What’s Behind Ninestar’s Lawsuit Against the U.S. Government?

At the end of August, Ninestar Corporation and eight of its subsidiaries filed suit in the United States Court of International Trade (CIT) against a group of U.S. governmental agencies and administrators. The plaintiffs, all based in Zhuhai, China, accuse the defendants of
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OEM Report Cards: A Comparison of FY 2022 Financial Results

Two years after the COVID-induced market collapse, the copier and printer industries continued to recover in fiscal year 2022. At Actionable Intelligence, the leading source of news and analysis for the home and office printer and copier industries, we saw product availability
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Market Watch: U.S. Remans May Seek Consolidation to Help Counter Expanding Global Competition

Those who watch the markets for office imaging devices and consumables know that both are tied—inextricably—to the economy. Good news: These days, the economies in North America are looking pretty good and that’s great for the regional office imaging equipment industry and its
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SCOTUS Hands U.S. Remanufacturers a Big Win. So What?

On May 30, the Supreme Court of the United State issued its much-anticipated decision in the Impression Products v. Lexmark International matter. In a nearly unanimous ruling, the high court found in favor of Impression Products, a small remanufacturer based in Charleston, West
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OEMs Maintain the Pressure to Keep Infringing Consumables Out of U.S. Markets

For most hardware manufacturers, over half the revenue generated by their printer or copier businesses comes from the sale of consumables. Consumables also offer the fat margins manufacturers have come to rely on to make their respective printer and copier businesses profitable.
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Despite Decent U.S. Market, the Overall Industry Suffered in 2016 with No Big Changes this Year

Even with strong tailwinds from the United States economy, printer and copier manufacturers struggled last year. Office printing—the industry’s lifeblood—is tied directly to regional economies, so it’s no wonder that 2016 wasn’t a banner year for hardware sales. The growth of
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Apex Closes Lexmark Deal. Up Next, HP’s Acquisition of Samsung’s Printer Biz

As the printer industry continues to wrestle with overcapacity and declining print volumes, word came in 2016 of two major deals involving three key vendors. The deals promise to radically change the competitive landscape. In April, a consortium of Chinese investors announced
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China’s Third-Party Supplies Industry Consolidates as Firms Grow Through Acquisition

Consolidation is the hallmark of any mature industry and it’s been ongoing within the third-party supplies industry for years. At the opening of the 21st century, the North American industry began to experience extensive merger and acquisition activity and within 10 years only a
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Despite Weak Markets, There’s No Lack of New Hardware

Earlier this year, Actionable Intelligence and ENX Magazine co-hosted a webinar entitled “The State of the Hardcopy Industry in 2016.” During this one-hour online event, which was held on June 16, we explored current market conditions and product introductions. In this artic
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Business at Printer and Copier Manufacturers in a Funk. No End in Sight

As ENX magazine went to press, the earnings season for the opening months of 2016 was wrapping up and the news from hardcopy hardware manufacturers was not good. The strengthening yen and weaker markets in various regions worldwide left Japanese firms with flagging sales and unit
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Epson and HP Make Key Biz Ink Announcements.  Which Will Succeed?

In their relentless pursuit of the zillions of pages printed annually on electrophotographic devices in the office, Epson and Hewlett-Packard each made key announcements recently about their business inkjets. In early March, HP unveiled a bevy of new hardware including rebranded
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China’s Third-Party Supplies Industry Is Booming but Changes Are Afoot

As market conditions deteriorated around the word last year, most companies in the office imaging space watched their revenue and profits tumble. In China, however, business at many third-party supply manufacturers and their trading companies was stronger than ever. It appears
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In 2015, Manufacturer Sales Slowed and Profits Fell. So, What About this Year?

For most companies in the hardcopy industry, 2015 was not a banner year. As a whole, hardware and supplies vendors grappled with persistent issues of overcapacity as print volumes fell. While the economy in the United States grew modestly last year, other regions were not as
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Customs Gets Tough as Clones Stream into U.S. Market

If you’re a regular reader of ENX Magazine, you know that the importation of infringing consumables is a serious problem in the U.S. Domestic demand for cheap ink and toner compatible cartridges has skyrocketed over the past decade and today overseas manufacturers do a brisk
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Latest OEM Results Offer More Indications that Markets are Weakening in 2015

Last month, I wrote in ENX magazine that various hardware manufacturers were reporting that they got off to a slow start in the opening months of 2015. Most Japanese firms reported in May that things slowed in 2015 after having a good run in 2014. Many hardware firms in Japan
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