IDC announces shipments of large-format devices declined three percent in the final quarter of 2012, but regional markets see growth.
According to International Data Corporation (IDC), year-over-year sales of large-format printers (LFP) declined in 4Q12 despite most regional markets experiencing growth in the segment and overall shipments in the worldwide LFP market increased by roughly 5,000 units from the previous quarter to 78,000, although this was still a decline of 3.5 percent compared to the same quarter in 2011.
Meanwhile, year-over-year shipments in both mature and emerging markets slowed at similar rates, declining by -3.7 percent and -3.2 percent; with the global market decreasing by 3.5 percent. IDC also added that while several regional markets saw increases, many experienced single-digit declines.
Phuong Hang, Program Manager for IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Large Format Printer Tracker, said: “While shipments slowed in 2012, in the fourth quarter the trend improved from the prior two quarters. The technical market was stable in 2012, and showed signs of growth in the fourth quarter. The graphics market, however, is still being impacted by the lack of growth in the global economy.”
IDC also states that technical printer shipments performed better than the over all market with a year-over-year growth of just under one percent and the segment accounting for 55 percent of the total LFP market in the fourth quarter of 2012, although this was down from a 56 percent share in the previous year. In contrast, shipments of graphics applications saw a decline of 8.6 percent year-over-year, sharing 42 percent of the market, down by two percent from 2011.
HP remains the global leader in the market with a market share of 40.2 percent, despite the OEM experiencing a year-over-year decline in shipments of 7.2 percent. Ranked second is Epson with a market share of 21.4 percent, although the OEM is ranked first in the graphics segment and its technical sales have grown by 160 percent. Meanwhile Canon, ranked third in the market, saw a growth of 11.4 percent year-over-year during 4Q12, with its market share increasing to 17.7 percent.