Adobe Backs Down

When Adobe released version 8.1 of Adobe Reader in June 2007, it added one new button to the application, which said, “Send to FedEx Kinko’s.” (Adobe also added the feature to Acrobat Professional 8.1, but the only way to get there is through the File menu.) Click that button and you’re connected to FedEx Kinko’s Print Online service.

It didn’t take long for the professional print community to express its unhappiness over the Adobe-FedEx Kinko’s alliance. In a July 17 Print Industry Advisory Forum, Adobe’s John Loiacono (senior vice president of the creative solutions business unit) and Bruce Chizen (CEO) met with printers who expressed their feelings in no uncertain terms.

On August 1, Adobe issued its public response via its PR company, A&R Edelman. That statement follows:

Adobe will remove the “Send to FedEx Kinko’s” service and functionality, currently available to US customers, in Adobe Reader and Adobe Acrobat. The versions of Adobe Reader and Acrobat that are scheduled to be released in October will not contain the feature. We are implementing these changes as quickly as we can. However, we need time to write and test the software. Adobe Reader and Acrobat are critical pieces of software for tens of millions of customers and we have to be sure the software we deliver is up to its usual quality.

Adobe originally announced the FedEx Kinko’s features on June 6, 2007 and decided to remove them from Adobe Reader and Acrobat following a meeting and getting feedback from print service providers. Moving forward Adobe is setting up a Print Advisory Council to investigate how best to integrate third party print services into Adobe products, as more partners invest in online print infrastructures.

FedEx Kinko’s has been exemplary in this process. They understand the reasons behind the decision and the implications to the broader print service provider industry. They have worked diligently with Adobe to craft a resolution. When Adobe ships the new updates to Acrobat and Adobe Reader in October, FedEx Kinko’s will begin distributing a version of Adobe Reader, with the “Send to FedEx Kinko’s” functionality, directly to its customers. This version will be available only from the FedEx Kinko’s website (fedexkinkos.com or fedex.com).

Adobe’s revenue expectations from this functionality were not expected to be material and this change will have little to no impact on Adobe’s financial results. Adobe will make no revenue from this new arrangement.

To find out what Gene Gable thinks of this industry kerfluffle, read “Why the Adobe/FedEx-Kinkos Deal is the Best Thing that Could Happen to the Printing Industry.”