printCafe vs. PrintTalk--Waging a PrintWar?

However, Mekis stresses that membership is open to anyone who is interested, and publishers and commercial printers may join the consortium as supporting members. "Since no details of PCX had been released when PrintTalk members began building PrintTalk's functionality, it is clear that there was no anti-printCafe effort," notes Mekis.

So what does the future hold for both PrintTalk and printCafe? Olin does not rule out the possibility of printCafe and PrintTalk working together in the future. "We will be pleased to partner with PrintTalk or any other organization if we feel they are committed, as we are, to creating a transaction environment that benefits our customers. At this point, PrintTalk is not structured with our customers' best interests in mind," he says. For the foreseeable future, Olin believes that PCX and PrintTalk will exist side-by-side, while Mekis is of the opinion that the printCafe approach will go the way of Betamax video players.

In the end, the marketplace will have to decide.