ANZRP member Canon Australia has shown leadership on progressing the sharing economy through the recent announcement of its latest initiatives, Kyōyū and PrintNow. Like car sharing and co-working spaces, Kyōyū – Canon’s camera sharing platform, and PrintNow – its cloud printing service, have both environmental and economic benefits.

Japanese for ‘share’, Kyōyū lets camera owners rent out their gear with confidence and make money while not in use. Those looking to hire gear can access quality equipment for a one-off creative project or try something out before diving in to make a purchase.

PrintNow is an on-the-go printing service that allows users to print documents from a network of local registered printers located in convenience stores, petrol stations and other retail outlets around Australia. Documents are stored and sent to participating printers on a secure mobile application, and users can collect printed documents at their convenience.

These initiatives indicate a shift towards product-as-a-service business models, which the Ellen Macarthur Foundation promotes as a model that puts the circular economy to work.

Maximising the usage of these devices and eliminating the need for all users to own a product, this model results in improved environmental outcomes as well as the social benefits gained through interacting with neighbours and community.

“With Kyōyū we’re creating a community that is driven by the overwhelming need to share. Be it knowledge, experiences or cherished kit, sharing in a community allows everyone to do so much more together,” said Jason McLean, Director – Consumer Imaging, Canon Australia.

Speaking about the PrintNow service, Jason said, “Even though we’re in a digital age, print is still one of life’s necessities. But there’s a growing realm of people who don’t want a printer at home. They want the convenience but not the hassle.”

According to InsideRetail, “The biggest difference between this service and existing ones, such as Officeworks’, is the shared revenue model. In some cases, a retail partner provides the space, electricity and wi-fi to power a printer that is owned by Canon. In these instances, Canon provides the ink and paper, and the retailer assists users if there are any issues. Canon and the retailer split the sales 70-30.

“In other cases, Canon simply facilitates the transaction through PrintNow, while the retail partner provides the printer, paper, ink, electricity, wi-fi and all the rest. In these instances, Canon’s cut is 30 per cent and the retailer’s is 70 per cent.”

ANZRP-TechCollect is proud to have Canon as a Member and congratulates them for these innovative and value-adding community initiatives.

Go to kyoyu.canon.com.au and print.canon.com.au to find out more.