Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/05/02
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Marc, This has nothing to do with your basic points, but from what I understand from six years in Japan, part of which was spent doing contract work for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, there is a widespread misconception about this name. I once made the embarrassing mistake of thinking MHI was somehow affiliated with Mitsubishi Automobiles (and Tuna Fish(!), etc.). It was embarrassing because it was obvious to the execs I was speaking to that I knew nothing about their company, which like each of the Mitsubishis had gone to great lengths (short of a name change, I guess) to inform the outside world of what the real situation is. It was explained to me by the execs that decades ago the enormous Mitsubishi keiretsu was broken up into several totally separate entities. They each, unfortunately, keep the Mitsubishi name and symbol, and have a meeting every year to celebrate their heritage, which no doubt helps breed the confusion, but other than that are totally separate. Now having said this, I don't know what the exact relation with Nikon was or is, so if you do I'd be very interested to hear what it is. Many thanks, Bruce Feldman Prague . It is part of the Mitsubishi >conglomerate. As such, the overall concern is profitable, less so in >recent years than currently. If the corporate "bean counters" decide that >corporate profits no longer allow Nikon to be subsidized, it will be gone. > >. I understand, though, that >Nikon's bleakest days came in the early 1990's, when Mitsubishi put them on >notice that they had to make profits, a threat later withdrawn. (After >all, a thousand people know Nikon cameras to everyone who realizes that >Mitsubishi owns a major ship-building works and is getting back into >aviation, a field they have tended to stay out of since their last effort, >the Zero fighter, left production a half-century back! My point is that >there is a lot of name recognition attached to a flagship camera line, and >Mitsubishi recognizes the advertising value in this.) > >So, I don't expect Zeiss Ikon to come back to life, nor do I expect Canon >to go away or Nikon either, though Nikon is having a rocky time at present, >and its continued existence is not entirely safe. > >Marc > >msmall@roanoke.infi.net FAX: +540/343-7315 >Cha robh bas fir gun ghras fir!