Printing on the go has already been the dream of a mobile phone user.
Research in Motion (RIM), the makers of
Blackberry mobile phones, and HP have
devised a solution that has had the cell industry take notice. HP had already
come out with iPrint Photo, a consumer oriented Blackberry">iPhone
app that prints photos
and files on certain HP printers. Now the company has released ePrint, a
BlackBerry app for business people on the go.
ePrint utilizes HP's CloudPrint technology, so all one needs is an Internet
connection to access the emails and documents on the BlackBerry server, and then
get them printed on the nearest recognized HP printer via the HP server. HP is
tying up with various chains to create a network of HP printers so that printing
on the go becomes a reality.
Many HP ePrint locations are powered by the PrinterOn network of public
printers, called PrintSpots. PrinterOn is HP's print network partner for
relevant print locations, including Hilton Worldwide. More than 1,300 hotels in
the Hilton Worldwide portfolio of brands have PrintSpots in the PrinterOn
network, including Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts,
Hilton Hotels, Doubletree, Embassy Suites Hotels, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton
Hotels and Homewood Suites by Hilton. Guests staying in these hotels will be
able to avail the benefits of the ePrint technology.
Additionally, FedEx Office (formerly FedEx Kinko's) is implementing the
solution across its network of more than 1,800 locations, giving users access to
ePrint through a large retail printing network. The deployment for FedEx Office
is scheduled for later this year.
The ePrint solution might prove to be an extremely intelligent venture for
the IT company. Beyond selling printers, HP needs to sell ink. With more and
more types of documents getting digitized and smartphones replacing former
functions of printers (think coupons and tickets), HP needs new ways to drive
printer usage.
Web connected printers fill this need in a few ways. First of all, they
connect to the ever-growing cloud for business users and make their lives
easier. Secondly, the email-to-print concept clearly has the potential to drive
new kinds of usage, both from business users and consumers who do things like
print photos and news. Finally, there are also opportunities for developers to
create interesting applications.
Along with the ePrint printer, HP also announced a new service called
Scheduled Delivery. The service lets consumers choose content to be pushed to a
printer at a designated time each day or week. Consumers might choose, for
example, to have customized news feed printed in time for a 7 am pickup.
While the trend is sure to catch on, obvious questions about security issues
are gaining momentum. Printing sensitive information on public printers are
often risky as it exposes critical data to a wider audience if the printed
material is not picked up immediately. While hackers are on the standby as
ePrint garners attention, competitors of both
HP
and BlackBerry are surely
devising ways to play catch up and share a pie of this revenue generating
business.
Madhura Mukherjee
madhurak@cybemedia.co.in