McIlroy--Digital Printing - Are You Making Money?

Moderator Bob Rosen, a New York-based marketing consultant, set the tone for the session when he declared, "It's our informed guess that in the digital print area, about 20 to 25 percent of the firms are quite profitable, and the rest—about 75 percent—are earning little or nothing."

He pointed out that the 75 percent are not necessarily losing money. "But if you're making 1 to 2 percent, that is really not an economic return, given the risk of investing in a fast-moving technology," Rosen stated. He cast doubt, in fact, on the 20- to 25-percent figure, pointing out that the relatively few firms that are succeeding tend to be heard from more frequently and more loudly. "It's a self-selected sample," he said. "The people who talk about it have picked themselves out."