ExScite

The last piece has been sold- HP is acquiring ScitexVision

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HP today announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire substantially all of the assets of Scitex Vision, a market leader in super-wide digital printing, for $230 million from Scitex Corporation Ltd. (Nasdaq: SCIX).

The acquisition expands HP’s leadership in large-format printing into the industrial super-wide category and strengthens its position as a one-stop partner for providers of print services.

Scitex Vision is a market leader in wide and super-wide format printers for signage and industrial applications, such as billboards, banners, street advertising and packaging. Headquartered in Netanya, Israel, the company had revenue of $142 million for the one-year period ending June 30, 2005. Its principal subsidiaries are located in the United States, Belgium, China, Mexico and South Africa. It also has presence in a further 75 countries.

The acquisition complements HP’s existing product portfolio of large-format printers and HP digital presses. It also provides HP with the benefits of Scitex Vision’s proprietary technology for print heads, providing a significant competitive advantage. Other potential areas of synergy between HP and Scitex Vision’s business include inkjet technology, services and support, direct and indirect distribution channels and supply chain.

“The purchase of this business from Scitex Vision will further accelerate HP’s push into the rapidly growing digital printing market,” said Enrique Lores, vice president and general manager, Large Format Business, HP. “Wide-format signage is one of the fastest growing opportunities in the market. Currently, 17 percent of printing in this area is done digitally and we expect that to double within the next five years. Scitex Vision is one of the leading companies in this space, with a strong customer base, unique products and technologies and an outstanding customer support organization.”

Dov Ofer, chief executive officer of Scitex Vision, added: “Joining together Scitex Vision with HP will bring substantial benefits to our customers, the wider marketplace and our employees. Our customers will benefit from access to a wider range of products and services while they continue to enjoy the same high levels of attention they are used to receiving. Our technology will reach a broader audience as it becomes available more widely. And employees will enjoy professional opportunities as the business grows within a leading global organization.”

The transaction is subject to certain closing conditions and is expected to be completed within approximately 90 days. Following completion, the business acquired from Scitex Vision will be fully integrated into HP’s Imaging and Printing Group.

About Scitex Vision

Scitex Vision is a manufacturer and service provider of Piezo Drop On Demand inkjet based digital printing presses and consumables for industrial applications, including wide-format graphic arts, packaging and textiles.

The majority of Scitex Vision’s shares are owned by Scitex Corporation Ltd. (Nasdaq: SCIX). During the four fiscal quarters ended June 2005 Scitex Vision’s revenues totalled $142 million. More information about Scitex Vision is available at www.scitexvision.com.

Nostalgia

One of the most anticipated products from Iris Graphics was the Realist Ink Jet Printers.
The newly redesigned line of products was unveiled in 1995. The launch was carefully designed by the Iris product marketing team and included printing eye-catching graphics printed on T Shirts with the slogan- {WHAT YOU SEE IS EVERYTHING}.
If you happen to have pictures of real people wearing those T shirts- please send them to content@exscite.net .

Nostalgia

As the old STA newspaper boys can tell- the P.Ink episode was an interesting experiment in (failed) investment.

[1994] Can a German Macintosh developer find happiness with an Israeli imaging company after its disastrous liaison with an American magazine publisher who installed a Frenchman to manage the relationship?
No, it’s not a soap opera, it’s pre-press musical chairs. Following a couple of years of Time Magazine Group’s holding the North American rights to P.INK — the Macintosh-based front-end system developed in Germany — and about a year of negotiations, Scitex bought into P.INK (25% equitty) last winter. The first iteration of the Scitex-influenced P.INK will be shown at NEXPO. We have always believed that P.INK had a lot of potential and weren’t satisfied with the direction in which the Americans pointed the product. But under the new relationship, the literature certainly looks good. P.Ink Press, the publishing system based on Quark XPress that uses an SQL database, seems to have overcome many of its previous deficits and appears to be on its way to becoming a solid product; P.Ink Media, an archiving and recycling system, is intended to hold full-page images as well as text and photographs. All this, and Scitex’s high-end color systems, page transmission systems and the 18-wheel truck (click on the picture to see details) where nine people will build live news pages every day.
Source: THE COLE PAPERS, July 1994

