PRINTER SALES STRONG ON BLACK FRIDAY 2006

[Anonymous]

Consumer Printer Sales Strong During Black Friday 2006
Overall inkjet printer sales in U.S. retail exhibited strong growth during Black Friday week 2006 when compared to the same week last year. This week is traditionally the highest volume week of the year for consumer printer sales as holiday shoppers flock to retail outlets to take advantage of deeply discounted products. While overall sales were up, drastic declines in the average selling price (ASP) of consumer printers, coupled with the first decline in unit sales for compact photo (Snapshot) printers in the past three years plagued printer vendors.

Year Over Year Unit Growth
Photo     Snapshot     Standard     AIO     Total
2004   +34.2%  +133.0%     -43.6%     +37.5%       +6.8%
2005    -1.6%     +137.1%       -2.7%     +40.2%      +32.5%
2006    -35.1%     -10.7%     +88.6%      +29.0%      +24.8%

Data reflects sales for the entire week encompassing Black Friday each year.

Year-to-year growth for Black Friday 2006 for consumer printers amounted to 24.8% with snapshot photo product unit sales down 10.7%. AIOs and non-photo single-function (standard) inkjets were the primary bright spots for consumer printer vendors, as sales of these categories grew by 29% and 88.6% respectively for Black Friday 2006.The increase in AIO and standard inkjet printer sales for Black Friday 2006 was not without its problems when compared to the same week in 2005. ASPs for AIOs declined by 25.7%, which resulted in revenues for AIO devices actually declining by 4.1% for Black Friday 2006. Standard inkjet unit increases were offset by a decline in ASP of 53.5% and a revenue decline of 12.4%. Both categories were also heavily promoted by vendors.“The encouraging news of increased printer sales for Black Friday 2006 is offset by declining ASP’s and an increase in vendor cost due to heavy promotional efforts,” said Lissa Jordon, Research Analyst at Current Analysis.

Additional findings include the following:
    * Printers promoted in PC bundles comprised 47% of total printer unit sales for Black Friday 2006.
    * The average AIO sold for $93, and the average standard, single-function inkjet sold for $31 during Black Friday 2006.
    * Despite an ASP decline of 28.1%, snapshot photo printer unit sales declined by 10.7%, following two consecutive years of substantial growth.

[Author]

December 7, 2006 at 1:30 PM