All the words really mean little when compare to the graph. I'm not picking on HP, I'm just using the largest tech company in the world, the organization which defined office printing, ignored the secular shift, was in then out of tablets, created a Mopier, attempted to fly over the copiers with Hawk and brought Edgeline to life(then killed it, denying the murder for a year) as a barometer for the rest of the imaging niche.
That's all.
For printing, a few things:
Hardware placements are down 11%
"
Instant Ink" is the future, according to Meg
Supplies revenue up 2%
As HP goes, so too, does the imaging industry.
To me, a clear indicator of an iceberg ripping through too many compartments, can be seen in these two graphs: Q1 of 2013 vs. Q2 of 2013 -
 |
| Q1 2013 |
 |
| Q2 2013 |
Notice the bottom right and the little red numbers on the left. Revenue was down 10%. This after 'new' machines were released and hope kindled anew.
HP will survive, but not in it's current state. The bright spot seemed to orbit around Moonshot initiative - indeed, if it is all it is cracked up to be, it could be a savior. But Moonshot has little to do with printing.
All Associates Group has data that shows office print decreasing 17% over the past few years.
International paper has been reporting decrease in office paper for almost 7 years now.
From the Photizo conference, last week:
It's tough to see, but the current Industry Revenue trends are at 2009 levels, remaining constant while other indicators like GDP rise.
Is all this bad news? It depends. If you've moved beyond MpS and into managed services, you've got a good chance. If you haven't, don't be fooled by your ability to stay alive - it isn't over.
Managed Services, leaner dealerships, less customers, less money - It's going to be a
Jerry Maguire world.
Urslula Burns, 5/12 - "We are now assuming and planning for mid-single digit declines in equipment revenue in the Technology segment. This is a big change from where we were in the first quarter. We were thinking that we could hold that to a flat-to-low single digits. And now I think that is not a realistic expectation."