IBISWorld Market Research
Consumers and businesses have increasingly traded and conducted business online without the aid of printed materials.
Melbourne, Australia (PRWEB) July 24, 2014
Printing in Australia has been hit hard over the past five years. Consumers have increasingly received information via alternative mediums such as the internet, rather than via printed materials. This trend has led to a decline in demand for the services of professional printers. Online media continues to encroach into the domain of book, newspaper, magazine, and directory publishers. According to IBISWorld industry analyst Spencer Little, “The printed word has proven to be slow to produce and costly to distribute.”
Consumers and businesses have increasingly traded and conducted business online without the aid of printed materials. As a result, industry revenue is estimated to decrease at a compound annual 4.4% over the five years through 2014-15. Industry revenue is estimated to drop by 1.6% in 2014-15, to reach $7.4 billion. Online platforms have become crucial in most of the industry's major markets, such as finance, retailing, communications, and advertising industries. Advertising spending is being redirected to the digital space, and online shopping is growing at the expense of bricks-and-mortar retailing. A strong Australian dollar has made imported printing more cost-effective over the past five years, negatively affecting the competitiveness of domestic printers.
Competitive pricing pressures and high fixed costs, exacerbated by excess capacity, have also affected industry performance and contributed to smaller profit margins over the past five years. The Printing industry's problems are expected to continue over the next five years. However, industry revenue is projected to fall at a slower rate than over the past five years. Excess capacity and competition from online substitutes are anticipated to continue to put pressure on the revenue and profitability of industry operators. “Internet use and the trend towards conducting trade and business online show no sign of abating,” says Little. Despite recent depreciation, a relatively strong Australian dollar and high industry wages are expected to make overseas printing more attractive and affordable, leading to reduced demand for local printing services.
The Printing industry displays a low market share concentration. As a result, the industry consists of a large number of small independent firms. The industry's major players are PMP Limited and IPMG Pty Limited. According to ABS Counts of Business data, only 12 companies employ more than 200 staff, and only 11.0% of enterprises generate more than $2.0 million in annual revenue. These trends are indicative of an extremely fragmented industry. However, industry concentration tends to vary depending on the services that printers provide. For example, PMP has a market-leading position in the heat-set web printing market, while Blue Star Group controls a large share of Australia's sheet-feed market. Overall market share concentration has remained fairly stable over the past five years.
For more information, visit IBISWorld’s Printing report in Australia industry page.
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IBISWorld industry Report Key Topics
Companies in the industry are primarily engaged in printing and providing reprographic services. Printing methods include offset lithographic, reprographic, digital, relief and screen printing. Firms that are mainly engaged in screen printing on clothing and apparel are also included in the industry.
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