The all-in-one networked printer/copier/fax has overcome
early teething problems to emerge as an attractive option in a
world of increasing digital convergence.
Convergence is not just happening with networks and mobile
devices, it is making its presence felt in printer technology.
Printers have merged with scanners and communications technology
to produce a hybrid known as the all-in-one printer, multifunction
printer (MFP), or multifunction device (MFD). The MFP provides a
range of services from straightforward printing and copying, to the
e-mailing or faxing of scanned documents.
The MFP is starting to gain interest among corporate users,
although it has faced obstacles. Early MFPs suffered from low
scanning resolutions and slow print speeds. This was because they
were seen as space-saving replacements for printers and fax
machines, with a copying capacity competing with low-resolution fax
technology.
These issues have been addressed and the latest high-end models
not only boast speeds equivalent to dedicated copiers, but also
advanced features for printing, collating and binding booklets.
But now with more interest in digital convergence, and the
possibility of using MFPs as replacements for copier/printers - or
photocopiers as they were called in the pre-digital age - MFPs are
increasingly drawing attention.
Peter Grant, research vice-president at analyst firm Gartner,
predicted that more companies would choose MFPs as a result of
being able to use them on corporate networks as copiers and the
additional options they offer.
Phil Sargeant, senior analyst specialising in the MFP market at
research firm IDC, said suppliers with a history in analogue
copiers, such as Xerox, Ricoh, Canon and Toshiba, have always got a
foot ahead of the competition because of their existing installed
base which they can quickly convert over to MFPs.
"We have also seen an inroad into this market from
Hewlett-Packard since it launched the Laserjet 4345 model using the
A4 paper format. This targeted traditional copier printers at a
much lower cost and 99% of copies are A4 format.
"It makes you wonder why people are still going out and buying
copier machines, and that is a worrying scenario for the copier
makers."
The main consideration when buying an MFP as a copier is not the
quoted page per minute (ppm) value, but the actual scanning speed,
especially if the main throughput requirement is for single copies.
Another issue stems from the converged nature of the device, which
means that a technical failure may cripple a department's copying
and printing capability.
More fundamental is that many companies place copiers in the
domain of the services department while printers fall under the IT
function. This problem is becoming more apparent as other new
technologies, such as IP telephony, force a reappraisal of where
responsibilities will lie in the future.
Manufacturers agree that networked printers create security
concerns. The general worry is that documents may lie in the out
tray for many hours and that this could lead to compromising
situations. Most MFPs have keypads to allow documents to be
securely retrieved only when a user arrives at the machine to enter
their personal identification number. Remembering yet another Pin
can be difficult, so some manufacturers go beyond this to allow
company security cards to be used, or even use fingerprint
recognition systems.
The additional abilities of MFPs to allow scans to be
immediately faxed or e-mailed creates fresh concerns. A user with
access to sensitive information could easily copy documents and
send them out to competitors or newspapers with a degree of
anonymity. The IP address or e-mail address of the system could be
traced, but to nail the offence down to a single user would be
difficult.
There are systems available that can be built-in to the printer
or are available as an add-on, but this does potentially add to the
cost. The increasingly popular method in these days of governance
issues is to always send a copy of any e-mail or fax to the user's
mailbox. In this way a trail can be followed to find out who did
what and when. This can also be extended to record any copying
activity so that a full audit of personal use can be logged and
used to determine key users and principal times of use for every
system.
Some printer manufacturers have outsourced the problem of
securing the machines to third-parties. This can be particularly
desirable for sites where many manufacturers' products are in use.
One such third-party is eCopy which supplies bolt-on systems for a
range of manufacturers, including Sharp, Ricoh, Toshiba and Canon,
and is currently talking to HP about links with its security
systems.
eCopy's main argument is that printers should not carry software
because it can pose additional threats. As Sargeant explained, "The
devices have an IP address and connections to the outside world
which could make them traceable to a hacker. If software can be
loaded on to a printer there is always the possibility that someone
will find a way to do so illegally."
