Booming trade in empty inkjet cartridges
Business Booming For Computer Ink Refillers
GRAPEVINE, Texas — It’s one of those things every one who owns a printer comes to figure out.
The
real money in the devices comes from being able to sell replacement
cartridges — whether it be ink for ink-jet printers or toner for laser
printers.It’s an expensive proposition — over time, printer users
spend many times more than the cost of the machine in replacement
supplies. But these days, a growing number of people are turning to
refilled ink cartridges.One businessman in Texas said doing so has
knocked his monthly outlay from $600 a month to about $400 a month.
Lyra Research tracks the printer industry — and said refilled
cartridges account for less than a quarter of ink sales in the United
States.But analysts said the number of is certain to go much higher,
and that’s expected to pose a threat to big printer makers like Hewlett
Packard, Lexmark and Epson.