Cash-strapped Kodak halts digital camera, photo frame production

As far as cameras in India go, Eastman Kodak Co. has been a pioneer. They ruled the camera space, back in the day, but were probably late in jumping onto the digital bandwagon of the camera race. Now, the veteran company has decided to put an end to their digital camera business to cut costs, as they struggle to stay afloat in a business, they once ruled.

Kodak to stop production of digital cameras

Eastman Kodak Co, the inventor of the digital cameras now plans to get out of that business in the first half of the year. Clearly, the once popular Kodak hasn’t been able to keep pace with the changing digital trends, and withstand the fierce competition coming from Sony, Samsung, Nikon, among others. Along with the digital cameras, the company also plans to stop the production of pocket video cameras and digital photo frames.

Kodak filed for bankruptcy, last month and understandably, this would lead to some significant loss of jobs. Reportedly, most of the 400 people in that business are based in Rochester, New York and working in research and development and marketing departments. Instead of designing cameras, the company will now license their brand to other camera makers and several have already shown interest in it. Kodak will continue to focus on its desktop printer business. "The printer initiative took over (in the last decade), and they took their eye off the ball in the camera and camcorder space," said IDC analyst Christopher Chute.

Doing fairly well, earlier, in 2010 it suddenly jumped down to the seventh position. Further with progressive technology, the quality of cameras on smartphones improved and standalone cameras met with a steeper fall. Kodak wasn’t seen competing with the higer-end camera models in the recent years, either. The company will charge about $30 million as a result of its move, and also expects to generate annual operating savings which could exceed $100 million. This charge does not include additional costs that Kodak expects to incur for actions, such as ending manufacturing contracts with overseas companies that make its products, according to company spokesman, Christopher Veronda. Kodak once employed 60,000 people, but revealed a work force of 18,800 by the end of 2010 and hasn’t disclosed the most recent figure, which we assume is much lower.

Kodak supposedly is working with their retailers for an orderly transition. Apparently, the company will continue to provide product warranties and technical support for the discontinued products.