Special thanx to the P4P Hotel members for this!Canon’s executive vice president of research & development, Toshiaki Ikoma, was interviewed recently and made following comments:
- Will gradually shift from make-everything-in-house approach to open style I which Canon purchases and licenses technologies from other firms
- “I will primarily focus on deepening and broadening the company’s technology base. Specifically, precision, optic, large-scale integrations, designing, imaging, and materials technologies, among some other, compose Canon’s technology base.”
- I look to increase the depth and breadth of these base technologies. By making the most of this technological foundation, the company will create cutting-edge camera, ink jet and other technologies.”
- “To this end, the company has setup up the base-technology development department to ensure the new technologies will spring up”.
- “Today, however, companies advocating open innovation – assembling products by using the cheapest but excellent technologies developed by other firms around the world – are proving winners, as has been the case for Apple Corp., with the iPod and for Nintendo Co. with the Wii video console.”
- “Apple has brought out new products on after another through the open approach. Still, it remains well ahead of competitors because it outstrips rivals in its ability to come up with new product concepts.”
- “What makes the difference is not elemental technologies but conceptual power and marketing skill. Marketing knowledge is gaining importance in R&D as well.”
Fuji of Japan announced that it now has moved 80% of all manufacturing for copier/printers to China to reduce costs:
- Mie Prefecture of China make functional components such as printheads and circuit boards
- Niigata of China make printers and supplies
Xerox’s VP of North American Resellers, stated that its printer/MFP sales through computer dealers are down 19%.
Fuji of Japan announced it started its own channel on YouTube to advertise its copiers and MFPs.
In South Africa, Konica Minolta launched a managed print services program, and named it “bizhub quantum”.
Oce’ detailed its new cost cutting plans:
- will fire 800 employees to save $91 million in costs through 2010
- during last fiscal year, the company cut 1,250 employees
- by end of 2010, will have cut a total of 8% of its workforce
- agreed to an amendment in its loan covenants, which provide increased flexibility for the
necessary restructuring costs
- under previous loan covenants, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) was not adjusted for extraordinary items
- under new covenants, EBITDA is adjusted for restructuring charges, exceeding a threshold of $3.6 million per quarter, for book profits for the sale of real estate and/or business, and cumulative
translation adjustments
- the company will use the proceeds of any business or real estate disposal to reduce debt
Muratec now relabels DocuLex document management software, and calls it “ScanTab”
Notable Solutions Inc. is launching a new scan/retrieve solution, called AutoStore Express featuring:
- Plans to offer this as an optional embedded application for a variety of MFP manufacturers
- Users can scan and send to a folder, by browsing for the folder on the network using copier control panel
- Can also search for folder using LDAP
- User can authenticate and document routed to end user PC
- Users can see emailed document sent from the MFP in the Sent folder of Microsoft Outlook
- Can scan to email as a link, so bandwidth is decrease, as the person receiving the email accesses document via the link
- Generates encrypted PDFs
- Barcodes can be used for indexing
- Offers zone OCR, from a defined place on documents
- Automatically removes blank pages from documents
- Cropping feature to remove white space around small original
- hole-punch mark removal
- deskew/despeckle
- Can remove backgrounds and colors
- Pricing and ship date not yet announced
In a survey conducted by the Association of National Advertisers of marketing executives, the following was found:
- 56% will cut back on their media budgets this year
- 50% will cut back on production budgets
- 41% will cut back on sponsorships/event activities
- 41% will increase pricing dealers
- 26% will increase social networking/word-of-mouth activities
Toshiba’s new CRO, Norio Sasaki, was interviewed recently:
- company reported a $3.61 billion loss for last fiscal
- recently raised $5 billion in capital through debt and new stock shares
- plans to boost company’s shareholder-equity ratio to 30% from current 19%
- stated that he would consider having Toshiba exiting unprofitable businesses
- would overhaul its computer chip operations
- expects to lose 50 billion yen this fiscal year
- will cut fixed costs by 330 billion this fiscal
- expects significant growth in the nuclear power plant division
- forecasts building 39 nuclear power plants by end of 2015
Hewlett Packard announced a new product that it claims will revolutionize the printer industry. The new HP Photosmart Premium with TouchSmart Web. Details:
- MSRP of $399
- Full color inkjet MFP
- Features direct web access from a color LCD control panel, allowing end users to print right from a website
- Will be able to print coupons from coupons.com, fandango.com, google.com and nickelodeon.com
Kyocera announced it has partnered with IDC to add cpc data on its competitors to the Kyocera TCO Tracker website. The purpose is to show end users the apparent savings when using Kyocera’s amorphous silicon ceramic drum based desktop printers.
Kyocera is being sued by WIAV Networks, of Reston, VA, over alleged patent infringement. The suit was filed in Texas, over wireless router technology.
Equitrac, maker of MFP/printer accounting and cost recovery solutions, announced more executives hired:
- Joe Hartnett was hired as VP of North American Sales, who was formerly Director of Sales for EFI.
- Kimberly Meyers was hired as Senior Director of Marketing, and is formerly from XMPie.
SageWorks listed the 10 most bankruptcy prone companies:
- auto dealers
- motor vehicle dealers
- nursing care facilities
- hotels
- sporting goods and hobby stores
- land development companies
- investigation and security providers
- residential building companies
- motor vehicle parts makers
- print for pay companies
- It also listed the most financially healthy companies:
- IT consulting
- Systems design firms
- Accounting & bookkeeping firms
- Health practitioners (chiropractors, physical therapists, etc.)
- Electricals/electronics wholesalers
- Technical/trade schools
Two people were arrested in Seagoville, Texas for using a color copier to make fake $100 bills. One worked as a cashier at the local Walmart, and her partner came in to the store to buy gift certificates from her with the fake cash.
Gerald Lynn McIntire, 41, of Oklahoma City, OK was ordered to pay $2300 in restitution to businesses and banks in three states after he plead guilty to making fake $100 bills on a color copier.
California’s governor, Arnold Schwarzeneggar, announced an initiative to replace all paper textbooks in public schools with digital textbooks. No details given on the cost, and what devices will be used to view the books. Local book printers were very concerned with the news.
Oce’ announced that it will relabel the Konica Minolta bizhub 601 and 751, and call them the VarioLink 6022 and 7522.
Some investors and analysts said that the Obama administration’s proposed restructuring of the financial regulatory system would force General Electric to divest itself of its GE Capital Leasing division. GE’s CEO, Jeffrey Inmelt is opposed, saying; “We are certainly opposed to it, since this issue had nothing to do with the financial crisis.” Inmelt is already trying to scale back GE Capital , which accounted for half of the conglomerate’s profit in 2007. The goal is that the company would only rely on it for just 30% of earnings.
eCopy won an award from BERTL as the “Best Enterprise Document Imaging”.
Key Leasing has announced they are exiting the copier leasing business.
-=Good Selling=-
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