One of the biggest problems of early printing was Censorship an example of this is;

"in 1637 an Act was passed to limit the number of printers in England by decree and in 1644 a Licensing Act followed, which required all publications to go before an official censor for approval.  By the end of the century there were just 20 master printes in England, and 18 of these were in London.  These moves reflected the mood of the country as a whole, and the determination of these in power to protect their status.  For this was the century which witnessed the English Civil War, Great Plague, Great Fire of London and one economic depression after another.  As the power brokers sought security for their authority, printing became a dangerous occupation with the penalties for breaches of the Licensing Act including fines, imprisonment and the confiscation of equipment and even death.  But things eased in the 1690's and the way was set for a mini-financial revolution, which lead to the industry's progress to the late eighteenth Century.  In 1694 the Licensing Act expired and was not renewed, largely because of Parliament's Declaration of Rights in 1689" Jones printing History & Development