Ricoh has made a ‘significant investment’ in a US web to print software developer, PTI Marketing Technologies. This will be used to finance development of new marketing collateral management tools for enterprises and commercial printers. It’s part of Ricoh’s strategy of providing end to end production print solutions, it said.
Last year the companies announced that they were developing a cloud-based software solution with output formats for print and other media, including PDF, AFP and HTML email based on PTI’s hosted software, MarcomCentral. This solution enables enterprises to provide distributed agents, salespeople and others with access to brand-driven collateral.
Now the companies say that the new investment will let them bring new technologies, software and services to market to handle multichannel marketing campaigns at the global, regional and local levels.
‘Today’s commercial printers are seeking solutions beyond the traditional print services to help them stay a step ahead of the competition,’ said Yasuhiko Hosoe, associate director and deputy general manager of Ricoh Production Printing Business Group. ‘This is the goal of our Print and Beyond initiative – to enable customers to drive new revenues, increase effectiveness, and seek efficiencies to lower costs, no matter what direction they want to take their business or department. From data analytics to brand management to our new Clickable Paper tool, there are a wealth of offerings that can bring value-added benefits to any portfolio – beyond traditional hardware. Our investment in PTI, a leading innovator in the marketing technology space, further demonstrates our dedication to enabling our customers to go beyond today’s thinking and beyond print — and deliver upon an expanded view of the future.’
Coleman Kane, president and CEO of PTI Marketing Technologies, said: ‘Ricoh’s investment, combined with their expertise and worldwide footprint, will allow PTI to expand rapidly and deploy our MarcomCentral and FusionPro software globally. Together we will develop and distribute a global offering that will help companies succeed strategically, and at the same time, demonstrate a return on their marketing investment.’
Contact: www.ricoh.co.uk
