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Epson Hits Online Ink Cartridge Retailers
Seiko
Epson has succeeded in getting four online retailers of printer ink
cartridges to stop selling a number of third-party ink cartridges
designed for use in Epson printers, the Japanese company said Friday.
The
four retailers are in Germany and agreed in out-of-court settlements to
stop selling the cartridges, which Seiko Epson asserts infringe upon
its intellectual property. The retailers are GEPOC Gesellschaft fur
Polymerchemie GmbH in Aachen, BWD Computer in Arnsdorf, Tintenshop
Lohne in Bielefeld and Tinten-Toner Vertrieb in Bochum, Epson said in a
statement.
The action is the latest in a string of successful
attempts by the Japanese company to stamp out sales of unlicensed ink
cartridges in Europe and the United States.
Earlier this year, Epson
filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission against
24 companies that manufacture, import or distribute aftermarket ink
cartridges for sale in the United States and filed a case in the
English High Court against Medea International. In 2005, Epson
succeeded in reaching out of court settlements with companies in the
United Kingdom and Hong Kong.
The sale of ink refills is a lucrative
business for printer makers such as Epson. It’s also an important part
of the business model typically used where little or no profit is made
on the printer itself but later recouped on cartridge sales. Trading of
unlicensed cartridges threatens to upset this business model.
In a
statement, Epson said it welcomes competition from companies that are
willing to license its technology to produce compatible ink cartridges
but will continue to “vigorously pursue” its rights against companies
that infringe upon its intellectual property rights.
Last week,
Seiko Epson reported its first net loss in four years, in part because
of falling prices for printer-only products as consumers switch to
multifunction models. As a result, Epson plans to reduce in the next 12
months the number of stand-alone printers it offers, it said.
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