Introduction
Disc printing is the process of printing text, data or images on the surface of the optical disc. Two different approaches for printing CD-R on-demand are - Thermal disc printing and Inkjet disc printing. A thermal disc printer employs pressure and heat to apply text and graphics to the disc surface. The print surface of thermal printed discs is more durable. Thermal disc printing produces colour custom labels that are waterproof, scratchproof and do not require any additional coating.
Inkjet printers utilize a mechanism in which the print head has several tiny nozzles/jets that spray ink onto the disc, as the disc moves past the print head, forming the characters or images. Inkjet disc printers may employ a single cartridge for different colours or several cartridges, with one for each colour depending upon different models, and are priced accordingly. The total thermal and inkjet disc printers market of U.S., Europe & Japan was valued at US$ 929.6 Mn in 2015. In terms of value, the disc printers market in the U.S., Europe and Japan is expected to witness a declining CAGR of −3.0%, between 2016 and 2026.
Increasing adoption of cloud based storage systems and on-premise systems are the main reasons for a declining thermal and inkjet disc printing market
Thermal disc printers offers several advantages such as higher throughput of the thermal ribbons, more durable print surface, and are comparatively faster than other disc printing solutions.
Several benefits offered by inkjet disc printers are high resolution printing and they are comparatively less expensive and lighter in weight. Inkjet printing technology is more accurate and smudge-free on special types of printable media discs (rather than simple discs with smooth surface) having matte surface, which can absorb ink similar to paper and provides high quality image and artwork. Easy availability of printable media discs at low prices is a driver for the growth of the U.S., Japan and Europe disc printer market.
Increasing adoption of cloud based storage systems and on-premise systems (hard disk drive and solid state drive) is decreasing the demand for media disks worldwide. As these alternatives are convenient, faster and are available at comparatively lower prices than media discs, they are more popular among end users. High cost of raw material of recordable optical disc and low profit margins due to wide availability of substitutes are acting as major challenges for players in the recordable optical disc market.
As a result, most players are shutting operations or divesting in other sectors, which is adversely affecting growth of the market. Increasing adoption of digital downloads over physical storage devices by end users is hampering the growth of the thermal and inkjet disc printers market.
Market forecast
The thermal disc printer sub-segment was valued US$ 418.3 Mn in 2015 and is anticipated to register a CAGR of -2.5% during the forecast period. The inkjet disc printer sub-segment was valued at US$ 511.3 Mn in 2015 and is anticipated to register a CAGR of -3.4% during the forecast period. The U.S., Europe and Japan thermal disc printers market was valued at US$ 418.3 Mn in 2015 and is anticipated to reach a market value of US$ 320.2 Mn by 2026 end. Revenue from the market is projected to decrease by 20% between 2015 and 2026. The U.S., Europe and Japan inkjet disc printer market was valued at US$ 511.3 Mn in 2015 and is expected to reach US$ 353.0 Mn by 2026.
Key market players
Some of the key market players identified across the U.S., Europe and Japan thermal and inkjet disc printers value chain are Rimage and Formats Unlimited (MF Digital) that are operating in both the thermal printing and inkjet disc printing market. TEAC America Inc. and Microboards Technology are specifically operating in the thermal disc printers market while Seiko Epson Corporation and Primera Technologies Inc. are specifically operating in the inkjet disc printers market.
Key Segment
By Ribbon Type
- Monochrome Black
- Color
- Photo
By Ribbon Supplier
- OEM
- Aftermarket
By Technology
- Direct Thermal Printing
- Thermal Transfer Printing
- Dye-Sublimation Printing
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