Lyra forecasts that worldwide shipments of roll-format fine-art ink jet paper (i.e., watercolor paper) and canvas will nearly double between 2005 and 2010. As a result, revenue from sales of roll-format fine-art ink jet paper will increase by more than 64 percent over this period (see figure). Worldwide shipments of cut-sheet fine-art ink jet paper will more than double between 2005 and 2010, while shipments of cut-sheet fine-art ink jet canvas are expected to quadruple. Some factors driving the rapid growth of the fine-art ink jet media market include the growth of the "prosumer" or "advanced amateur" digital photography segment, more professional photographers transitioning from film processing to ink jet photo printing, and publishers adopting the on-demand fine-art reproduction model.
Traditional fine-art media vendors such as Arches, Crane, Hahnemühle, and Somerset are facing increasing competition from other media brands. Firms such as Ilford, InteliCoat, Océ, and Sihl are moving aggressively into this lucrative market as growth slows in other segments of the wide-format media market.
Fine-Art Ink Jet Media Market Assessment provides media vendors, coaters, and hardware vendors with the information they need to make better decisions about product development, branding, marketing, and production. The report includes the following information:
- worldwide and North American shipment and revenue data for fine-art ink jet paper and canvas segmented by cut-sheet and roll-fed formats;
- an analysis of the fine-art ink jet paper and canvas markets, including an examination of products, pricing, vendors, and manufacturers;
- an examination of the dealer channel including art-supply stores, national resellers, and photo channels;
- product specifications and pricing for the hardware devices used to print on fine-art ink jet paper and canvas and installed-base numbers for fine-art-capable printers segmented into three price categories; and
- a discussion of the market challenges inherent in selling fine-art ink jet media to artists.
Note that this report does not examine polyethelene-coated (PE-coated) photo paper or fine-art media used in IRIS printers. | 
