Does Epson still sell ink for my printer?

I have an Epson printer - the Epson Stylus Photo 950 (maybe in the USA it has a different model number, I don't know).

It seems that it's becoming harder and harder to find a local shop that sells the ink for my printer. Some shops have inks for a whole range of Epson printers, and for each type the cartridges come in boxes with a certain image on it - for example, with a seahorse, a starfish, a parasol etc. - I need the one with the praying mantis on it.

Does it happen that Epson someday just stops selling ink for a printer model? Does anyone know if Epson indeed doesn't sell the ink for my printer anymore? If I can't get the ink anymore, the whole printer will be worthless and it would be very difficult to sell second hand....

I understand that there are different technologies (pigment and dye inks, etc.) but why does Epson need to have different ink for each and every single printer model?

It is not so much a matter of when Epson decides to quit selling a particular cartridge. It is more a matter of when the retailers decide to quit. If demand falls off, then fewer retailers will stock them, and then when demand stops, then retailers will stop stocking them altogether.

When we order ink cartridges from an online store, we seldom order by the one that has a picture on the box. More likely we order by a part number.

---Bob Gross---

I have the 950 - still takes some beating
Praying mantis still readily available in UK

By law every company must support a product for 5 years. After that it is their discrection. This is why new products come out all the time and new software versions - so they don't have to support something old. They might not even be required to give repair support to a product over 5 years old.

Is that the law in the Netherlands? The original poster was asking about the Netherlands, not the USA.

---Bob Gross---

I have an old Stylus Photo 750 for test prints and web prints. I get refills at www.staples.com or www.atlex.com .
Scott