As the recent series of articles by the Eagle on WhatTheyThink.com highlight, the role of the graphic arts dealer is changing dramatically. One of the more interesting developments is the blurring of the line between manufacturer and dealer. Perhaps the most noteworthy of this trend in the United States is Fuji's acquisition of most of their dealer channel to form Enovation, and the subsequent integration of much of their U.S. operations into Enovation.

Equally intriguing, and one that has generated many questions and a lot of email to WhatTheyThink.com, is the formation of Vivitek by Sun Chemical. Announced in early May, Vivitek is positioned as "a services and distribution company that will offer a wide range of services and non-ink consumable products for prepress, pressroom and finishing operations."

These two events can be viewed as an affirmation of the dealer channel as an effective way to reach the market. Yet they also highlight the weakness of the dealers and can just as easily be seen as a failure of the graphic arts dealers in serving their dual constituencies. Both companies have chosen to offer additional products and services through a wholly-owned distributor, including their own, private-label, and other companies' products, rather than go through an existing infrastructure.