Printer ink cartridges are a highly profitable and jealously guarded product in USA. With approximately 50 million ink cartridges sold in US every month, cheaper and quality alternatives pose a serious threat to what would otherwise have been a monopolized and overpriced ink cartridge market.

Fortunately, consumers have numerous alternatives to choose from. There are many trusted high quality ink suppliers who provide compatible ink cartridges at a fraction of the cost that original manufacturers charge. Thus what is essentially beneficial for the customers is not so for the manufacturers.

This is the reason why manufacturers have used technology as well as law to keep the competition out and monopolize the aftermarket supplies business. Printer manufacturer Epson recently filed a complaint against 24 Korean, German and Chinese companies for importing and selling compatible ink cartridges. The court ordered in favor of Epson and prohibited importing and selling of compatible printer ink cartridges under General Exclusion Order .

The order does not yet affect many manufacturers and suppliers within USA. However, printer ink jet manufacturers, such as Epson, HP, Lexmark, Dell and Brother, are continuously attempting to wipe out competition. How long before customers lose the power to choose and are forced out to shell out the exorbitant prices charged by original cartridge manufacturers?

So, is it all about the cost? Is it all about customers paying more money for products that should cost much less? No. Like all attempts at monopoly, there is more to it than just the cost of products. For example, have you ever thought why inkjet printers are getting cheaper while printer ink is getting costlier?

Many ink cartridges are smaller than in earlier printer models. This is especially true of HP and Lexmark cartridges. They hold much less ink. Consequently, you are forced to buy ink refills more. This is how you end up compensating the printer companies for the low priced inkjet printers.

In addition, you will never find the most relevant and the most logical information on any of the printer cartridges. Such as, how many pages can you print with it. The automobile manufacturer tells you how much mileage the vehicle would approximately offer. The medicine that you buy has dosage and price clearly written on it. So, why are customers of inkjet cartridge replacements being deprived of their basic rights? Why do you have to pay such exorbitant prices when you don't even know how much value you are getting?

It is up to the individual printer manufacturer to provide information on how much ink the cartridge contains. The printer manufacturers use different formulas to determine the page yield of the cartridges. However, all the manufacturers use 5% page coverage in their "formula" for determining the page yield of the cartridge. For example, if we consider black text printing, this formula roughly works out to only a few printed paragraphs. What if you are a heavy user?

Can you afford to pay the exorbitant prices each and every time you need an ink cartridge replacement for your printer? Given the low yield, it also means that you will need to replenish your ink supplies more frequently than you think. Under the circumstances, cheaper and high quality inkjet refills are not just about choice. They are also about your right to practice financial prudence.

About the author

This article is written by Phil McKinney owner of Max Patch Ink. Max Patch Ink is a highly trusted supplier of compatible and remanufactured printer ink cartridges for Brother, Lexmark, HP, Epson and Dell printers.