OKI Printing Solutions Announces Strategic Partnership with EFI

Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd. (TSE: 6703) and Oki Data Corporation, subsidiary of Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd., today announced a strategic partnership with EFI™ (Nasdaq: EFII), the world leader in digital imaging and print management solutions for commercial and enterprise printing. 

The partnership is designed to boost performance on the new C9800 Series products from OKI Printing Solutions, which include the company’s first digital color MFP and digital color printer series. The new products include the feature-enhancing EFI® Fiery® system software, which delivers an easy-to-use powerful suite of color precision and advanced workflow controls to support a wide range of corporate and graphic arts applications.

“We have a history of color leadership, and this partnership with EFI reflects our commitment to taking it to unprecedented levels of excellence,” said Mikihiko Maeno, President and CEO, OKI Data Corporation. “We are pleased to boldly enter the MFP space, and eager to show customers how, with OKI Printing Solutions products powered by EFI, they can bring extraordinary quality color in house, boosting their productivity and reaping substantial savings.”  
 
Key features of the Fiery controller for C9800 Series products from OKI Printing Solutions include:

Enhanced Productivity
New Fiery intelligent processing software accelerates the processing of documents and ensures the fastest printing possible on PDF, Microsoft Office® (particularly Microsoft PowerPoint®) and large image files.  Even when printing resolutions of up to 1200 dpi, Fiery technology virtually eliminates waiting time at the printer.

The award-winning Fiery Command WorkStation™ sets the standard in centralized print job management with an intuitive interface and a variety of sophisticated, productivity-enhancing tools.  The familiar, consistent interface means seamless integration into OKI Printing Solutions environments. 

Additional Fiery productivity enhancement tools include:
●    Fiery NetWise™ for seamless connectivity to all popular network platforms;
●    Fiery WebTools™ for easy downloading and scanning jobs;
●    Fiery FreeForm™ for flexible variable data printing capabilities;
●    Optional Fiery Impose™ for merging and assembling documents; Optional Hot Folders available on the GA (graphic arts) range for automated batch processing of PostScript and PDF files

Color Management/Great “Out of the Box” Color
Fiery ColorWise®, industry-leading color management software, offers built-in intelligence for producing consistently precise colors from all applications, platforms and file formats. Advanced functionality includes auto trapping for layering graphics and Spot-On® color technology for color accuracy, supporting corporate-branded colors (available on the GA range).
 
Authentic PostScript
In addition to PCL, the Fiery controller includes an EFI/Adobe co-developed PostScript interpreter that processes (RIPs) the print job.  Fiery office accelerator technology enables the printing of Adobe PostScript 3™ and native PDF files with a level of accuracy and color rendering that emulators cannot achieve.
 
Improved Security
To secure information, Fiery system software provides formidable digital solutions. Fiery security features for the C9800 Series include IP Filtering to control access to the printing device and Port Blocking to control access to the Fiery through remote management.
 

“We are pleased to see the legion of OKI Printing Solutions customers join the 12 million EFI Fiery users around the world who have made Fiery the industry’s print server of choice,” said Guy Gecht, EFI CEO. “EFI and OKI Printing Solutions share a number one objective of delivering products that drive customer success. EFI provided end-to-end integration for new OKI Printing Solutions C9800 line, set to have a terrific market impact. The new line, which includes color printers capable of full-color speeds up to 36 pages per minute, has been designed so that customers will experience increased productivity that will save them time and money as they produce outstanding prints.”

The partnership will be emphasized internationally when, on May 13, Fred Rosenzweig, EFI President, will join Mikihiko Maeno, President and CEO, OKI Data Corporation, in Tokyo for the Japanese launch of new OKI Printing Solutions products.

About EFI:

EFI (www.efi.com) is the world leader in digital imaging and print management solutions for commercial and enterprise printing. EFI's award-winning technologies offer document management tools from creation to print, including high fidelity color and black and white Fiery® print servers that can output up to 2000 pages per minute; powerful production workflow and print management information software solutions for increased performance and cost efficiency; and an array of business-critical enterprise and mobile printing solutions. EFI maintains 22 offices worldwide.

About Oki Data Americas: Oki Data Americas, Inc., headquartered in Mount Laurel, N.J., and a subsidiary of Oki Data Corporation of Japan, markets under the OKI Printing Solutions brand PC peripheral equipment including digital color and monochrome printers, serial impact dot matrix printers, multifunction products and facsimiles. Known for durable and reliable products, Oki Data Americas is ISO 9001:2000 certified and also offers a full line of options, accessories and consumables. Its entire line of products complies with the EPA's Energy Star® Program. Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd., parent company to Oki Data Corporation, is a $7.0 billion multinational corporation with headquarters in Tokyo and is a world leader in information processing systems, telecommunications and electronics.

©2005 Oki Data Americas, Inc.