CRN Network, January 6, 2012, 1310 hrs
Struggling camera maker and photography giant, Eastman Kodak is reported to have filed for bankruptcy. Wallstreet Journal has reported that Kodak is filing for Chapter 11, after struggling to find buyers for its patents, that are reported to be worth in excess of two billion dollars.
Analysts report the reason for the decline of Kodak, which had the ninth straight quarter of losses, is the shift of capturing photos from cameras to mobile phones by consumers.
“Five years back, the IT channels used to sell cameras in large volumes. Since the advent of camera mobile phones there has been lesser and lesser demand,” says Dinesh Nair, VP, Aldous Glare Trade and Exports. According to photo-sharing site Flickr, the most popular device that has been used by users to capture pictures last year was the iPhone.
“In the next few years, only professional digital camera market may exist, as consumers are likely to stick to mobile phones, that makes it easier to store and share,” says Gireesh Kumar, Partner, Techies Zone, a retailer in Bengaluru. He adds that while in 2009 his counter used to sell around ten cameras a month, it averaged two or lesser in 2011. |