Fujifilm Enters Inkjet Paper Arena

By Greg Scoblete On Dec 22 2003 - 8:00am

Looking to gain a toehold in the home printing market, Fujifilm introduced new Fujifilm Premium Plus High Gloss Photo Paper for inkjet photo printers.

The printer paper is shipping now to limited retailers, with broader distribution to follow in the first quarter of next year.

Positioning its paper as printer-agnostic, Fujifilm is courting a market it says has grown rapidly in the last year and whose fortunes look to improve still further as more consumers purchase digital cameras.

The company, which is heavily invested in retail printing, has no plans to manufacturer home photo printers, but has chosen to support the home printer market through consumable sales, said Paul D'Andrea, senior VP/GM, Photo Imaging Division, Fuji Photo Film.

"We think that with our brand recognition in film and processing paper, the consumer will see Fujifilm as a natural choice for home printing," D'Andrea said.

The film giant is pitting its papers against rival Kodak, which already sells inkjet photo paper and announced earlier this year that it has ambitions on the inkjet printer hardware market as well.

Fujifilm's paper is a glossy-type that is water-resistant and quick to dry. It will be offered in 4-by-6-inch and 8.5-by-11-inch sizes.

Fujifilm will sell its 4-by-6-inch Premium Plus Photo Paper in 20, 60 and 100 sheet packs for suggested retail prices of $7.99, $18.99 and $29.99, respectively.

In 8.5-by-11 inch, the paper will be available in 20-, 50- and 100-sheet packs for suggested retail prices of $11.99, $28.99, and $49.99, respectively.

"There is no one answer to how consumers will make prints from their digital camera," D'Andrea said. "We want to be wherever the consumer is making prints, at home, from their mobile phones and at retail."

While Fujifilm will retain its emphasis on driving retail printing, the retail market for inkjet consumables (papers and inks) is profitable, and growing. The market for all types of inkjet photo paper is expected to grow 18 percent in dollar terms over 2002 to reach $578 million this year, said Merilyn Dunn, director, Cap Ventures, a Norwell, Mass.-based research firm.

The subset of that market which Fujifilm has just entered, photo glossy paper, is predicted to grow 18 percent to earn $269 million this year. Another subset, photo matte paper, will hit a 32 percent growth rate to comprise $131 million, and lower-end photo grade paper will experience 10 percent growth and account for $177 million in sales this year.