Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/12/20
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Sam, Don't be too sure about digi's making much money. Production runs are short, old inventory is virtually worthless, retailers will not stock up without the ability to return see above. Unlike film cameras, I'm not even sure most companies have the in-house expertise to build these puppies so probably most are re-badged. The most expensive part of the camera is outside the control of most companies, the imaging chip is just like the microprocessor in your computer. The CCD or CMOS makes money for the OEM but the company that buys them is faced with very rapid price movement for "old" devices. Last, look at the market share for digicams. My information is months old, but Sony had market share in the high 30's(had been over 50%), followed by Canon, Olympus, and then all the rest. Like most business, only the top two in market share are making any real money. The manufacturers are chasing growth, hoping that the next product cycle will bring them prosperity. The last half of this year saw digi's taking more than half of all camera's sales if you exclude disposables. Christmas sales are probably more than 80% digital. Last, everyone hopes that now that consumers have settled in to the 2-4 megapixel range the vicious product cycles will mostly end and everything will settle down into the old business cycle. My personal belief is that the vicious cycles have only just begun, cameras in phones where small file size and very low power consumption are prized, 10MP point and clicks, small purse camera, disposable digitals, truly point and click cameras without any obvious digital interface other than the LCD screens, the list goes on and on. Sometime, just for fun, look at an old camera magazine from the late fifties to early sixties. All the manufacturers with all the product offerings both rangefinder and SLR. Folders, medium format, even some large format for amateurs were offered. Multiple film formats, 35mm, 120, 127, some old stock 620, Minox, 6X9 cut film, and more were offered to the public. By the end of the sixties most of the companies were gone or so crippled they appeared in name only. Exacta, Zeiss Icon, Voigtlander, Topcon, Kowa, Alpa, Miranda, and many others are all gone. The digital market is the same, only a few will be standing in ten years. Don dorysrus@mindspring.com - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html