Re Dell printers, I think the worries over Dell "getting into" the printer biz are rather misplaced.
First of all, for Dell to compete in printers on the basis of price, either they or Lexmark will have to give up a big chunk of the margins on printers - and aren't the big margins in ink and toner, anyway?
Second, unlike PCs, servers and other more-complex categories, Dell is not buying cheap components overseas and assembling them here to fill customized orders. They are buying a finished product and reselling it with a markup. No value-add except distribution.
Third, based on how Dell sells other non-customized or non-"build-to-order" products like monitors, price is not the driving factor - their prices are much higher than what one would pay for comparable products at online competitors and probably as high as at brick & mortar retailers. They sell them because many buyers want a Dell brand monitor, preferably in black, to match their Dell PC.
Fourth, if the goal is the razor-blade model, they have a problem because Lexmark will have to supply those as well. They won't get the margins on the blades to make the model pay.
Fifth, they probably won't sell a whole lot of the blades anyway. Ink and toner is, for business customers, likely purchased as part of routine office supply purchases. Office Depot or other OS shops will get the final sale and the manufacturer of the things will make money either way. For consumers, I'd bet most either buy a spare when they buy paper for their printer, or run out to Office Depot when they realize there's no yellow ink and their Christmas cards or photos look funny. Besides, Dell has tried getting into the office supply business and failed.
No, I would not worry about Dell "getting into" the printer biz.
JMO,
Bob |
