Conference: Paperless Office May Be a Pipe Dream, But Paper's Dominance as Communications Medium Ending.

Business/Technology Editors

NEWTONVILLE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 3, 2000

Economics, Ergonomics of Electronic Documents Too Compelling,

Charles LeCompte of Lyra Research Tells Symposium Audience

&uot;The Age of Paper is at an end. Paper won't disappear, but its role as a pillar of civilization--and one of the world's dominant industries--is over.&uot; That was the message Charles LeCompte, President of Lyra Research, Inc., and a leading authority on the computer printing industry, delivered to the third annual Lyra Imaging Symposium held last week in Palm Springs, CA.

The annual conference, which forecasts and examines long-term technological and usage trends in the printing and imaging industries, this year focused on the ongoing migration of documents from paper to other communications media and the impact of that migration on printer and copier hardware and supplies vendors. Joining Mr. LeCompte as speakers at the conference were G. Richard Thoman, CEO and President of Xerox Corporation, who discussed how Xerox intends to expand its leadership role in the digital document revolution, and John Perry Barlow, co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, who communicated his unique views on the importance of electronic communications technology in a world economy.

In addition to offering his own provocative view on the future of paper communications in a world where electronic is becoming the standard medium for both business and personal communications in much of the world, Mr. LeCompte made it clear that, from an economic standpoint, distributing information on paper cannot compete with digital distribution of documents. &uot;The cost of paper distribution rises dramatically as documents grow larger, as the number of recipients grows, and as documents are enriched with color and images. On the other hand, electronic distribution of documents costs virtually the same no matter how large the documents are, how widely they are distributed, or how rich in content the documents become. From this perspective anyway, paper is not competitive,&uot; Mr. LeCompte said.

Mr. LeCompte acknowledged that users may continue to prefer paper documents for features such as permanence, ease of use, and portability, and suppliers may prefer paper because they are comfortable with the current production methods, pricing, and distribution and the copyright protection afforded paper. He nevertheless predicted a decline of 80 percent in the consumption rate for printing and writing papers between 2000 and 2010. &uot;It's not a question of `if,' it's a question of `when,' and, for business planners, `how' paper will fall from its dominant position as a communications medium,&uot; he told the audience of some 180 strategic planners, product planners, and corporate executives from hardware, media, and marking companies worldwide.

Other topics examined at the Symposium included how distribute-and-print behavior is affecting total printing page volume in the United States; how the Internet is driving the printing of certain types of documents (such as product information, images, maps); the effect on print volumes of the expanding recreational printing market (including items such as greeting cards, photos, and T-shirt transfers); and the likely impact of the growing number and variety of digital copiers on the market for printers.

Lyra Research, Inc. (www.lyra.com) is recognized worldwide as the leading provider of publications, market information, and custom research services focused on the imaging industry. Since 1991, Lyra Research has published The Hard Copy Observer, the most authoritative publication covering the printer industry. In addition to the Observer, Lyra offers the following hard copy and online information services and publications that analyze hard copy peripherals and document production markets and technologies, as well as new opportunities emerging from the transition of hard copy to electronic copy: The Hard Copy Industry Advisory Service, The Hard Copy Supplies Advisory Service, The Digital Photography Advisory Service, The Hard Copy Industry Data Source, The Hard Copy Printer Evaluation Series, The Lyra Cost-per-Page Database, and The Hard Copy Supplies Journal. Lyra's Custom Research &Consulting Group performs customized research and studies for a broad range of imaging industry clients seeking help with their research, planning, or analysis efforts.