January 15, 2008 - CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Pageflex, a division of Bitstream Inc. and a leading developer of enterprise variable publishing and web-to-print solutions, and Canon Europe, a world leader in digital imaging technology, have announced a pan-European agreement that strengthens Canon's variable data solution offerings. The agreement gives users of Canon's digital production equipment, such as the flagship imagePRESS C7000VP, the ability to provide their customers with powerful customized communications through variable data printing (VDP), web-to-print storefronts, and cross-media marketing campaigns, including personalized URLs, microsites, and HTML email.
Bitstream, which first introduced variable data software 10 years ago, is now an Alliance Partner within the Canon Workflow Program. The agreement means that Canon Europe's customers have access to Bitstream's Pageflex portfolio of products. These include Pageflex Persona, the only desktop variable data application that can generate variable communications in both print and HTML email formats, as well as Pageflex Storefront, an award-winning customizable online portal that allows customers to order personalized documents from a branded storefront.
Chas Blanchard, Professional Solutions Marketing, Canon Europe said: "Print doesn't operate in a vacuum - it's increasingly likely to be part of a cross-media marketing campaign. Bitstream's Pageflex is a welcome addition to the burgeoning Canon Workflow Program as it gives imagePRESS users the ability to offer integrated marketing campaigns and secure new revenue opportunities. ROI is the principal consideration for any marketing director, which makes personalization all the more attractive as it can increase response rates by a fifth and increase overall revenue by nearly a quarter."
Bitstream's CEO, Anna Chagnon said: "This agreement with Canon Europe gives us the opportunity to increase our market share in Europe. The imagePRESS products deliver exceptional image quality and are therefore perfectly suited to deliver cutting-edge personalized print campaigns. However, the ability to use Pageflex products to also supply other elements of a campaign - personalized URLs, microsites, and HTML email - transforms print specialists into multi-media communications providers. We are very excited to partner with Canon Europe and look forward to developing strong relationships with its customers."
The Canon Workflow Program includes alliances and partnerships with a number of suppliers of leading solutions including, Objectif Lune, DirectSmile, EFI and X-Rite. The program also includes exclusive software solutions including the JDF-compliant workflow software, iW PrePress Manager (iWPPM), which was developed over three years and has a total of 82 patents, and NT-ware's print management solution uniFLOW Output Manager.