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[B][SIZE=4]Kodak follows Lexmark and announces plan to stop manufacturing ink-jet printers[/SIZE][/B]
[IMG]http://dpnow.com/images/Kodakinkjetprinter1.jpg[/IMG]
[I]This is Jaime Cohen Szulc, then Eastman Kodak vice president and general manager for consumer products in Europe, Middle East and Africa, posing for DPNow during his presentation at the launch of Kodak's new ink-jet business, in February 2007. The product in front of him was Kodak's first EasyShare 5300 all-in-one ink-jet printer/scanner copier.[/I]
After just five and a half years Kodak has given up on its ink-jet printer business. Sales of Kodak EasyShare ink-jet printers will cease early in the 2013, although supplies of ink will be maintained indefinitely. The news follows [URL="http://dpnow.com/forum2/blog.php?b=342"]Lexmark's similar announcement[/URL] a month ago.
It had been thought that Kodak' ink-jet printer business was safe from the widespread collapse of most of Kodak's imaging business empire and here in the UK television advertising for Kodak printers has been aired only weeks ago. With Lexmark withdrawing from the market you might have thought that Kodak would have benefited from reduced competition, but it isn't to be.
Kodak's strategy was slightly different from its competitors. We understand Kodak, unlike its main competitors, did not manufacture its own printers, instead relying on a third-party manufacturer. The main Kodak marketing strategy was competitive cost per page and ink Kodak ink cartridges were generous in size and Kodak printers were not generally sold at ridiculously low prices. Kodak also concentrated on fade-resistant pigmented inks. But none of this appears to have earned long term commercial success.
With Kodak and Lexmark out of the game the main remaining ink-jet printer brands are HP, which is currently trying to stem multi-billion dollar losses across its business from PCs to printers, Canon, and Epson. Brother is another small brand.
With concern that consumers simply don't feel inclined to print photos any more and pressure from suppliers of cheap third-party inks, there has to be concern that we will see more negative news in the ink-jet sector and possibly an increase in the cost of printers.
Ian
[quote]Sales of Kodak EasyShare ink-jet printers will cease early in the 2013[/quote]
If they're still selling printers until early-2013, it suggests that they have a backlog to shift. They'll be trying to get rid of them before they need to do "bankrupt stock clearance" or something.