3 It’s a safe bet to assume that following the recent acquisition of Apogee, HP Inc. will look to convert the company’s not unsubstantial MIF to HP devices, which will certainly serve to reinforce its dominance in the printer market. On page 16, leading vendors discuss the ripple effect. In keeping with the acquisition theme, this month’s VOX POP panel (page 50) discusses the current state of play in our sector. Of note was the general consensus that there are more vendors in the print sector than in other technology sectors. However, Midshire’s Julian Stafford doesn’t think there are too many vendors operating in a declining office print market, he believes you can’t have too much choice in a market. Overall, consolidation is viewed as a good thing, Vision’s Mark Smyth says it has helped Vision as it continues to reduce market competition, so it’s less for them to compete against and Kyocera’s Joe Doyle says consolidation is only a bad thing if you’re unwilling or unable to evolve to meet the changing needs of businesses. Quocirca’s latest Print 2025 Spotlight reveals that while many SMBs are still dependent on paper documents, they are struggling to contain print-related costs and looking to accelerate digitisation efforts. Research Director Louella Fernandes believes this presents a significant opportunity for managed print service providers – page 22. This month’s Q&A is with John Gifford, Founder & Managing Director, Fiducia Strategic Consultancy, and PITR spent 60 seconds with Gary Smart, Managing Director, Smart Office Solutions. And finally, if you’ve got any news about your business to share, would like to be included on our monthly VOX POP panel, have a compelling business success story or simply wish to comment on any industry issues, please get in touch with us at
[email protected] Michelle Ryder , Editor PRINT.IT Reseller is published by Kingswood Media Ltd., Amherst House, 22 London Road, Sevenoaks TN13 2BT • Tel: 01732 759725 Email:
[email protected] www.printitreseller.uk No part of PRINT.IT Reseller can be reproduced without prior written permission of the publisher. © 2018 Kingswood Media Ltd. Design: Sandtiger Media www.sandtiger.co.uk 04 Bulletin What’s new in printers and printing 16 Opinion Industry comment on the ripple effect of HP Inc’s acquisition of Apogee 22 Digitisation The latest Quocirca report highlights the opportunity for managed print service providers to help SMBs traverse the digital divide 24 IT Channel CompTIA sees mixed signals emanating from the IT channel 28 Q&A Altodigital reveals growth plans and appoints Mark Ash as Chief Sales and Marketing Officer 31 Events A preview of Continuum’s annual user conference, Navigate 2018 34 Print Epson helps european firms save millions on print costs 38 Interview One-to-one with Exertis’ Jamie Brothwell 43 Focus on Print A round-up of recent product launches 46 Scanners With the launch of a new scanner and software subscription model, Alaris is creating new opportunities for channel partners 48 Exhbitions The print industry celebrates record edition of The Print Show 50 VOX POP This month’s panel discusses the current state of play in the print market 56 View from the Channel John Gifford, Founder & Managing Director, Fiducia Strategic Consultancy 50 60 seconds with... Gary Smart, Managing Director, Smart Office Solutions ISSUE 56 · 2018 print it reseller.uk Comment Register online To receive your regular FREE printed copy of PrintIT Reseller Magazine simply fill in our online registration form at www.printitreseller.uk/register If you no longer wish to receive PrintIT Reseller magazine please email your details to
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