Kodak attempting to ‘disrupt the market’ with cheaper ink cartridges
Kodak
has announced a shift in its inkjet printing strategy, lowering the
price of inkjet cartridges while bumping up the price of printers — a
move expected to ‘disrupt the market,’ according to one analyst.The
company announced on Wednesday a new line of printers that will be
priced at between $130 and $330, while their cartridges will be priced
at between $12 and $18. The strategy is a departure from conventional
printer pricing, in which consumers pay less — sometimes as low as $40
— for printers and upwards of $60 for cartridges.
Kodak’s swing
toward cheaper ink is a bold, competitive move, said Michelle Warren, a
senior analyst with the market research group Info-Tech.”Because what
Kodak is essentially trying to do is disrupt the market and [encourage]
individuals to print more versus storing on an electronic device — they
actually want us to print more — their message is going to have to be
transferred to the retail sales team,” she said.”I think they’re not
priming themselves to compete against the $40 printer, they’re priming
themselves to compete in a specific segment,” Warren said, noting she
expected the company to also tout its paper products in conjunction
with the printers.Rival inkjet manufacturers, including Hewlett-Packard
and Epson, will be monitoring Kodak’s strategy carefully, Warren said,
but she qualified that Kodak won’t overturn the market immediately.”I
think a vendor such as an HP or an Epson is really going to evaluate
how Kodak is received before they decide to lower their prices on the
supply,” she said.