Sydney, Australia, 2nd March 2026: Independent analyst insights highlight market drivers, extensive print technology and positions Konica Minolta as a leader.
The global production print market is entering a new phase of transformation. According to insights from the IDC MarketScape Worldwide High-Speed Inkjet 2025 Vendor Assessment, “The high-speed inkjet market is a segment of the production printing business that holds a lot of promise, but in some ways, the technology is ahead of demand.”
“The speeds of these high-speed inkjet systems continue to increase as improved inkjet printheads, ink, and drying technologies come online. In fact, IDC sees that equipment manufacturers continue to innovate on all fronts to improve the quality available from high-speed inkjet presses, even as they improve the economics of digital printing and make presses easier to operate.”
The analyst’s report adds: “Print service providers are often shifting offset print volumes onto high-speed inkjet presses for cost reasons, such as:
- The cost of materials, such as paper and aluminum, is going up. Paper costs are pushing companies to switch to digital production because digital has less paper waste than traditional offset. Also, the cost of aluminum is increasing, so making aluminum offset plates is becoming more expensive, changing the dynamic between offset and digital production. Print service providers recognize the trend toward smaller runs, which magnifies these costs and drives investments in digital production equipment.
- “Labor costs are escalating. According to IDC’s 2025 Production and Large Printing Survey, about 40% of print service providers report having labor issues within the past 12 months. If print shops can’t find employees to operate their equipment, they occasionally change to digital equipment so that it is easier to operate and to find employees whom they can train to operate it. Another effect of rising labor costs is the need for more highly automated equipment. Through this research, IDC has encountered multiple operations that used to have four employees operating a single press; now they have one or two employees operating two or three production digital printers.”
The IDC MarketScape assessment evaluates vendors in the high-speed inkjet segment based on criteria such as reliability, productivity, print quality, workflow integration and long-term vendor viability. Rather than focusing solely on speed or headline specifications, the report emphasizes the importance of stable production performance and proven real-world implementation.
According to the report, “Consider Konica Minolta if your business seeks high levels of image quality and productivity, versatility across offset and specialty substrates, and robust support for short- and mid-run commercial, packaging, or specialty print production in a globally serviced, automated solution.“
The report highlights Konica Minolta’s “impressive portfolio and a road map for future products that offer very high levels of productivity and print quality based on the company’s extensive inkjet technology”. It adds: “Konica Minolta has achieved significant success and progress since the last iteration of this IDC MarketScape. The company has continued to evolve both its high-speed cutsheet inkjet solutions and its adjacent portfolio with toner-based products for the document and label printing markets.”
We are proud to be recognised by IDC as a leader in high-speed inkjet technology,” said Andrew Cocker, General Manager of Industrial and Production Print, Konica Minolta Business Solutions Australia. “With more than 150 years of heritage, Konica Minolta remains focused on delivering reliable, production-ready technologies. Since its launch in 2016, the AccurioJet high-speed inkjet platform has continued to demonstrate proven performance in real-world production environments, giving print service providers the confidence to modernise and scale their operations.”
Andrew Cocker
General Manager of Industrial and Production Print, Konica Minolta Business Solutions Australia
“Being recognised by IDC as a leader in high-speed inkjet is particularly meaningful for the Australian market, where print service providers are under increasing pressure to deliver shorter runs, faster turnaround times and consistent quality, while managing rising input and labour costs. Platforms such as the AccurioJet 30000 demonstrate how high-speed inkjet is helping Australian businesses transition work from offset and modernise production with greater confidence and stability.”
“Our continued investment in high-speed inkjet reflects a long-term commitment to helping customers improve productivity, quality and operational stability as they plan for the future. IDC’s independent analysis is valuable in highlighting what matters most when evaluating high-speed inkjet platforms and how vendors are positioned to support sustainable, long-term success in real production environments.”
Visit our landing page to download an excerpt of the IDC MarketScape report.
About Konica Minolta Australia
Konica Minolta Business Solutions Australia Pty Ltd is a market-leading provider of trusted technology solutions to help Australian organisations keep pace with the needs of the future workplace through innovation and investment technology solutions that leverage the technology of tomorrow, today.
From printing, scanning, and copying to cloud storage and managed IT services, Konica Minolta Australia’s award-winning products and solutions help customers to transform and move information faster.
Creating and working with equitable, socially responsible, and environmentally conscious organisations is an important part of the future workplace. Konica Minolta Australia actively promotes and innovates through diversity and inclusion, ethical supply chain, and climate change action strategies.
Konica Minolta Australia is proud to support the commitment to reconciliation between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and all other people in the community to help improve life outcomes and opportunities and to create a better future for society at large. As part of this, Konica Minolta Australia developed its Reconciliation Action Plan to publicly commit to reconciliation initiatives, and is a member of Supply Nation, the Australian leader in supplier diversity, to support First Nations businesses.
For more information visit: konicaminolta.com.au
About IDC MarkestScape
The IDC MarketScape vendor assessment model is designed to provide an overview of the competitive fitness of technology and service suppliers in a given market. The research methodology utilizes a rigorous scoring methodology based on both qualitative and quantitative criteria that results in a single graphical illustration of each vendor’s position within a given market. IDC MarketScape provides a clear framework in which the product and service offerings, capabilities and strategies, and current and future market success factors of IT and telecommunications vendors can be meaningfully compared. The framework also provides technology buyers with a 360-degree assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of current and prospective vendors.
