Because the price of a digital halftone system from Kodak ranges from $150,000 to $195,000, Kodak finds greatest success among what he terms "high-value brandowners," for whom it's worth the premium price to mitigate any risk of error, Willer says.
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Practically speaking, many packaging workflows use a mix of both proofing technologies. "Inkjet and digital halftone technologies can, do, and probably should co-exist within a single workflow," says Deroo. Depending on the stage in the workflow or the client whose job is being produced, low-cost inkjet can be used legitimately and cost-effectively for concept and/or imposition proofing, color checks and quality control, where cost savings count, reserving the more expensive digital halftone output for the "contract proof" that receives the customer's signature. "When screening is important and/or the actual substrate matters, then digital halftone is a requirement," says Deroo.