Background information concerning the Graphic Media Industry Large, internationally operating companies that started out in the traditional graphic media business are taking advantage of the complementary media strategies and developing cross-media strategies. The European printing market is, against this background, afflicted by a strong trend toward concentration. New "global players" from Asia, Australia and the United States are making inroads into the European market, thus aggravating these developments and intensifying the competition. Largely out of touch with the innovation strategies of the large media corporations are the small and medium-sized companies of the European Graphic Media Industry. It can be observed that these companies are only able to participate to a limited degree in the innovative developments in new media markets. And in fact, the media revolution is increasingly plunging these companies into crises and confronting them with "existential risks". Industry experts predict that by 2007 up to 30 percent of companies in this size class will disappear unless they succeed in riding the dynamic wave of media innovation. . The graphic media industry is an SME industry in conversion. A new economy is rapidly developing. Simple production flows away to India and China, because the speed and quality of global transport is increasing. The graphic media industry in Europe has to become a knowledge industry and develop new communication concepts and service concepts in order to survive. Otherwise they will loose this conceptual thinking to the new world economies. The graphic media industry must strongly innovate in order to offer her (future) customers full and conceptual services, by organising different media like (personalised) printing on demand, CD (ROM), internet, video and marketing and communication policies. This cross-media approach will lead to broadening of service and also to co-operation with service industries in neighbouring fields. The SME graphic media firms are becoming (more and more) part of the creative industry, one of the pillars of the future economy. Because of overcapacity and price pressure the competition in Europe will continue and about a quarter of the graphic media firms will have to stop their activities and a heavy loss of jobs will take place. Graphic media firms which want to survive and stand a good chance in future will have to make innovative products and services to keep our production in Europe in stead of loosing it to the Far East. They must make the turn by creating surplus value for their customers and present themselves as a full service partner for all graphic media services, using new media concepts, including logistic services, reduction of the energy consumption, use of sustainable energy and attention for environmental issues.