More Than $37 Billion will be Spent on Wide-Format Output by 2009, says I.T. Strategies

The worldwide retail value of digitally printed wide-format graphics output reached $26 billion in 2004, according to I.T. Strategies. By 2009, estimates the Hanover, MA-based consulting group, that number will grow to $37 billion.

In 2004, output from aqueous inkjet printers made up 73% of the market, says I.T. Strategies, but that will decrease to 46% by 2009, “reflecting the introduction of eco/light-solvent printing of indoor and outdoor products, and the shift of point-of-purchase (P-O-P) output from aqueous to flatbed printers.”
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“This does not suggest that aqueous printers are going away,” says Marco Boer, consulting partner at I.T. Strategies. “But as a group they are shifting to the in-house environment, where there is currently no associated retail value.”
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The majority of today's output is advertising related, such as P-O-P signage, tradeshow graphics, and billboards, says I.T. Strategies. “The advertising related segment of the market is increasing both incrementally and at the expense of screen and offset printing technologies. Decorative applications such as wallcoverings are increasing as more competitors enter the market and print-for-pay shops look for newer, more lucrative applications.” (I.T. Strategies: www.it-strategies.com)