Response statement: Epson response to France 2 programme ‘Envoyé Spécial’

Paris, France – 30 March 2018 – Following the recent France 2 programme which aired on 29 March, Epson feels the necessity to correct some of the points made in the programme which it believes were extremely misleading to consumers and based on incorrect, skewed or partial facts.

Epson categorically rejects all allegations of ‘planned obsolescence. Such actions would be completely contrary to our philosophy and principles of corporate behaviour. Epson strives to extend the life of its printer as long as possible to maximise the return for customers, and to ensure that they continue to enjoy reliable performance for as long as possible.

A printer is a sophisticated product and Epson’s ink cartridge technology, ink use and component parts such as the Waste Ink Pad (WIP) are designed to ensure printer system performance and reliability, and to allow customers to continue to use Epson printers with peace of mind. As the programme incorrectly addressed these areas, Epson would like to offer an explanation to customers about:

• The remaining ink in your cartridge: is there to protect the printhead in the printer. In the same way that a saline drip cannot be allowed to run dry to prevent air entering the blood-stream, it is essential to prevent air from entering the printhead and to keep some ink inside the ink cartridge. If air is allowed to enter the printhead it can affect print quality (for example, “printing” blank pages, and faded printing output) and in some cases the printhead can be damaged to the extent that the printer has to be repaired (due to missing dots for example).
  
  Epson has many different cartridge types. While the amount of remaining ink may vary by differing cartridge types, the amount of remaining ink does not change within a cartridge typ¹, even if the quoted page yield is different. This is due to many factors, including the structure of the ink cartridge, manufacturing tolerances and software accuracy on older models. Epson offers consumers the choice between small, large and extra-large yields by offering varying amounts of printing ink in the cartridge based on their printing needs
  
  To be clear the remaining ink is for system protection purposes and is additional ink that is not included in calculations of the cartridge page yield or cost per page and is specifically intended to always remain in the cartridge. The ink available for printing delivers the quoted page yields that conform to ISO/IEC 24711 and ISO/IEC 24712 international standards. The millilitres (ml) stated on the cartridge package is the total ink in the cartridge as required by law, and therefore includes both printing ink and remaining ink.
   
• Chip on the cartridge: The purpose of the chip on the cartridge is to record and store the level of remaining printing ink in the cartridge. This information is passed to the chip from a counter within the printer, which counts the number of ink droplets ejected from the printhead, NOT the number of pages.
   
• The Waste Ink Pad (WIP) in your printer: is designed to catch excess ink and prevent ink leakage inside or outside of the printer. If this should happen, it may cause damage to the printer and its surrounding areas. The maximum saturation of the ink absorption pad is defined by counting the droplets of ink entering the pad.
  
  For lower priced printers, the WIP is a Service Centre replaceable item. In this case, the WIP is designed to significantly exceed normal usage of the printer (based on typical customer usage). For example the Expression Home XP-225 has a rated WIP life in excess of 10 years, based on past typical customer profile of printing around 40 pages per month. Other models include customer replaceable WIPs.
  
  NOTE: To avoid leakage, the Waste Ink Pad counter should never be reset without replacing the used pad.

“Epson does and always has put the customer first,” states Ernest Quingles, Managing Director Epson France. “The best way – and the only way – to conduct business is by obtaining the ongoing trust and custom of our stakeholders, and this cannot be achieved through improper practices like planned obsolescence. Our business has been built on creating truly excellent products that our customers use and appreciate over many years.”

Epson provides a wide range of customers with stable and hassle-free printing. In response to growing demand for cartridge-free printing, in 2010 we launched our range of EcoTank printers which provide cartridge-free printing with up to 3 years of ink included.

Quingles adds: “To date we have sold over 25 million EcoTank printers worldwide to people who want high quality cartridge-free printing.”

Epson will fully cooperate with any formal investigation should it be contacted.