The future of the Managed Print Services market

The global Managed Print Services market is expected to grow to 66.60 billion dollars by 2026, according to a July 2021 forecast. Another research company predicts the market will be worth US$53.13 billion by 2027, up from US$32.06 billion in 2020, with the Asia Pacific region identified as a significant growth driver.

So what is behind this explosion in demand for Managed Print Services, and why should businesses pay attention?

The growth of cloud and SaaS

Spending on public cloud services in Australia is expected to grow to $10 billion in 2021, an increase of 18.4 per cent from 2020, according to Gartner. Any previous reluctance among business leaders to move to the cloud was washed away in the wake of the large-scale shift to remote working in 2020. In fact, the pace of cloud migration accelerated by 24 per cent, with more than half of business leaders expecting it to continue.

Moving forward, Gartner forecasts that software-as-a-service (SaaS) will continue to account for the largest share of cloud services, reaching $5.7 billion by the end of 2021. This is more than three times the share of the segment in second place, platform-as-a-service, which Gartner attributes to the increased demand for composable applications that can be adopted in a modular fashion.

Increasing demand for Managed Print Services

In the context of greater SaaS growth, it’s no surprise that the Managed Print Services market is also growing, particularly given businesses’ increasing need for mobile print solutions that can support a hybrid workforce. MPS enables businesses to outsource the management of their print fleet, including networking requirements, to a service provider who can design a custom solution based on their needs. Rather than managing multiple device brands, service contracts and consumables, MPS simplifies business printing into a single contract with one supplier who will ensure you never run out of toner again.

Simplicity is the key to its popularity. A survey by global market research and insight firm Quocirca revealed that customers are increasingly prioritising MPS providers who can offer broader workplace, collaboration, and IT services, consolidating their providers into a single source. Support, security, and management of devices for remote workers are also a priority, and customers have higher expectations of the Managed Print Services market in the areas of cost reduction, risk management, and sustainability.

As Quocirca’s Director, Louella Fernandes, observed in an interview with Oscar Sanchez, the president and CEO of Kyocera Document Solutions America, “IT decision-makers are looking for one supplier to manage everything, and that’s an opportunity for MPS providers to… develop an offering that covers print and IT services.”

Mr Sanchez agreed wholeheartedly, adding, “These kinds of conversations start other conversations. You talk about IT, of course, but you also talk about printing. We can talk about printing and then we need to talk about the cloud… then security… then workflows. So I think the connection between the two worlds is obviously there.”

It’s a relationship that Kyocera hasn’t hesitated to invest in further in recent years. In Australia, Huon IT joined the Kyocera Group in 2019, bringing 30 years of experience in IT services to Australian businesses. Other Kyocera divisions have made similar investments to ensure we can continue to meet our customers’ holistic needs in the future.

“We believe it’s a really nice complement to the services we have been traditionally providing to our customers,” said Mr Sanchez.

So why switch to Managed Print Services?

The benefits of Managed Print Services for businesses who make the switch are multiple. MPS was initially designed to drive cost savings and provide greater control over print usage. However, as it has evolved, so have the advantages it offers. As well as savings and greater oversight, you can now also expect the best managed service providers to help you boost productivity in your organisation, provide a simple, all-inclusive service contract, improve your environmental impact by reducing resource waste, and increase your document and information security.

Implementation of MPS is simple and starts with a comprehensive audit and analysis of your current print and document environment. Once completed, Kyocera will be able to present you with a tailored MPS solution and quote that will provide complete visibility of your printing expenses, including devices, consumables, and service and maintenance costs.

Managed Print Services is a flexible and scalable print solution that can meet the changing needs of your organisation in the new era of work. 

KYOCERA Document Solutions provides document management solutions with long-life print technology that keeps printing and maintenance costs low, reducing the total cost of ownership while delivering greater productivity, reliability and uptime.