Digital BW, The Print

This is one of the nastier aspects of the high tech industry. Ideally one
has some powerful buyers and viable competititve alternatives and
these kind of coercive vendor moves (artificially forced vertical 
integration,
needless crippling of a technology, etc.) are thwarted.

The computer tech rags and industry analysts are largely beholden to the
vendors for advertising (like in most industries, I guess), but they can 
also
be remarkably outspoken in response to displeasure from powerful buyers
or even grass roots revolt from the groundlings :-) This plus a series of
lawsuits helps maintain some kind of "openess" in computer tech.

But I don't see the dynamic working in the consumer oriented technologies
(DVD geo coding, Epson ink chipping, NEF WB encoding). DMCA
certainly doesn't help the situation. Is a Gartner, Walt Mossberger (grin)
or a big co customer like GE really weighing in on the PR or legal 
fronts on
these kind of issues?

Ultimately, companies have to fear hoards of more or less organized
customers voting with their $$$ or credible legal challenges from 
reasonably
funded competititors or customers.

Question - Are Epson printers "loss leaders" that really require 
considerable
ink sales to achieve profitability? Reminds of the Xbox hacking issue a
couple of years ago.

Scott

Richard Nagle wrote:

> Read this story below:
> so, if Epson is suing companies that make third party inks, for its 
> printers,
> is MIS going to be in trouble in the future?
>
> Would this spell doom for all others as well ?
> I mean, I don\ufffdt want to get hook on a ink, and then its gone forever.
>
> Regards-
> Rick
>
>
> ---
> Epson hits another ink cartridge maker
> By Martyn Williams, IDG News Service
>
> For the second time this week a manufacturer of Epson-compatible ink 
> cartridges
> is taking its products off the market as a result of legal action by 
> Seiko Epson
> Corp., the Japanese company said Friday.
>
> Environmental Business Products Ltd. has stopped importing and supplying
> Epson-compatible printer cartridges as a result of an out of court 
> settlement
> between the two companies, Epson said in a statement. Epson had brought
> proceedings against the London company in the U.K. High Court for 
> infringement
> of a number of patents and registered designs owned by Epson, the 
> statement
> said.
>
> The company and others like it offer ink cartridges or refills that 
> can be used
> in Epson printers and are typically cheaper than those from Epson. For 
> printer
> makers the sale of replacement ink is a major source of profit.
>
>
> Full Story Here:
> http://www.macworld.com/news/2005/06/17/epson/index.php?pf=1
>
>
>
> FYI:
> Rick
>
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