Prepress
DNP to Establish DNP FOTOLUSIO
Monday 04. August 2008 - Integrates three Digital Photo Print Businesses
Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (DNP) will integrate its three existing digital photo print businesses and establish a new company, with the aim of strengthening and expanding its digital photo print business. The new company will be known as DNP FOTOLUSIO Co., Ltd., and has a scheduled launch date of October 1.
The three companies to be integrated under the new company are DNP ID Imaging Co., Ltd, (DNP ID Imaging,) an ID photo business, DNP Photo Marketing Co., Ltd., (DNP Photo Marketing,) a company which markets photography-related goods and equipment, and DNP PrintRush Co., Ltd., (DNP PrintRush,) which markets self-service photo-printing kiosks. The operations of these three companies shall be transferred in their entirety to the new company, and business operations continued under the new framework.
[Background]
In the late 1980s, DNP commenced the manufacture and marketing of dye-sublimation thermal transfer media(*1,) including ink ribbons for color printers used to print out images photographed with digital cameras, and subsequently captured the top global share in this market. In 2005, DNP launched ‘PrintRush’ (*2,) a self-service photo-printing kiosk boasting high-speed printing at the rate of three seconds per sheet. The company also established DNP ID Imaging and DNP Photo Marketing in 2006 following the acquisition of a photo-related business from Konica Minolta Group, and offers a wide selection of digital print products along with a variety of related services. In order to promote its fully fledged participation in the expanding digital photo print business at both home and abroad, in January, DNP launched a new brand – “FOTOLUSIO” (*3) and has moved to consolidate and strengthen business.
[Objectives and Aims of the New Company]
Enhancing competitiveness and improving customer service under the FOTOLUSIO brand
By integrating the three aforementioned sales companies; DNP will use and expand the sales routes at each company, strengthen its lineup by unifying products and equipment, and enhance information gathering capacities aiming to boost competitiveness in addition to improving customer services under the new FOTOLUSIO brand.
[Overview of New Company]
Company Name : DNP FOTOLUSIO Co., Ltd.
Address : 3-35-13, Yayoicho, Nakano-ku, Tokyo
Number of staff : 220
President-Director : Yukitoshi Shimada
Sales offices : Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Sendai, Hiroshima, Fukuoka
*1 Dye-sublimation thermal transfer media
A material used in the thermal transfer printing of digital images. Comprised of a three color – yellow, magenta and cyan – ink ribbon with a transparent overcoat layer and dedicated receiver paper. As the dyes are transferred to match the concentration of the image, it is possible to achieve smooth gradations, and reproduce high grade images of a similar quality to silver halide photographic prints. As it is also possible to perform high speed printing with high level durability, DNP is seeing a sharp pick up in the use of this new imaging material for digital cameras in home-use printers, along with kiosk terminals mainly in the area of ID photographs.
*2 ‘Print Rush’
A digital photo-printing system that facilitates the printing of images photographed with digital camera as and mobile phones, marketed by DNP PrintRush. Consumers can print out 89mm x 127mm photographs in a world beating three seconds per sheet then and there at self-service kiosk terminals. Terminals are available at consumer electronics mass merchandisers and DPE outlets throughout Japan.
*3 FOTOLUSIO
FOTOLUSIO is the new brand created by the DNP photo-related group. The name has been created from the combination of the words photograph and solution, while also evoking the image of “revolution.” FOTOLUSIO is intended to symbolize the hopes and desires of DNP as it forges ahead with the creation of a new photographic world by applying the total combined strength of the company with the photo print technology and know how we have nurtured over many years.
* Product price, specification and service content listed in this news release are as of time of going to press. This data may change without notice. We apologize for any inconvenience.