Document Scanner Market Roundup

Scanning was once the domain of specialized value-added resellers, imaging hardware distributors and geeky “systems integrators.” These three sales channels catered to an equally obscure group of imaging-focused employees in the back offi ce operations at large fi nancial services operations, insurance companies, government agencies and wherever else paper showed up in huge quantities. In the past fi ve years, however, things have changed dramatically. Today these sales channels remain while the customer base has grown exponentially, as small and medium-size enterprises and new vertical markets have embraced document scanners, including retail sales and health care, not to mention city and county governments. In the post-Enron/WorldCom era, many business and IT executives are aware of how imaging processes fi t in with the larger content management picture and growing demands for regulatory compliance.