From a recent CNET story:

Lexmark International Group on Tuesday said quarterly profit fell by almost half, hurt by tough price competition and a slump in computer printer sales

We think that stories like this will become more common as more people grow tired of the high cost of ink. The home printing market has exploded recently, but may be starting to cool down just slightly. Ironically, the slowdown in sales resulted in Lexmark beating profit expectations for the quarter:

The higher-than-expected profit came as a result of lower operating expenses and weak printer sales, Lexmark said. Printer makers typically sell hardware at a loss in hopes of reaping long-term recurring sales of ink and toner, which are highly profitable.

Does anyone find it a little strange that they actually saw some benefit from selling fewer printers, supposedly their chief product? This shows the curious and now tenuous business model that the printer companies employ these days: lose money making the hardware, make it back with the ink. Only if people stop buying more and more printers that require more and more ink while at the same time using alternative ink products, printer manufacturers like Lexmark aren’t left with much to fall back on.

Lexmark profit falls; job cuts planned [CNET]