Document management and imaging giant Xerox calls its pitch the Extensible Interface Platform (EIP). This new strategy is designed to transform that large fax, photocopier, printer and scanner combination sitting in the corner of your office - known as a Multi-Function Peripheral (MFP) - into a webenabled and universally programmable device. In essence this means software vendors may access the guts of copying and scanning machines to customise them for their customers' unique needs.

MFP market leader Xerox, a US company that employs 1,200 staff in Dublin and Dundalk, Co Louth, has standardised the internet-based programming language powering its next-generation devices so anyone who wants to develop new add-ons can do so by tinkering with the web browser technology embedded inside MFP touch-screen control panels.

After launching EIP in Europe last week, Xerox has so far tapped nearly a dozen local software partners. They are developing MFP services that range from tools to transform scanned hard-copy text into audio files, to automatic plagiarism detection, and document workflow processes designed to link in with Microsoft's new Sharepoint online publishing package.

Rivals HP, Lexmark, Canon and Ricoh have travelled down this path before (with varying levels of success) using proprietary programming languages, and the consensus amongst MFP manufacturers seems to be that value-added services are their future as hardware sales continue to return lower margins.

Programmable MFPs are supposedly attractive for IT admins too. The devices become akin to PCs hidden inside a copier and linked to a network server, allowing greater security and corporate compliance policy conformity, never mind less time spent searching for the manual or a screwdriver to fix copier snarls.

Peripherals market analyst Lee Worthing believes Xerox's adoption of the Web 2.0 approach is "timely", and beyond lengthening its lead in the MFP space, he says the departure is also good news for independent software providers as collaborative projects ultimately benefit all parties.

"Xerox's goal will be for its EIP to become the industry standard technology so Xerox can remain at top of the pile, " he says. "They might eventually make the platform freely available to anyone with a bit of technical knowledge in true Web 2.0 style, but I wouldn't hang my hat on it."