MFPs put the brakes on the UAE printer market, says
IDC
After expanding by nearly a third in 2003, the
United Arab Emirates printer market grew only 2.2 per cent in shipments to over
262,000 units.
According to a new IDC study, revenue expanded a mere 0.9% as
prices continued to fall. The surge in popularity of MFPs and the increasing use
of networking and departmental printers has resulted in a significant slowdown
in the single-function printer market. As a result, IDC expects the UAE printer market to be flat this year
and start contracting in 2006.
The falling demand for inkjets meant that
this technology accounted for slightly less than half of all printer shipments
in the UAE in 2004. Due to
rock-bottom prices, however, the form factor made up just over a fifth of
revenue. By contrast, mono laser printers amounted to 36.7% of shipments and
just under 49% of revenue last year. Due to aggressive pricing and technology
advances, the segment exhibited 36.7% shipment growth but only 15.7% revenue
growth in 2004. The color laser segment was the most dynamic, expanding by 38.4%
in shipments, but it started from a very small base.
“Color laser
printers will stay hot for the foreseeable future,” says Naser Sha’sha’a, Senior
Analyst, IDC CEMA. “But the rest of the single-function printer market is on its
last legs in terms of growth. After this year, demand for mono lasers will be
flat and then start to drop along with the rest of the market as users start
buying MFPs.”
HP was the hands down leader on the UAE printer market last year. The vendor
captured a volume share more than double that of second-ranked Epson and more
than triple that of third-ranked Canon. Together these three vendors represented
more than 93% of the UAE
printer
market in 2004. “Although dealers and resellers still account for the bulk of
printer sales in the UAE,” says Sha’sha’a, “vendors increasingly need shelf
space in retail outlets, where a lot of home users and small office users now
shop for inexpensive electronics. Making sure their models and logos are visible
will help vendors ensure loyalty and new customer acquisition as users migrate
to MFPs.”