[fjtorres]

Ideally, commercial grade 3D could be used like POD books, to supplement the parts inventory of a business. Radio Shack, Home Depot, and Michael's are all chains that could host 3D printing services.
Amazon could, too, by basing them in their distribution centers.

So far, everybody has been focusing on getting 3D printers cheap enough for individual home use--a personal manufacturing revolution to somewhat parallel the PC revolution of the 80's. Amazon seems to think there might be a business in an earlier model: timeshared computing. They are setting up an online manufacturing job shop.

There are possibilities there, especially in their B2B operation, for providing 3D printing service on the big, expensive metal-sintering 3D printers and not just the polymer based low end models. It's the kind of "boldly going" thing one would expect to see in a SiliValley startup; the kind that either fizzles out in six months or explodes into a Google or a Facebook...

Worth tracking.