SAN MATEO, Calif. --- March 11, 1997 --- Electronics for Imaging, Inc. (NASDAQ:EFII), the pioneer and leading supplier of products that enable digital color copiers to become high-speed, high-quality, networked color printers, today announced that EFI and Kinko's, Inc., a world leader in the print-for-pay industry with more than 850 stores, have signed a letter of intent to enter into a worldwide strategic technology alliance.
Under terms of the proposed agreement, Kinko's will purchase EFI's Fiery controllers for compatible printer engines in its branches worldwide. In addition, EFI will provide Kinko's with products designed specifically for its stores, while providing Kinko's with sales and marketing support to help each store successfully provide digital output services.
"EFI is very excited to be working with Kinko's, a company with such a strong presence in the print-for-pay industry," said Dan Avida, EFI's president and CEO. "The alliance between EFI and Kinko's represents a tremendous opportunity for the two companies to provide unique solutions for the future of on demand printing."
"We selected EFI's Fiery technology because because it will offer our customers consistent, high-quality output across multiple devices, from one branch to the next," said Paul J. Orfalea, Kinko's Chairperson. "EFI's products complement and enrich the product portfolio in our branches and meet our goal of satisfying our customers' demands for high-quality output. EFI is the market leader, and our alliance with them will help us expand into new markets."
"Kinko's relationship with EFI will certainly help to expand the market for short-run color printing," said Jeff Lenches, executive vice president of Electronics for Imaging. "The introduction of Fiery XJ Color Servers to Kinko's locations is exciting for us and will provide EFI with a worldwide technology showcase."
"With EFI's broad range of Fiery products, we can better serve our customers' needs," said Wendell Wilson, Vice President of Operations and Product Management, Kinko's, Inc. "We also expect to leverage EFI's strong global relationships with all the major manufacturers of printer engines. It is critical for Kinko's to provide our branches with a common user interface, consistent color quality, and enhanced productivity. Kinko's is customer-oriented and EFI has the right technology to address the needs of our customers at all levels of the market, today and in the future."
Electronics for Imaging, Inc. (EFI) is the industry pioneer and market leader in the development of products and technologies that enable high-quality digital color printing over computer networks. The company's Fiery Color Servers incorporate advanced hardware and software technologies to achieve fast, photographic-quality color output and provide network connectivity for a range of devices, including color copiers from all leading vendors, wide-format plotters and digital presses. Fiery XJe Controllers leverage these same technologies to increase the output speed and improve the print quality of Fiery Driven desktop color laser printers.
EFI's products are distributed by the company's blue-chip OEM partners ---Canon, Digital Equipment Corporation, IBM, Eastman Kodak, Minolta, Océ, Ricoh and Xerox. Fiery Color Servers and Fiery Driven color printers are installed worldwide in leading corporations, advertising agencies, graphic design studios and print-for-pay businesses. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in San Mateo, Calif., the company employs approximately 300 people and has 22 worldwide sales offices. Its stock is traded on the NASDAQ national market system under the symbol EFII.
Additional information regarding Electronics for Imaging may be obtained by calling the company directly at (415) 286-8600, or through public sources, including the company's SEC filings. Electronics for Imaging may also be reached on the World Wide Web at http://www.efi.com.
Founded in 1970 with one store, Kinko's has evolved into one of the largest chains of document production and business services stores in the world. The company currently operates more than 850 locations in the United States, Canada, the Netherlands, Japan and South Korea. Branches are equipped with high speed, digital color and black and white copiers, computer rentals, custom printing and finishing services, fax, mailing services and overnight delivery drop-off services. As well, Kinko's, in conjunction with Sprint, offers the world's largest network of public retail video conference rooms. Headquartered in Ventura, California, Kinko's is a privately held corporation with 23,000 coworkers worldwide. For additional information, call 1-800-2-KINKOS, or visit its web site at http://www.kinkos.com.
EFI, the EFI logo, Fiery, the Fiery logo, the Fiery Driven logo, Fiery XJ and Fiery XJe are trademarks of Electronics for Imaging, Inc. Fiery and EFI are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. All other terms and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners, and are hereby acknowledged.
For more information contact:
| Letty Dupuy | Laura McCormick | |
| Electronics for Imaging | Kinko's, Inc. | |
| (415) 286-8595 | (805) 652-4129 | |
| letty.dupuy@corp.efi.com | lauram@kinkos.com |
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