Digital BW, The Print

> I've always been confused the Premier Art Matte Scrapbook for Epson
> paper... there's a little superscript TM after the word Art, too...
> makes me wonder who makes it. ...

I doubt Epson manufactures any paper.  For example, Epson Premier Art 
Scrapbook paper is made pursuant to a contract with Premier Imaging 
(I'm not sure they actually manufacture their paper either) and is 
the same as Premier Art Smooth (was Hot Press) 205.  The "co-
branding" of the Epson Premier Art Scrapbook was negotiated between 
the companies.  I've assumed it was a deal Premier Imaging made, 
perhaps in return for better pricing, to get its name advertised.  As 
a practical matter, the main difference between the Premier v. Epson 
versions of Scrapbook relate to the fact that Epson gets the outer 
part of the large rolls, such that it is flatter.

For some papers, such as Epson UltraSmooth, Epson negotiates an 
exclusive on some aspect of the paper.  For UltraSmooth, it was the 
weight of the paper.  Premier Imaging could sell the same basic paper 
as it's PA Hot Press/Smooth 270 and 325, but not as a 250 gsm paper.

Another effect of Epson's branding is that it freezes the specs of 
the paper so that profiling is as consistent as possible.  Here the 
result *may* be that the non-Epson versions incorporate improvements 
that the Epson version does not include.  I find, for example, that 
PA 325 with at least some of my printers has a nice high-1.60's dmax, 
whereas I don't think the Epson UltraSmooth ever did that well with 
respect to dmax. I suspect some of the name changes in papers, for 
example, EEM to UPPM, and PA "Hot Press" to "Smooth" relate to some 
incremental change in the paper.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com