Rochester, N.Y. Aug. 29 - Eastman Kodak Company today said it will introduce next month a family of compact, stylish and affordable cameras designed to give consumers the best opportunity to enjoy the benefits of the Advanced Photo System - including easy drop-in film loading and a wide selection of print sizes.
Aimed at the most active segment of APS picture-takers, the new cameras, including one at a new low price, will be unveiled at photokina, the world's largest photographic trade show, in Cologne, Germany next month. At the same time, Kodak suspended the previously announced launch of the Advantix Easy Share camera, a camera designed to give consumers both a digital image and a film picture at the same time.
"Consumers love the no fuss, easy-to-use benefits of Advantix, such as drop-in film loading and a wide print variety," said Daniel Palumbo, president of Kodak's Consumer Imaging business and a senior vice president of the company. "Our line-up of new cameras will make APS more attractive than ever to people who want a great photo taking experience from stylish, compact cameras that can go anywhere. In fact, this is the most complete new family of APS cameras we have launched at a single time since the introduction of the format in 1996."
Kodak also said it would suspend the previously announced launch of the Advantix EasyShare camera, a hybrid device designed to give consumers both a digital image and a film picture at the same time. Palumbo described the suspension as a business decision based on giving consumers the best value at the right price.
"The planned digital version of Advantix was based on the industry's ability to offer consumers a camera that takes both digital and film pictures simultaneously and at a purchase price comparable to a two mega-pixel digital still camera," Palumbo said. "Due to the innovative feature set of this camera, we required a specialized sensor. Industry component costs and digital still camera pricing did not align as hoped to allow commercialization of a camera that compared with a two mega pixel digital still camera on a price basis, a critical element in the consumer value proposition. As a result, if we can't deliver what we believe consumers want, we must suspend plans to launch this camera."
In underscoring Kodak's commitment to the APS format, Palumbo noted that consumers who use APS consistently give it to high scores for satisfaction and picture-taking performance.
Kodak has designed the new family of "T" series APS cameras to leverage this consumer satisfaction and give consumers more of what they want. At photokina, Kodak will introduce six new APS cameras to give consumers and retailers a complete family of products from a low priced point and shoot model to a fully featured zoom camera. All will be compact, attractively styled, and are designed for the active, go anywhere
lifestyle.
Eastman Kodak Company and infoimaging
Kodak is the leader in helping people take, share, enhance, preserve, print and enjoy pictures -- for memories, for information, for entertainment. The company is a major participant in "infoimaging" -- a $385 billion industry composed of devices (digital cameras and PDAs), infrastructure (online networks and delivery systems for images) and services & media (software, film and paper enabling people to access, analyze and print images). Kodak harnesses its technology, market reach and a host of industry partnerships to provide innovative products and services for customers who need the information-rich content that images contain. The company, with sales last year of $13.2 billion, is organized into four major businesses: Photography, providing consumers, professionals and cinematographers with digital and traditional products and services; Commercial Imaging, offering image capture, output and storage products and services to businesses and government; Components, delivering flat-panel displays, optics and sensors to original equipment manufacturers; and Health, supplying the healthcare industry with traditional and digital image capture and output products and services.
Voor meer informatie:
Kodak Consumer Imaging
Contactpersoon: Nynke Nijkamp
Tel.: 0347 - 363636
nnijkamp@kodak.com
of
Monogram Communication Strategies b.v.
Contactpersoon: Jan Faber of Judith van Essen
Tel.: 023 - 5628208
janf@monogram.nl, judithve@monogram.nl
Kodak Helpdesk Nederland: 020 - 3469372