*NEWS*PRINTER SALES DOWN 6% IN CANADA

[Anonymous]

Printer Market in Canada Fourth
Quarter 2004

Last year (2004) will have the dubious distinction of being the first
year in which printer vendors shipped fewer products than they did in the prior
year. 

2003 was an uncanny year in the printer industry with total shipments
rising an incredible 19% compared with 2002.  This kind of growth was very
strange since the market had been chugging along with boring single-digit growth
for some time.  What makes 2003 such a strange year is that the first half of
the year was incredibly slow.  Indeed it looked as if 2003 would be the first
year of decline.  However, the second half of 2003 was so incredibly strong that
it more than compensated for the poor performance in the first half. 

The
incredible growth in 2003 was ultimately attributed to “new applications”.  The
MFP market swelled because consumers were buying the inexpensive products for
traditional “office” applications such as copying and faxing, rather than as
replacements for existing printers.  Also, the proliferation of inexpensive
digital cameras led to a dramatic spurt in “photo” printers, and again, not as
replacements for existing printers but as new devices.

Shipments over the first half of 2004 were up about five or six percent
compared with the same period of 2003.  However, what we must remember is how
poorly the market performed over that period of 2003.  So while it appeared as
if we were in for a growth year, vendors were unable to match the incredible
shipment totals in the second half of 2003 in 2004. 

In
the final analysis, printer vendors shipped more that 2,530,000 units in 2004. 
However, this reflects a decline of more that six percent compared with the
banner year 2003 when the tally was 2,704,000 printers.

The
post mortem for 2004 will show that the year was simply a victim of what may
become a traditional cycle.  The majority of consumers who wanted “office”
applications and photo printers have them.  After a couple of years, they will
replace them.  Will that be in 2005?  Some will and some will wait until 2006. 
Ultimately, it is very unlikely that we will see a significant increase in
shipments as we did in 2003 in the near future.  Nor are we likely to see the
same level of decrease in shipments as we did in 2004. 

Exhibit  1: Overall
Printer Shipments by Quarter

Exhibit  2: Overall
Segment Growth:  Q4-04 vs Q4-03 

Exhibit  3: Shipments by
Printer
Segment: Q4-04 (810,986 units) 

Exhibit  4: Annual
Printer Shipments: 2002 – 2008 

[Author]

April 9, 2005 at 11:51 AM