Digital BW, The Print

Seems to me, patently obvious what Epson is doing here.  They have produced an instrument that is highly sophisticated with capabilities of producing near photo quality pictures of the great longevity.  They cannot, in their current chosen market segment, charge the actual profitable cost for producing an instrument of this sophistication, and expect to have any worthwhile market share, save those in high end commercial printing establishments, which would be small and potentially non-profitable.  So, they have chosen to try and expand their market by giving the product away, then make their profit in the consumables, i.e. the ink, for which they charge highly exorbitant prices once the consumer is locked into a product.  The marketplace has shown that there are manufacturers of ink and or cartridges that can be much more than competitive with Epson as far as the cost of producing inks and cartridges is concerned.

Epson has simply selected a bad marketing strategy and in an attempt to recover lost profits is simply playing the legal card in an attempt to force some competitors out of the market and to force the market, many of which are highly cost-conscious and procured the product because of its low initial price, to procure consumables at highly inflated prices directly for Epson, thereby profiting Epson's bottom-line.

In the end, I believe Epson has shot itself in the foot by pursuing this market strategy and by pursuing legal remedies against its competitors as well as trying to trap consumers in this way in the first place.  I for one, can tell you that I will not be purchasing any Epson printer products in the future even though the current Epson products that I use are of good quality and produce excellent results.  I most certainly will seek printer products, in other markets in future.

Larry Heath
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Wendel White 
  To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com 
  Sent: Saturday, February 25, 2006 3:19 PM
  Subject: Re: [Digital BW] Re: Epson Lawsuit -- MIS


  So, is the opposite true? If a small entrepreneur develops a unique product,
  we should defend the large companies that want to infringe on the patent?

  Wendel

  > 
  > The problems arise because patents are worded in such a
  > way(deliberately of course) as to attempt to include any and all
  > variations or future changes no matter how distant from the origonal
  > concept so as to maintain a stranglehold on a market.
  > 
  > Because the Epson's of the world have much deeper pockets than any
  > small entreprenure they can often muscle out the competition just by
  > creating costly obstacles to doing business. It is usually only
  > temporarily effective though.




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