Japan printer shipments fall 2.1 percent in 2006

According to research from Gartner Inc., reported by Reuters, printer shipments in Japan by makers such as Canon Inc. and Seiko Epson Corp. fell 2.1 percent in 2006 on maturing demand for inkjet models.

Shipments declined to 8.51 million units, falling 3.2 percent in financial terms to ¥353.9 billion (US$3 billion) last year. Demand is slowing because the replacement cycle has slowed with the launch of highly-functional machines. Printers are also becoming faster and more efficient, making companies order fewer devices when replacing older machines. Although shipments of multifunctional models rose 19.7 percent to 4.3 million units in 2006, this growth is slowing.

Shipments of single-function inkjet printers dropped 24.3 percent to 2.9 million units. Inkjet printers made up more than 80 percent of the total shipments last year.

Canon and Seiko Epson have been battling for the top position in the Japanese printer market in recent years. In 2006, Canon took the lead with a 38.8 percent market share in unit terms, trailed by Seiko Epson with 37.2 percent. Third was U.S.-based HP Co. with 7.4 percent, followed by Brother Industries Ltd.'s 4.1 percent, and Ricoh Co. at 2.9 percent, reports Reuters.