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Epson India is targeting 50 percent of all ink-based printer revenue in India through the launch of its new L series of inkjet printers. The vendor said that with its new range of printers it has broken records in printing affordability with monochrome printing costs at 10 paise per page and color printing at 20 paise per page.
Last year Epson ran campaigns promoting the advantages of ink over laser. “The response has been overwhelming,” informed SM Ramprasad, Deputy GM, Epson India. “At the end of 2010 our marketshare in inkjets hovered around 20 percent, while our net revenue from the segment was 35 percent. With the launch of the L series, we are expecting our marketshare to reach 25 percent this year—and we should be able to capture 50 percent of all inkjet printer revenue.”
Epson has launched two models—L-100 (standard) priced at Rs8,999 and L-200 (multi-function) priced at Rs10,999. It is also expected to launch a high-end photo-printer called L-800.
The new models do away with ink cartridges and instead use ink bottles, each priced at around Rs375. “The competition is selling inkjet printers for less than a couple of thousand rupees, then selling cartridges at Rs1,500,” said Ramprasad. “We are clear that our model will be built on absolute transparency.”
Ramprasad presents his cost equations. The L-100 will print up to 18,500 pages in draft mode before needing to be refilled. Each bottle provides the capability to print up to 3,500 pages in single color, and up to 4,500 pages in four-color. Most entry-level laser printers offer half-toners which provide printing capabilities of around 800 pages in the first run, while new toners offer up to 1,500 pages per toner. This is the market Ramprasad is targeting.
The company will sell the products directly through its 180 Epson Accredited Partners. |