[September 30, 2009] India SMBs Will Spend US$1.3B on Printers & Printing Supplies in 2009 Tweet BANGALORE, India --(Business Wire)-- Small and medium businesses (SMBs, with up to 999 employees) in India are on track to spend US$1.3 billion on printer and printing supplies in 2009, showing a 7% growth over 2008 in a challenging economic environment. Small businesses (SBs or companies with 1-99 employees) will be generating a major portion of this spending, accounting for more than 75% of the total India SMB printing expenditure. Vertical specific and need specific printer usage among India SMBs is driving this growth according to the latest study by New York-based Access Markets International (AMI) Partners, Inc. "The color inkjet printer has the maximum penetration among all verticals whereas FIRE (finance, insurance and real estate) and retail sectors tend to prefer laser printers," says Priti Verma, Associate for Research and Consultancy at AMI Partners, Bangalore. "High-value printing (HVPCs) enterprises constitute a small portion of the total number of India SMBs but they spend more on printing hardware and supplies, for this reason their needs are a major concern for printing vendors." "Adoption of laser printers is a growing trend among India SMBs. Studies show that organizations looking for volume printouts, that are sharp looking and available quickly, are turning to laser printers to complete their tasks," Ms. Verma says. AMI findings also reveal that HVPCs tend to have high-end printing needs and a higher propensity for document design capabilities. "Laser printers, especially color laser printers are driving printer spending in India," Ms. Verma says. "Factors such as ease of use, quality of output, falling prices and the use of graphics in presentations are catalyzing growth in the color laser printer market." On the down side, in the past color laser printers have been expensive to procure, operate and maintain. However, with the continued advances in technology, entry-level laser color printers are becoming affordable, making them more practical for the average India SMB. Even though laser printer adoption is growing, the inkjet printer accounts for almost half of all printers used by India SMBs. An interesting trend has been the growth of digital and thermal printing. Digital printing is cost-effective and allows for large volume, customized printing. Thermal printers are the default choice for printing barcode labels and they are referred to as "label printers." Another growing segment in the India printing space is multi-function devices (MFDs). MFDs are increasingly gaining ground because of their versatility and affordability. The services sector has the maximum penetration of color MFDs. Although India SMBs are adopting new printing technologies, dot-matrix still remains an all-time favorite and holds a significant market share. Related Study AMI-Partner's 2009 India Small and Medium Business - Printing During the Downturn: How the Recession Has Created A Significant Printing Opportunity report focuses on the impact the current economic downturn has made on the SMB printing opportunity. The report includes strategies and guidance for printing and copier vendors to help maximize their opportunity. Specific actions are recommended to ensure vendors capitalize on critical changes in the printing market that can radically improve their return on marketing investments (ROMI). AMI-Partners' Technology Sector studies highlight major trends in the context of current/planned IT, Internet and communications usage and spending. Products and services covered include established and emerging hardware, software, applications and business process solutions. The sector reports are based on AMI-Partners' annual SMB market surveys, "Q-Pulse (News - Alert)" quarterly tracking studies and Global Forecast Model database. Based on proprietary surveys of partners in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific, AMI-Partners' technology sector reports are presented in a highly actionable, graphical format with go-to-market insights and analysis For more information about this study, AMI-Partners, or our global SMB research, call 212-944-5100, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.ami-partners.com. About Access Markets International (AMI) Partners, Inc. AMI-Partners specializes in IT, Internet, telecommunications and business services strategy, venture capital, and actionable market intelligence with a strong focus on global small and medium businesses (SMBs), and extending into large enterprises and home-based businesses. The AMI-Partners mission is to empower clients for success with the highest quality data, business strategy perspectives and go-to-market solutions. Led by Andy Bose, the firm has built a world-class management team with deep experience cutting across IT, telecommunications and business services sectors in established and emerging markets. AMI-Partners has helped shape the go-to-market SMB strategies of more than 150 leading IT, Internet, telecommunications and business services companies. The firm is well known for its IT and Internet adoption-based segmentation of the SMB markets; its annual retainership services based on global SMB tracking surveys in more than 25 countries; and its proprietary database of SMBs and SMB channel partners in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific. The firm invests significantly in collecting survey based information from several thousand SMBs annually, and is considered the premier source for global SMB trends and analysis. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]