Konica Minolta Aims Cloud-Based Document Management Service at SMBs

Konica Minolta Business Solutions has its eyes set on the small- and medium-business (SMB) market with a new cloud-based document management service, and it's turning to its channel partners to take it to market. The new KM Document Genius service was designed to enable SMBs and corporate departments to scan and manage their paper-based documents alongside electronic information in a seamless way.

With the release of this subscription-based cloud service, Konica Minolta is extending its on-premise document management technologies to the cloud. The vendor isn't exactly new to the cloud. You'll find its All Covered subsidiary, a nationwide MSP, on our Top 100 Cloud Services Providers List 2012, after all. Konica Minolta itself is not a vendor that comes up often when talking about cloud, but maybe that is about to change.

"KM Document Genius currently is exclusively available through our dealer channel," said John Bent, managing director of the Konica Minolta Dealer Channel, in a prepared statement. "Our resellers and their customers have been asking for document solutions that extend the value of the MFP to address scanning, mobility and workflow—KM Document Genius delivers on all counts and is very affordable."

KM Document Genius is a subscription-based document management service that can be accessed via any browser. Konica Minolta noted that it's platform-independent and uses "advanced document structuring" so end users can fully search documents after being optimized for fast file transfer and web viewing. All of that comes with the package.

The vendor didn't note how it stacks up to its well-known on-premise products, but given that Konica Minolta has a very specific specialty, it's probably safe to assume the cloud service is based on its existing technology and provides many, if not all, of the same features and benefits.