WEEKEND MFP INDUSTRY NOTES
7-20-08
The following is a quick review of copier/MFP industry news from industry publications.
- Xerox announced that Better Buys For Business magazine, in its upcoming high volume issue, awarded several products with “Editors Choice” awards. The models mentioned are:
o Xerox 4112
o Xerox 4127
o Xerox Nuvera 100
o Xerox Nuvera 120
o Xerox Nuvera 144
o DocuColor 7000AP
o DocuColor 8000AP
o DocuColor 242
o DocuColor 252
o DocuColor 260
- Xerox won a patent infringement suit against Palm Computing. Xerox successfully argued that the Graffiti handwriting recognition feature of the Palm Treo handheld system was a copy of Xerox’s Unistrokes software (which never found its way into a Xerox product). Xerox will receive $22.5 million from Palm.
- Another copier dealer sells out. Xerox, through its Global Imaging division, purchased Sierra Office Solutions of Reno, NV. Its legal name was Precision Copier Service, and was a large Ricoh/Kyocera dealer, but will now sell Xerox. Company co-owner and president Michael Jauron will continue to lead Sierra Office Solutions as president, reporting to James Koppert, president of Inland Business Systems, a Global location in Sacramento, CA.
- An independent copier dealer is filing legal action against a public school which apparently awarded copier bids to Xerox without getting bids from other vendors. Island Business Systems & Supplies has engaged the Office of Public Auditor to review the process at Guam Public School System, which has been buying copiers from Xerox since late 1980s. The current Xerox contract is for $128,365 per month minimum.
- Xerox has become a founding member of The Information Overload Research Group, which will try to help the world organize its electronic documents and messages.
- Microsoft changed the certifications that are given to network specialists. In the past, the only cert was Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE), now here are the new ones:
o MCTS – Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist
o MCITP – Microsoft Certified IT Professional
o MCPD – Microsoft Certified Professional Developer
o MCAS – Microsoft Certified Application Specialist
o MCAP – Microsoft Certified Application Professional
- Xerox announced it has placed a beta version of the new Nuvera 288 at a print shop in Chicago area. The Document Centre, a long time Xerox customer, has been running up to 5.5 million pages on the 288ppm b/w device.
- According to study, customers inadvertently throw away up to 60% of the ink for their desktop printers. TUV Rhineland, a research group in Europe, found that when a color inkjet printer indicates to end user that a new cartridge is needed, it may still have up to 40% of the ink still in it.
- IKON claims to have 40 FM sites in England, many of which use relabeled versions of bizhub PRO 1050 and C6500.
- IKON adjusted its financial third quarter forecast upward:
o expects to earn up to 37 cents per share (previous forecast of 32 cents)
o gross margin of 34%
o $1.05 billion in revenue
o stock now selling at around $11 per share
o it attributes gains to increased sales of managed and professional services
- Oce’ won a 5 year FM contract with Cambridge University in England. It also has contracts in Europe with Rolls-Royece, Aerospace and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
- Oce’ announced that its new VarioPrint 6250 production b/w system received the “Highly Recommended” award from Buyers Labs Inc. During testing, it jammed only once for every 333,333 pages produced.
- American TonerServ Corp., maker of generic toner cartridges, announced it has acquired one of its competitors, iPrint of Los Angeles, CA.
- EFI announced version 4.0 of its SendMe product, which is a hardware/software attachment for digital copier/MFPs. This product is relabeled by IKON as the “DocSend”, and is competition for eCopy. New features of SendMe are:
o Scan to Microsoft Word
o Scan to Microsoft Excel
o Built-in OmniPage 15 OCR software from Nuance
o 80 different connectors to other software applications
- Canon announced the imageWARE Remote OMD Module, which will allow dealers that use OMD software, to remotely collect copier meter readings for connected Canon copiers.
- Memphis Public School System, of Tenessee, announced it is opting out of its copier lease with Canon. With three years still left on the lease, the school district voted to prohibit any more payments. The FBI started an investigation into the lease in April of this year, when it was discovered that the person who signed the lease had died well before the lease was signed.
- Two large print for pay operations in the U.S. declare bankruptcy. Vertis Inc. of Baltimore and American Color Graphics of Tenessee also announced that after they clear bankruptcy, they wish to merge to form new firm.
- Retailers in the U.S. still rely on color print to advertise. Latest study shows how many stores/businesses use what types of marketing campaigns:
o 98% use print promotions
o 76% use direct mail
o 71% use print coupons
o 56% use Internet or e-mail
o 51% use print catalogs
- Better Buys For Business magazine, in its Low Volume edition, gave Editors’ Choice awards to the bizhub 181 and bizhub 200 models. For more info visit www.betterbuys.com.
- Sharp announced that its dealer, Applied Business Concepts, of Baton Rouge, LA, won a bid to supply MX-6201N and MX-950 models to Associated Grocers Corp.
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