The Printing Press was a revolutionary invention created by a German goldsmith named Johannes Gutenberg in 1436. It is worth noting that he didn't start automated book printing, as various types of it had been going on for about a century in both China and Korea. However, Gutenberg's became the most successful and influential. His machine included a screw-type wine press that pressed down on inked metal type.
The machine didn't originally gain much popularity at first. It was a revolutionary invention, but distribution of the printed material became a problem. Gutenberg could sell a few books around his town or nearby areas but found distributing to a greater population proved difficult. Because of this, Gutenberg ended up dying penniless before his invention took off in influence and popularity.
The struggle with distribution was solved eventually, with solutions including sending copies of printed material with people who are traveling to distribute them on their travels, eventually creating a global market.
The literacy rate still wasn't very high when the printing press began getting more popular, so those who were literate were paid to read for those who weren't literate.
The most prevalent texts that were distributed were religious, informational, and scientific texts. The fact that the global market expanded also led to faster distribution of ideas and information. This in turn led to faster scientific discoveries and technological advances.
The Italian renaissance began before the invention of the printing press, but it's creation again sped up the process of gained knowledge and known ideas, as well as giving more people access to it, Printed material became cheaper and easier for people to get, not just the upper class. Less censorship was able to be done on fringe voices because of the weight and volume of printed material being sent out into the world.
Because of the printing press, Martin Luther became the first best selling author in the world, with his writings making up almost two-thirds of books being sold in Germany at the time.
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