Topic: printer-ink piracy?

[Nemesis]

Link to full article

Cryptography Research Inc. (CRI), a San Francisco company, is developing chip technology aimed at helping printer manufacturers protect this primary source of profit. The company's chips use cryptography designed to make it harder for printers to use off-brand and counterfeit cartridges.

Piracy?  How is this piracy?  Counterfeiting if they try to market their product as being from the printer manufacturer, otherwise it is just competition.  Making a compatible part is not illegal.  Refilling cartridges is not illegal.  Misrepresenting your parts in any way is illegal but is not piracy.

A simple suggestion for printer manufacturers.  Sell the cartridges at a decent price, design them to be refillable and sell your own refill kits.  If aftermarket competitors are selling at 1/2 your price then you are ripping off your customers.  Treat your customers well and they will return again and again willingly.

The word piracy has been abused so much in recent years.  So called "pirating" of copyrighted materials for example is not "piracy" but misappropriation legally.  Piracy is attacking vessels on the high seas and taking their cargo no more no less. 

What next car companies using this technology to squeeze out 3rd party parts?

[Electric Eye]

I agree. It's like cars and aftermarket parts and performance parts, noone owns a patent on a single system nowadays, so it's a free for all. And auto manufacturers (Toyota included) are like printer cartridge manufacturers, sell cheap crap at a high price. That's why I always go for the base model LE Camry, I can turn it into a better than an SE model for a much lower price, with quality parts.

BTW, did ya'll know that your printer has a "signature" that allows the Feds to track down which printer a document came from?  They do not need that with me, when I'm pissed off and write a letter about piss-poor customer service or a govt. policy that stinks to high Heaven or something, I have the balls enough to let them know who I am and where I live, etc...

[Commander Maxillius]

They have a hard time doing that with inkjets, though you can tell simply by the quality of the output what brand of printer a document came from.

I knew they did that with laser printers and copiers though.

[Just plain old Punisher]

I hate my new Brother MFC-640 CW. It won't print if ANY of the cartidges are low....so even if its a black and white job and the Cyan cartridge is low, it won't let the printer print. I take out the cartidges and examine them and the suckers still look like they have plenty of ink. The damn thing is lying to me.

50 freakin bucks to replace em all. That's insane.

[Electric Eye]

Yup Pun, LexMark bends me over too, I'm pissed, as if ATT&T hasn't done me enough already. 

[Don Karnage]

when a new cartridge is around $30, you will go for the one that are re build and refiled, when i buy a printer i look for the one who got each color separately and the black, also i look as how much it the new cartridge.

the should sell it for less, the will make more money.

i know that some will sell the old printer and buy a new one for less that the cartridge, this is so stupid but its "legal"

[Commander Maxillius]

I'll stick with my old printers as long as they make the cartridges for them.  They'll still go even if the cartridge is completely empty

A little annoying, but if I'm only printing text, why do I care if I'm out of red?

[Vipre]

Anything in the world to squeeze that last dollar out of your pocket.

Create a printer that knows who made the cartridge and you'll wind up with them only accepting "authorized" manufacturer ones. The end result will be cartridges costing twice what they do already.

Think I've said before what a crock those estimated cost the industry reports are. Blah blah blah costs the industry yada million dollars a year. Oh, and that popping noise you hear is the sound of them pulling the numbers from their a$$.

[Commander Maxillius]

Anything in the world to squeeze that last dollar out of your pocket.

Create a printer that knows who made the cartridge and you'll wind up with them only accepting "authorized" manufacturer ones. The end result will be cartridges costing twice what they do already.

Think I've said before what a crock those estimated cost the industry reports are. Blah blah blah costs the industry yada million dollars a year. Oh, and that popping noise you hear is the sound of them pulling the numbers from your a$$.

I fixed your post

[Vipre]

Oh, and that popping noise you hear is the sound of them pulling the numbers from your a$$.

I fixed your post

So that's what that pain was from.