Kodak 'banks on cheaper printer cartridges'
19/09/2007 10:49

Office supplies manufacturer Kodak is hoping to appeal to consumers who do not want to pay a lot for printer cartridges, it has been suggested.

While many competitors have followed a model in which they charge very little for printers themselves but a lot for product-specific printer cartridges, Kodak's new printers are turning that standard on its head, the Globe and Mail reports.

For example, its Easyshare all-in-one inkjet printers are aimed at consumers who are fed up with the high cost of printer cartridges and the company claims they could save 50 per cent on printing costs by using the office machines.

"Seventy per cent of the folks we talked to realise how expensive it is and limit what they print," Kodak executive Steve Billow told the publication.

"It's because of the model that has been created by our competitors, they can essentially give their printers away."

Both HP and Seiko Epson list more than 100 varieties of printer cartridges on their websites and they expect to make most of their profit on these consumables.

However, now that Kodak has dropped the price on printer cartridges, experts have suggested that other office supplies companies could do the same.

Kodak entered the consumer inkjet printer market in 1999.

At Paperstone we can supply your firm with a wide selection of printer supplies.