Shipments of hardcopy peripherals (HCP) in Western Europe (WE) declined 11,6% YoY to 3,4-million units in Q3 2023, according to recent research by International Data Corporation (IDC). While the situation tends to differ by country and brand, supply chain issues have disappeared by the third quarter of 2023, and the general availability of HCP devices has returned to normal.
After continuous YoY growth in the previous quarters, laser shipments declined by 14,3% in Q3 2023, owing to the weak market results of monochrome laser devices. Inkjet shipments to WE also decreased, by 10,4% YoY in Q3. By contrast, shipments of colour laser HCP devices increased YoY in most Western European countries during the third quarter. With the cost-per-page gap narrowing, there is increasingly less reason to purchase monochrome devices, therefore they will continue to gradually lose market share to colour devices.
“A double-digit decline in HCP shipments, in both the inkjet and laser segments, is a result of the softening demand from customers amid the weakening economic environment across Western Europe in Q3 2023,” says Zivile Denizseven, research manager at IDC.
HP maintains overall market leadership with 36,2% share. Canon, Epson, and Brother increased their market shares in Q3 2023 despite declining shipments. All these vendors participate in the high-volume markets.