Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2005/01/21

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Subject: [Leica] Doomed: Leica MP 0.58x
From: daniel.ridings at edd.uio.no (Daniel Ridings)
Date: Fri Jan 21 21:00:12 2005
References: <NEBBJDFBIKOBILIKPPBNGEPCBBAB.red735i@earthlink.net>

> I think Hasselblad is being a lot smarter about the future than Leica
> and if they don't do something soon they are going to be finished. But
> I would also bet that at that point ,they get bought by a big Japanese
> firm...

Hasselblad is as far, or further, down the road of financial problems than
Leica. It's hard to guess who will go down first, Leica or Hasselblad.
Leica has already started taking some of the same measures: stopping
production, for example.

But Hasselblad has gotten a raw deal. The company was bought up (by the
Swiss) in the 90's. At that time Hasselblad had an advanced R&D group
working on digital.

The new owners said "No. Stick to film." and dismantled all R&D. Yet new
owners (Honk Kong) have now decided digital it the thing. Day late and a
dollar short.

So in Hasselblad's case it wasn't management so much as greedy capital
that ruined them.

Same process is going on with Kodak, Ilford, but not Agfa (as much).
"Forget new products, new directions, milk the cow you have as long as you
can and then liquidate."

Leica's cow is people with too much money in their pocket. Leica's
business idea is to lighten their load. Photography doesn't have anything
to do with it. There's nothing a new Leica can do that my M2 can't do.
Nothing. You push the shutter and it takes a picture. I like that.
Thank-you Leica. We're both old fogies, Leica with their technology and
film users. Our days are numbered. Soon some of us relics will be figuring
in glossy b/w magazines for fine art. Most of us won't.

Daniel

Replies: Reply from feli2 at earthlink.net (Feli) ([Leica] Doomed: Leica MP 0.58x)
Reply from Frank.Dernie at btinternet.com (Frank Dernie) ([Leica] Doomed: Leica MP 0.58x)
In reply to: Message from red735i at earthlink.net (Frank Filippone) ([Leica] Doomed: Leica MP 0.58x)