HP to Turn Away from Cameras, Will Focus on Print 2.0

HP Print 2.0

HP says it “will seek an alternative business model for its HP-branded cameras and shift resources toward its Print 2.0 growth initiatives,” business-speak for saying “we give up on the digital camera race, we’ll concentrate instead on what we do best: printing.”

HP is scouting around for an OEM partner who can handle the HP-branded cameras, but it will continue selling its own cameras through the holiday season. HP intends to have the partnership arrangement in place in the first half of 2008.

The strategy change is intended to enable HP to accelerate its investment in Print 2.0 initiatives. These include furthering HP’s leadership position in home photo printing and online photo services, while accelerating the company’s retail photo-finishing business.

Announced in May 2007, the company’s Print 2.0 strategy focuses on three areas: delivering a next-generation digital printing platform that increases print speeds and lowers the cost of printing for high-volume commercial markets; making it easier to print from the web; and, extending HP’s digital content creation and publishing platforms across all customer segments.

[Site: HP U.S.]
[Via: Business Wire]

Published by Chris Malinao

Chris teaches Lightroom as workflow software to photography students at the FPPF, Federation of Philippine Photographers Foundation. He also teaches smartphone photography.