A Return to Edgeline

Managed Print Services is Hot, but Edgeline is Hotter. Getting back to Edgeline.

To authorize by PIN or LDAP or Exchange, that is the question.

One of my recent installs required print, copy, scan and fax rights by authorization(login).

I know authorization is nothing new when it comes to connected copiers - I have worked with hundreds.

Yet imagine the impact on the end user in terms of the degree of "hassle" involved with walk-up copying.

- Example:

Copier sales person - "...it's easy, simply log into the copier the same way you do you computer at you desk"

I.T. guy - "...sure, our end users are familar with their login, and they don't need to remember two different accounts..."

End User(usually at the Executive Level) "...you mean to tell me, I need to log in completely, with my password, every single time I want to make a copy??? Forget that..."

Well, for this client, we decided to use the four digit employee number as the PIN. And each PIN has different rights, some can copy in color, some can not. Some users can scan back to a folder, some can not, etc. And all activity on the system can be tracked by PIN. That is to say, ALL printing, copying, faxing, scanning activity.

The four digits work much better then the network login. And with Edgeline, all the PINS with rights, can be copied or set remotely.

HP to acquire EDS for $13.9 billion

That's FOURTEEN BILLION...

HP said the deal, which has been unanimously approved by the HP and EDS boards of directors, will close in the second half of the year. HP expects that the addition of EDS will more than double HP's services revenue of $16.6 billion in fiscal 2007. At the end of 2007, HP and EDS had a collective services revenue of more than $38 billion and 210,000 employees, doing business in more than 80 countries, HP said.

Well, this certainly illustrates the level of HP's commitment to market domination

I found this statement by Peter Cohan, "...I think HP's most profitable business, printers, might be able to make better use of the $12.8 billion in capital. This Imaging and Printing Group earned a 13% estimated net margin. It grew a mere 4% to $7.3 billion in revenue and given that this unit is by far the most profitable in HP's stable of businesses, this would appear to be the best place to invest for future growth.

Now may be a good time to sell HP stock. Mark Hurd came into HP as a nuts-and-bolts operator. This deal suggests that Hurd has run out of growth options and that HP can't grow earnings through more cost cuts. I have no doubt that Hurd could cut costs once EDS has been integrated..."

This follows what Hurd said back in March, ""We are shifting our portfolio to drive growth and are aligning our portfolio to margin rich opportunities for investors," he said. "We continue to look for opportunity [for higher gross margins] in software and in services."

What does this mean for IPG, if anything? I don't know yet, but IKON sure as heck would not cost FOURTEEN BILLION dollars...

IKON Introduces New Printer Line

They are Ricohs with IKON labels. The Ricoh lasers are very good laser printers.

"While our customers utilize multi-function devices in the office and production environments, there is still a robust demand for single-function printers to complement these devices and meet workflow demands," explains Mike Dane, Vice President, Product and Services Marketing, IKON Office Solutions. "We created the IKON BusinessPro printer line to allow us to be a 'one stop shop' for customers by providing them with affordable, value-packed printers at three different price points, designed for a range of business environments." Centre Daily Times

Interesting, huh? Ricohs not HP's. Very interesting.

Well, been there, done that, got the T-shirt.

This has been in the works for almost a year - Ricoh has got to love it, and IKON can fill a market niche - I just wonder how well the copier techs are going to translate from copier to laser printer service.

And I wonder how much the CPC service will be on the Ricoh's - but I really wonder if any of the IKON reps will actually jump on this product and sell it.