Printing Business May be Down, But Profits are Up
Summary: It appears that profit rates are increasing slightly faster than the rate that print volumes are decreasing, and profit rates are increasing at a slightly faster rate than print prices are increasing.
Doc thinks it may not be the best of times for commercial printers, but for those hanging in there, profits seem to be up. At least, so it seems according to a report by industry statistics guru Dr. Joe Webb.
US commercial printing industry inflation-adjusted profits have risen for seven consecutive quarters, to $3.6 billion. This is the total profits for the period Q3-2010 to Q2-2011. The prior four-quarter period was $3.55 billion.
In reviewing the data, subject always to revision by the Commerce Department, it appears that profit rates are increasing slightly faster than the rate that print volumes are decreasing, and profit rates are increasing at a slightly faster rate than print prices are increasing. We know that prices are not keeping up with inflation, but it appears that the exit of weak print businesses, and stern cost controls and cost reductions are improving the lot of the surviving printers. There are still challenges ahead, as all of us are well aware.
That said, we must keep the following in mind:
- We are still lower than the previous profit levels of 2005, when the industry showed $3.77 billion of profits;
- We are much lower than the profits of the late 1990s, when in the Q2-1999 to Q1-2000 period, the industry recorded $15.85 billion in profits.
Doc is glad that profits are up for those hearty souls still sticking with the commercial printing business. It isn’t an easy field to be in these days.
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ZDNet introduces Doc (The DocuMentor), sponsored by RICOH. Through his blog, Doc will educate you about Document Management. So who is Doc? Doc is something of an enigma. He was born to a Russian ballerina and a German electrical engineer who some believe was running covert operations for shadowy corporate interests. Doc grew up in various locations in the United States, although no one seems to know precisely where, least of all Doc. His early schooling was unremarkable except for the time he was caught trying to replace all the mimeograph machines with high-tech color copiers that had mysteriously disappeared from a shipment to Albania. At MIT, he made a name for himself by transforming a large printer into a robot that hunts and eats Roombas. Professionally, he reportedly has seen the insides of more brands, versions, and generations of printer and printer-related hardware than almost anyone. Some say his obsession with paper, printing, and mechanical movement was either started by, or evidenced by, a traumatic childhood episode when he crawled inside an old Xerox 2400 and tried to print himself.
Anyway, Doc has hands on experience with stuff like printer maintenance and fleet management, but his mastery of document management leaves no stone unturned. Important issues like sustainability, security, and regulatory compliance are top of mind for Doc, as are other business technology needs like networking and IT services, making him a true blue IT renaissance man.
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