Middle East and Africa HCP markets hit hard by economic downturn, says IDC

IDC's Middle East and Africa Quarterly HCP Tracker shows that most countries in the region have been hit hard by the downturn, recording considerable year-on-year declines in HCP shipments in Q1 2009.

Shipments of HCP devices to the MEA region fell year on year by more than 600,000 units in Q1 2009, to stand at 1.7 million shipments totaling $492.7m. While declines were noticeable across all product segments, single-function machines (both copiers and printers) were the worst hit.

According to IDC, this trend has been driven by an increase in end-user awareness of the various benefits of multifunctional peripherals (MFPs), which include improved space utilization and convenience, ease of use, increased efficiencies, added functionality, and cost savings - further fueled by the rapid decline in MFP prices.

"Most MEA countries tracked by IDC recorded falling HCP shipments in Q1 2009. Although some countries were more affected by the crisis than others, a few select countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Algeria, actually experienced growth,"

says Naser Sha'sha'a, Program Manager for Imaging and Hardcopy Devices at IDC MEA.

"Turkey, however, posted the region's biggest year-on-year decline in Q1 2009, a continuation of a trend that became noticeable in Q4 2008. The government has quickly implemented various initiatives to curb the downturn, among them a 10% reduction in VAT on various consumer products, effective Q2 2009," he adds

Some vendors have attempted to overcome the challenges presented by the economic downturn by addressing the price-sensitive nature of the region's market, while others have responded to declining margins and reduced levels of business by adding value to their hardware sales through the provision of services such as fleet management, helpdesk support, device usage monitoring, and consumables replenishment.

"We certainly see the move to consulting and managed services provisions in the HCP market as a positive development," says Naser Sha'sha'a. "IDC has been advising vendors and their partners to present such an approach as a major cost-saver for their customers rather than an added expense. The aim should be to optimize the number of devices/brands in the customer site to meet the organization's various print/copy requirements, while also reducing the total cost of ownership."

IDC's Middle East and Africa Quarterly Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker fills the need for detailed and timely information on the region's markets for hardcopy peripherals (printers, MFPs, single-function copiers).

The comprehensive database details the changes and trends in the increasingly competitive MEA market and includes powerful query filters and essential market intelligence that let users generate actionable insights to plan short- and long-term strategies.

It also provides detailed overviews of country HCP markets and analyzes key products, trends, and vendor strategies, sorting data by vendor shipments and revenue based on technology, price band, model, and speed.