Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2005/02/18

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Subject: [Leica] Leica Solms LUG LHSA Buyout
From: red735i at earthlink.net (Frank Filippone)
Date: Fri Feb 18 22:05:40 2005

Predictions....  ( all of which are terrible, but likely to happen)...

Hermes will pull out.   There will be a Management buyout.
They will sell off the Minox Line to Karl Heitz, in NYC.  ( the Robot guys).
They will sell off the Leica Binocular line to ???   It is profitable and
selling well, and it will be sold as a profitable venture, as it IS worth
something.
That will leave Leica Cameras, without a cash flow.  Tamarkin or someone
else ( the guys in Vienna?  Christie's ?  ) will buy out the Museum pieces
and the rest of the non-current inventory.  The rest, or what is left, will
go on as a repair,  assembly, and real high end camera sales line.  There
will be 3 M cameras: the M7, the MP, and the M6TTL.  There will be 2 R
cameras, the R8 and the R9.  No new R+D.  Just keep the lines as is.  The 50
Summilux ASPH will be available in minute quantities, the 75 Summicron will
never be available in any commercial quantity.  All other existent R and M
lenses will be available in limited supply.

Forget the DMR, the firmware will never work, and no one would trust a dead
end ( repair and support) camera back that is electronic for $5K.

For those of you wanting a Digital M... look elsewhere.

John Collier will have the world's only black 50 Summilux ASPH.    His old,
and broken lens, will be sold on Ebay as a rare collectible parts item.

Does it sound faintly like the ALPA situation of years ago?  ( Also a Karl
Heitz product line...)

Nostradamus Filippone



Replies: Reply from joelct at singnet.com.sg (Joseph Low) ([Leica] Leica Solms LUG LHSA Buyout)
In reply to: Message from tedgrant at shaw.ca (Ted Grant) ([Leica] Leica Solms LUG LHSA Buyout)