Preton To Launch SaaS Edition Of Its Managed Print Software

Preton, who was featured in CRN’s 2011 Emerging Vendors list, said its PretonSaver solution optimizes toner consumption during the print process by identifying and eliminating the use of what it calls "wasteful pixels."

According to Preton, the tool conserves toner by ensuring only the necessary pixels are used, without visibly reducing the quality of the print job. As many managed print service providers offer toner replacements as part of their contractual agreements, PretonSaver cuts down on these costs.

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"If we optimize the toner, we can increase their [MPS providers] profit margins significantly," explained Ori Eisenberg, CEO of Preton. "PretonSaver helps them increase their profit margins and become more competitive."

The new SaaS-based version of the tool not only offers the same cost-saving benefits but also leverages a cloud-based model that MPS providers can use to manage multiple client sites remotely.

"MPSs can connect with the web browser to our private cloud and see what’s going on with all their accounts, starting from alerts to consumable levels, malfunctions, and toner usage," Eisenberg told CRN. "They can have complete control over all printing from our infrastructure."

Allen Whiting, president of General Data Systems, a St. Louis-based solution provider and Preton reseller, pointed to the remote management capabilities delivered with the new SaaS-based PretonSaver as one of its biggest advantages.

"It really opens up the marketplace in that, in the traditional deployments [of PretonSaver], you had a server component, and so any workstation that was going to take advantage of the print savings and all the other features had to be on the same network," Whiting told CRN. "With this new SaaS implementation, that server is no longer located locally; it’s in the cloud. So for an MPS that’s going to have one hundred different companies that they manage print services for… they have a central place to set all their customers up."

Whiting also said the new SaaS-based version will broaden his traditional product portfolio and offer him a new, more flexible subscription-based model to offer his MPS clients.

The SaaS edition of PretonSaver will officially launch on May 7. Preton said a trial version of the software will be available to qualified managed service providers.