mates that you've lost touch with and they're great at helping you to keep up-to-date with what your friends have been up to but what about as a marketing tool for a business?

Is it really worth the time and effort involved in setting up – and then updating on a regular basis – a dedicated presence on sites like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn?

Art and print have been happy bedfellows for years, with the likes of Andy Warhol through to Gilbert and George using the printed form as a means of artistic expression. This noble tradition is being continued at the moment in the French city of Arles as part of the annual Les Recontres photography exhibition. In an abandoned warehouse French artist JR – backed by a $100,000 prize fund from the creative non-profit organisation TED – has created a participatory art project called 'Inside Out' that's enthralling visitors.

The advertising and wide format print industries have been collaborating for years to try and make greener billboards, but no one has been able to master the trick – until now. With the unveiling of Europe's first 'eco-board' at a site next to the M4 motorway in London in late June, Ricoh has set the digital signage bar high for others to follow.

 

Can wide-format printing companies still use the ‘sustainability’ badge as a point of differentiation to win new business? Over the last few years it’s been a subject that’s sparked a heated debate. After all, every printer worth his (or her) salt has by now latched onto the fact that offering an environmentally-friendly printing service is right up there at the top of the list of client demands.