Earlier this year Eastman Kodak announced a major change in the strategic direction of the company. This was to make graphic arts and digital printing one of the three core businesses for the company. At the time they made this announcement, Kodak set up a new Graphics Communication Group headed by Jim Langley, who joined from a senior position in Hewlett Packard. Kodak announced that this business was strategic to the future of the organization and assigned a very large budget to be available for acquisitions and developments.

The first acquisition came with the purchase of Scitex Digital Printing from Scitex Corporation. This is now called Kodak Versamark. This became the second company within Graphic Communications, sitting alongside large format ink jet supplier Encad, a company acquired earlier by Kodak. Also put into the Graphic Communications Group was Kodak’s share of the Nexpress joint venture company with Heidelberg, and its co-ownership of Kodak Polychrome Graphics. At drupa, Kodak announced that it had taken on Heidelberg’s share of Nexpress, plus it had taken over the Heidelberg Digital operation that owned the Digimaster monochrome digital printers. The monochrome business was moved into the Nexpress Company. Along with this came the whole Heidelberg digital printing sales and support organization worldwide.

Prior to drupa, I wrote a not very enthusiastic response to Kodak’s new direction, which was based upon a past history of unsuccessful acquisitions in the digital graphic arts business. Following drupa, where I had meetings with Jim Langley, and with Antonio Perez, the President and CEO of Eastman Kodak, who is also an ex-Hewlett Packard senior executive, I wrote a more positive response to Kodak’s directions. I still saw limitations, mainly in the areas of sales and distribution channels. I also stated the product line was too limited to be able to compete with companies like Canon, Hewlett Packard and Xerox.