Printer manufacturers Hewlett-Packard and Eastman Kodak are now engaged in an unusually heated marketing war. The issue centers around claims made concerning the costs of using ink jet printers supplied by the two manufacturers.

According to the Wall Street Journal, top execs have been firing away at each other in public:

“Kodak Chief Marketing Officer Jeffrey Hayzlett recently exchanged swipes on microblogging site Twitter with Angela LoSasso, the head of social media strategy for H-P’s imaging and printing group. At one point, LoSasso published links criticizing Kodak’s marketing claims and the reliability of its printers. Hayzlett on Dec. 3 responded with ‘Shame on your tactics Big Ink.’ LoSasso later wrote, ‘You have a fight you can’t possibly win. I am HP.’

The unusually public debate corresponds to a divisive fight for predominance in the lucrative ink jet market. HP is still the top player, but Kodak has been gaining market share exponentially over the last few years, with claims that its ink costs are far lower than HP’s. Kodak has been forced to change some of its advertising claims because of a complaint registered by HP with the Federal Trade Commission.

The bottom line for users: better consumer prices and a reduction in the often outrageous prices of replacement ink cartridges.

Tags: HP, Kodak, marketing