Inkjet's Age, a print supplement to Quick Printing, is a business and technology brand dedicated to corporate and senior management and focusing on issues surrounding inkjet printing technology in all its forms. Inkjet's Age covers the industry news,
Issue link: https://quickprinting.epubxp.com/i/268657
12 MARCH 2014 • INKJETÕS AGE www.MyPRINTResource.com generation of production inkjet engines meets high standards for print resolution, image and text sharpness, and uptime," she pointed out."Ongoing improvement pro- grams promise to deliver even greater image quality in the future, and the combination of productivity and affordability make it the perfect technology for a variety of applica- tions," noted the self-proclaimed production mail evangelist within Hewlett-Packard's Inkjet High-speed Production Solutions (IHPS) division. HP has reported that it now has more than 110 production inkjet web presses installed worldwide. Who's Printing What? The publishing and transaction sectors have been rapid adopters of production inkjet technology, of course, but the com- mercial printing sector is catching up in large part due to increased media compat- ibility, according to HP's McGrew. "From textbooks and short-run trade books to newspapers and billing statements as well as the many forms of commercial print, there is no question that inkjet is gaining ground," she said. "As the desire to produce customized content increases, digital print- ing becomes the technology of choice. No other printing technology delivers quick turnaround at any run length for these applications like production inkjet. While long runs of static print are still common, savvy publishers and marketers are find- ing that production inkjet lets them create more relevant, high-value products." HP customers are producing custom textbooks, high-color transaction bills, targeted magazine out-serts, individual- ized direct marketing pieces, personalized welcome kit magazines, and local edition newspapers. The technology also is help- ing to create new market opportunities for some customers, who "have pushed their HP Inkjet Web Presses into magazine production, catalog production, and even poster production …," McGrew reported. But there still are hurdles that need jumping. Hamilton at InfoTrends added, "Inkjet has made huge inroads in indoor and outdoor wide format graphics, label printing, and color document printing (for applications like books, direct mail, and transactional documents)," he contin- ued, "but it still has a lot yet to prove in package, publication, catalog, newspaper, and general commercial printing. In high- A fter more than five years of hype, will production inkjet technology ever be employed by a US newspaper publisher/ printer? Kodak's Will Mansfield thinks so, and he thinks it may happen before the end of 2014. Across the Atlantic Ocean in Britain, its Stream Inkjet Technology is helping media mogul Rupert Murdoch and News Corp. sub- sidiary News UK to increase reader engagement. Late last summer, the newspaper publisher took delivery of 22 Prosper S30 Imprinting Systems to power a promotion in The Sun that kicked off the soccer season and of- fered access to exclusive online con- tent. The high-speed digital printing heads are mounted inline on offset presses. "Newspapers all around the world are facing changing business models as readers increasingly look online for the latest news and content," noted Mansfield. "With high-speed inline dig- ital printing solutions, Kodak is help- ing newspaper publishers shift from a paper-dependent retail model to one of blended print and digital content via subscriptions." To offset decreasing subscription and print advertising rev- enues, publishers are moving expand- ed content online and selling subscrip- tions to that content. Variable-data printing allows publishers to promote the online content and provide a vari- ety of incentives for readers to engage with both platforms, he continued. Readers of The Sun could collect special codes printed on papers daily using the Kodak imprinting Systems. These unique printed codes unlocked one month's worth of access to The Sun's digital content. This program launched just as the very popular European football season kicked off, and online content included enhanced coverage, such as near-live videos of every Barclays Premier League goal on the go—hours before televised football round-up programs have even started. Moving forward, readers collected up to five codes each week for continu- ous access to The Sun's unrivaled digi- tal content and perks. Sun editor David Dinsmore said, "The strong bond between The Sun and its millions of customers is behind its enduring success over many de- cades. However, we are never compla- cent and continue striving to deliver greater choice and value, which is why we've invested millions in this solution to ensure every one of our loyal read- ers can get their hands on the huge benefits of Sun+ membership." The Prosper S-Series Imprinting Sys- tem enables printers to capitalize on the investments made in offset presses and bridge the gap with digital tech- niques by adopting a one-step inline process, Mansfield continued. The solution can be integrated into existing production processes, allowing hybrid printing applications such as direct mail, inserts, advertising, and package labeling at output speeds up to 3,000 fpm and a guaranteed 600 x 200 dpi resolution. Gaming and sweepstakes applications are growing in popularity in Latin American and Chinese news- papers, he added. Employing inkjet technology for interactive newspaper advertising has been shown to drive physical traffic to stores as well as vir- tual traffic to websites. Digital printing capability enables a number of other exciting applications, such as late-breaking news and pho- tos, late sports scores, geographically targeted content, lottery applications, and personalized social media links. "Inkjet can be used like late-edition plate changes for more personalized text and images," Mansfield explained, adding that Kodak experts can help newspaper publishers around the world design a solution that meets the needs and reading habits of their spe- cific audiences. Mansfield acknowledged that the dynamics and financial situation of the US newspaper industry differ vastly from the UK, Europe, and Asia, where newspapers are healthier. Still, similar applications are coming, and soon, he believes, for readers in the United States. "This application represents one means of delivering content," Mansfield concluded. "The goal is to be 'agnostic:' whatever readers want." Inkjet Newspaper Production, Finally? 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