Uri_Lotan

Uri Lotan is VP Business Development of Lumus.
Previously he served as the Marketing Manager for Scitex Japan , the Japanese subsidiary of Scitex, the pioneer and world leader, at that time, in electronic prepress. Later, he set up and managed Orbot SA, the European subsidiary of Orbot Systems, a manufacturer of equipment for inspecting and imaging printed circuit boards and flat panel displays. When Orbot merged with Optrotech to form a new company called Orbotech, Uri led the merger at the European subsidiary and served as the President of the Orbotech SA. Uri also served as the General Manager of IPEX Europe and as President of Valor Europe, a subsidiary of Valor Computerized Systems.
Founded in 2000, the Israeli Lumus Optical has developed a revolutionary optical imaging technology, enabling a wide range of ultra-compact personal displays for mobile applications. Lumus’ revolutionary patent-pending technology – Light-guide Optical Element (LOE) – enables personal screen less display by projecting images and data from computers, DVD players, or VCRs into the viewer’s eye, displaying them in the visual field of the viewer.

Nostalgia

Have you been enjoying finding new nostalgia pictures and stories here every once in awhile?

If yes- please look at your historical collection and send what you find to me.

Ronen_Bartal

Ronen Bartal VP R&D and Business Development is leading Smart Link’s VoIP business with overall responsibilities of business development, marketing and R&D.
He joined Smart Link in 2002 as Director of Marketing. From 1997-2001, Ronen was with Orckit Communications Ltd, holding both R&D, Business Development and product marketing positions. Prior to joining Orckit, he was associated with the Israeli Ministry of Defense (Intelligence Corp), working in the field of Telecommunications. Ronen was 4 years at Scitex R&D.
Smart Link the world’s third largest supplier of modems, designs and markets dial-up and broadband software modem solutions for client-side communication connections found in desktop PCs and notebooks, ADSL modems, TV set-top boxes, multi-function printers and other consumer products that require Internet-based connectivity.Smart Link is a fabless company with a global organization that is headquartered in Natanya, Israel and has offices in Boston, Taipei and Shenzhen.

Carmel_Rosenthal_2005

The Tokyo based ExScite Carmel Rosenthal has been recently interviewed at the Israeli radio service. Carmel described his Scitex history, his involvement in the Israel-Japan hi tech business and his life in Japan.
To listen to the very interesting interview, click here.
Carmel is the president of his own consulting company Creative Tec, which focuses on the links between Israeli and Japanese companies.

Nostalgia

Scitex in Herzlia continued to work during the first Gulf War in 1991, in spite of the continues fears of weapons of mass destruction attack on Israel. Employees came to work carrying their personal gas masks that had been issued by the government “just in case”.
The situation has gotten the best out of Succari, then with the optical design group at R&D.
Since leaving Scitex, Shmulik Succari has been providing graphic design, creation and illustration services to corporations in under the name of Studio Arteshock This illustration can be seen [and many others] at the Scitex section of Shmulik’s website.

If you have pictures and stories about this period (or other), please send me.

Moshe_Zchut

Located in NJ, Moshe Zchut is Vice Presiden technology at, and co-founder of OptiMed.
Moshe has 18 years of experience in developing hardware and software for image processing systems, the majority of which has been in the design of medical systems. He was 5 years at Scitex.
Moshe is an active member of medical and technology committees.
OptiMed Technologies, Inc. is a worldwide healthcare information systems company that designs, develops, integrates and markets digital image storage, archive and retrieval systems, patient information management systems, internet-based systems and PACS to cardiac catheterization laboratories, vascular, echocardiography and nuclear medicine departments and other departments in the hospital and in private clinics.

Nostalgia

To mark the 50th birthday of Israel , The City Lights section of The Jerusalem Post newspaper published this on February 6, 1998.The newspaper compiled a list of 50 quintessential Israeli contributions to the 20th century.
They wrote: “Uri Geller, Bamba and Scitex are just three of Israel’s contributions to the 20th century. Send us your 5 best (or worst) by March 21. The most interesting will be published and winners will be awarded prizes.”
Click on the picture to see details.