Mobile World Congress, Barcelona
HP is the world's biggest printer company in terms of shipments Reuters

Hewlett-Packard has agreed to buy Samsung's printer business in a $1.05bn (£790m) deal.

In a statement, HP said the acquisition will help it "disrupt and reinvent" the $55bn copier industry, a segment that "hasn't innovated in decades".

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It is the largest print acquisition in the US tech firm's history.

The deal will see HP inherit 6,000 Samsung employees and around 6,500 printing technology patents.

The firm said the acquisition will add to its full-year earnings, with Samsung committing towards buying $100m to $300m worth of HP shares after the deal closes.

"Copiers are outdated, complicated machines with dozens of replaceable parts requiring inefficient service and maintenance agreements," the statement said.

"Customers are frequently frustrated with the number of visits needed to keep copier machines functioning. Today, HP is investing to disrupt this category by replacing copiers with superior multifunction printer technology."

HP chief executive Dion Weisler said: "When we became a separate company just 10 months ago, it enabled us to become nimble and focus on accelerating growth and reinventing industries.

"We are doing this with 3D printing and the disruption of the $12tn traditional manufacturing industry, and now we are going after the $55bn copier space.

"The acquisition of Samsung's printer business allows us to deliver print innovation and create entirely new business opportunities with far better efficiency, security and economics for customers."

Samsung