


With backing from Carl Icahn, Xerox has been trying to buy the much larger HP for what the target says is a laughable bid. Here in the year 2020, proprietary ink cartridges remain important enough to spark a fight worth at least $35 billion.

HP’s printer supplies business garnered $12.9 billion in sales last year, and the printer division overall represented 63% of the company’s profits. The 63 Tri-color cartridge may not look like much, but that ink, which needs a refill every 165 pages, is ridiculously valuable. F6U61AN#140, can spray 36,000 drops per second in the Envy printers made by HP Inc. Stuffed with foam sponges drenched in a fraction of an ounce of cyan, magenta, and yellow dyes, this bestseller, model No. The HP 63 Tri-color ink cartridge retails for $28.99 at Staples.
