Last week, Fujitsu announced its EdgeXperience Capture Service, an Imaging Solution-as-a-Service (ISaaS). Functionally, EdgeXperience is not much different from the on-premises version of PaperStream NX Manager, but it is still a step up. Customers get a hosted version of PaperStream NX Manager - Cloud, a zero-footprint scanning solution that manages user authentication, workflow automation, and integration with business applications.
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For $69.95 a month, customers get five user licenses, 25,000 scans a month (overages cost $0.005 per scan), and technical support. Customers can add a Fujitsu fi-7300NX network scanner (NFC cards for touchless user authentication are included) to their subscription for an additional $59.95 a month. Customers can also buy the device outright or purchase a standalone hardware subscription without subscribing to Fujitsu EdgeXperience). Customizable plans are available for those with high-volume scanning needs and/or those that cannot play in a multi-tenant environment.
Customer Benefits
Since the solution is hosted in the cloud and the Fujitsu fi-7300NX does not require a PC to scan, businesses can reduce their IT budget and free IT workers from tedious, boring chores like updating drivers and software. (In fact, the cloud architecture of EdgeXperience means that IT professionals don’t have to keep an eye out for updates—they are always working with the latest, greatest, and most secure version of the service.) Scanner settings, job profiles, user authentication, and integration with other solutions can be handled remotely through a single solution.
EdgeXperience’s pricing model is attractive to businesses that value agility and scalability. Rather than making one giant payment upfront, EdgeXperience customers can convert their pay as they go, and can cancel the subscription any time. If they need to scale up, then they do not need to purchase or upgrade IT infrastructure—they simply provision additional licenses and/or machines.
The solution makes scanning very, very intuitive. The learning curve is short, so businesses will not have to spend much time training users, even if they are tech novices. Authenticating at the device can be as simple as waving a card across the control panel. Once authenticated, users are only presented with the job profiles that are associated with their credentials, so it is easy to find the required job profile. From there, all they have to do is drop their documents into the feeder and select their job profile—the fi-7300NX and the EdgeXperience Capture Service handle the rest.
Reseller Benefits
Fujitsu EdgeXperience Capture Service provides resellers with an easy to sell and easy to deliver tool that can drive their customers digital transformation journey. It is a nice source of recurring revenue, and helps resellers find wider margins in their professional services business. Not only can the solution help resellers protect and expand inside their existing accounts, but it is also a useful tool for unseating rivals from prospective clients. In addition, EdgeXperience helps resellers accelerate deployment processes and widen margins in professional services contracts. Rather than deploying a tech to the customers site for setup, resellers can preconfigure the scanners at their own site, then dropship it to customers. Once the device arrives, customers can plug it in and start scanning right away. And since the devices can be remotely monitored and managed after they have been setup, service providers do not have to dispatch a technician to solve problems or make changes.
Our Take
Fujitsu’s announcement came a day before Microsoft unveiled Windows 365, which provides users with “Cloud PCs” that they can access anytime, using any device. Windows 365 is just another step towards the inevitable; soon, everything will be in zero-trust cloud environments: apps, files, e-mails…all of it. The PC as we know it will be replaced with thin-client computers that serves as a portal to all our files and applications in the cloud.
EdgeXperience is tailormade for these environments. The solution has zero footprint, offers seamless integration with cloud services from Microsoft (and many others), and makes life easy on IT professionals and end users alike. The solution should be very helpful for businesses that want to digitize their business processes and reduce their IT footprint. It will also be helpful for dealers who want to add digital transformation solutions to their portfolios but do not have the resources or IT knowhow to do so.
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