According to IDC, the W. European printer and multifunction (MFP) market sees shipments drop by -6.7% Y-o-Y to 4.8 million units in Q3 2018, while revenues are down by -2.1% Y-o-Y as the market continues to transition to higher-speed and colour A3 devices.
Laser markets show better-than-expected performance, declining by -1.2%. Colour and monochrome remain "relatively stable," with colour shipments showing a marginal increase and monochrome shipments show a small decline in terms of units, with a slight increase in revenues. The market does continue to see declines in single-function printers and an increase in MFP products, notable monochrome devices.
The inkjet markets suffer most in shipment terms, with a -9% Y-o-Y Q3 2018 drop even as revenues decline at a slower rate. Most inkjet OEMs see lower inkjet device sales, since both home and business users are printing less. The business inkjet market is currently in transition, with higher-priced and higher-spec devices shipping instead of entry-level models. The result is an increase in revenues, particularly with business inkjets growing "strongly."
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