Samsung to focus majorly on laser printers this year

With a substantial market share in the monitors, HDDs, optical disk drives, etc in its bag, Samsung India is now targeting the documentation business. The printer market in India is growing at a fast pace, especially the laser printer market. As per IDC figures, the supplier side grew by 20.2 percent in the laser printers segment and only 1.6 percent in the inkjet segment in the calendar year 2001. These figures show a flat market for inkjets; thus, Samsung sees a major potential in the laser printer market. The multifunction printers have seen a significant growth of 40 percent in the same period.

With seven laser workhorses, two laser multifunction printers and an inkjet multifunction printer in offering, Samsung is bullish about its new products. It is playing the price performance factor in the Indian market. Samsung has identified a select set of channel partners for its laser printer business. It is playing on the present channel infrastructure and service (100 service centers in India) capabilities.

Explained Moninder Jain, National Marketing Manager, Samsung India, "We know that laser printer market is growing at an accelerated pace and there are few players in the market that can deliver all the success factors. Our printers are workhorses and are priced right, I am sure with so many pros they should excel in the Indian market."

Samsung is launching a consumer promo--Best Printer Best Value for the SOHO, SME and the corporate segment. This scheme offers a toner cartridge and an inkjet printer free with its laser printer--ML1210 and is priced at Rs 17,999. This printer has USB and parallel ports with a speed of 12 ppm and has the USP of poster printing.

Samsung has already won a major deal from the Maharashtra Government to supply 200 network printers, which according to Jain is a good number to start with. It is also selling the multifunction printers very well in the market. "We are able to sell 125 pieces a month, which is a considerable amount as we have not publicized the product much," he added.

To generate the required pull in the market, Samsung has devised a three pronged strategy. The focus is to provide a greater end-consumer education through its
website--www.buildurpc.com. It has also built a Digital Adventure section in the National Science Center in the capital to accentuate its position with the end-consumers.

Second strategy is to generate product inquiries in the target audience through its direct selling officers across the nation in the major cities. The third and the final strategy is to give the right profits to its channel partners and give them the perfect service backup and handholding.

In the calendar year 2002, Samsung is targeting at selling 35,000 laser printers. This would include selling 2,000 to 3,000 MFPs too.

Meanwhile, it is planning to sell 1.1 million optical disk drives and an equal number of monitors and nine lakh hard disk drives in India during this year.