The advent of the MFP places the printer as an input point for
converting paper documents into digital formats for document
retrieval systems. Once again, governance regulations are
popularising products such as Documentum, Hummingbird and Open
Text. eCopy uses connectors to all of these products to integrate
the MFP as part of the workflow, but also adds the necessary
security checks to ensure the system is not secretly abused.
Renting has become an interesting development in the MFP market.
Kyocera and Canon both have schemes that offer a flat charge for
toner cartridges. Glenn Mason, Canon's marketing manager for office
products, said, "When a user prints out there is a charge per sheet
that covers the toner used. The contract covers toner and the
maintenance of that device. This makes costs a lot more
transparent."
Similarly, Kyocera makes a charge for monthly usage. Nigel
Allen, senior product manager at Kyocera, said, "We have a total
cost of ownership analyser that takes into account most of the
major printer makers so that the total cost of ownership can be
analysed over three years."
However, IDC takes the view that implementation concerns will
result in MFPs having little impact on the traditional UK laser
printer market, though both will grow.
Sargeant believes that monochrome devices will continue to
outsell colour printers over the next few years, despite the
pressure being placed on users to make the move.
"The monochrome printer is still the most cost-effective and
user-friendly product out there. Because MFPs could be on the
network, everyone will have access, and people will not have to use
so many devices. Where Xerox could have shipped 10 printers in to a
department, it will only supply one MFP," he said.
Sargeant added that the rise of the MFP could mean the colour
option becomes more attractive, especially as users get used to
using colour in the home environment.
The resistance to colour is based on a belief that this will
increase running costs through higher toner costs. The
manufacturers, keen to move users to colour to increase paper
throughput, are trying to allay fears that everyone in the office
will use colour.
Many MFPs are provided with on-board or third-party systems that
can control who can use colour based on permissions in an
LDap-compliant directory or Microsoft Active Directory. Apart from
a personal or departmental basis, the settings can often be on an
application basis for the cases where someone is only allowed to
use colour occasionally.
Graham Davidson, product manager at printer manufacturer Epson,
said, "Throughout the next year we will see colour MFDs become far
more prominent in the market."
However, although some MFPs can channel users between colour and
mono, this is not always the case. For some manufacturers the
answer is to provide each user with a colour or a monochrome driver
to determine what facility they have.
Management is another area of concern for users. Some companies
already have management systems such as IBM Tivoli, HP Openview and
CA Unicenter in use, and openness is becoming a key
requirement.
Andrew Brown, MFP category manager at HP, said, "At HP we try to
maintain open architectures so that we can embrace everyone else.
Our Web Jetadmin management software is MIB2 [Management
Information Base] com- pliant and any software that uses this
standard can interrogate it. In this way we can address customer
needs now and in the future."
Securing network printing
Alan Cornwell, European general manager at printer integration
specialist eCopy, said, "The first challenge is security when
attaching multifunction printers to networks.
"eCopy requires users to key in a name and password or use some
other authentication method, and any document sent is also mirrored
to their e-mail outbox. We have connectors for about 100
independent software suppliers' products. Using these, users can be
restricted in how they interact with the software. Some may only
need access to store documents, which may be encrypted first.
Others will want to be able to retrieve and print or send
documents."
Among printer makers there is an increasing move towards
providing links to at least the major three or four document
retrieval systems.
The debate comes back to where the software driving the
connectors should be stored. Some, like Canon, prefer to use Java
applets on the server, but others warn against this and advise
using a server as the execution platform.
Canon said its Multifunction Embedded Application Platform
environment is used by many financials firms without any reported
breaches.
Glenn Mason, Canon's marketing manager for office products, said
there were further advantages. "We have the ability to have web
pages on the user interface. We can run third-party applications
within the device. We can also customise the device itself because
some financial firms have said they don't want certain functions to
be available."