IDC reveals impact of remote work on Aussie print market

The latest IDC Asia Pacific Quarterly Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker found that the Australian hardcopy peripherals (HCP) shipment recorded 810,000 million units in 2020H1. The market size was also 3.7% less year on year (YoY), largely driven by the weaker demand from corporates during the COVID-19 lockdown.

IDC recorded a -20% unit YoY downturn in the laser single-function market category, but noted that inkjet and laser multifunction devices (MFDs) benefitted from the demand growth from home users, with almost flat YoY performance, against the declining trend in previous years.

“Consumer-targeted products increased in sales because of remote working and distance learning, predominantly through large local retailers whose stores remained open during the restrictions,” said Jimmy Li, Market Analyst at IDC.

Inkjet models within the US$100–$300 price range experienced increased demand from the home-based working environment, with consumers panic buying in March–April 2020. In contrast, key laser vendors reduced the shipment volume of low-end laser devices with a print speed of less than 20 ppm gradually.

Both inkjet and laser markets suffered from stock and logistic issues due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the Asia Pacific regions. Li noted that the business world is approaching ‘the next normal’, a hybrid working model with possible lower reliance on print.

“However, the requirement of day-to-day location independent processes also brings opportunities to the market. Vendors and channels can no longer rely on hardware and consumable sales alone, but need to focus on and expand their offerings into cloud services, security control and solution-based approach across offices and home locations,” Li said.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Gorodenkoff