プリンター業界における製品開発戦略研究

抄録

This paper analyzes success factors for product development strategies in Japanese printer industry. Over the past five years, inkjet printer demand has grown rapidly, and there has been an increasingly active and expanding consumer market. This, in turn, has intensified competition between inkjet printer manufacturers in the Japanese market with respect to printer functions, capacity, price, etc. At present, Seiko Epson has the number one share in Japan's consumer inkjet printer market. Focusing on the success example offered by Seiko Epson, this paper compares the two market competitors Seiko Epson and Canon while considering the way in which these organizations have handled technology inheritance and development of technology strategies. Furthermore, in order to analyze the technical elements that have enabled Seiko Epson to obtain the top share the inkjet printer market, this paper looks at patent acquisition data to analyze the patent registration activity of Seiko Epson and compare it with Canon. The results of this analysis provide further insight into the factors behind company's success.