AfterDawn: Tech news

Kodak to stop making digital cameras

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 09 Feb 2012 9:58 User comments (7)

Kodak to stop making digital cameras

Kodak has announced it will stop making digital cameras in an effort to focus on its more profitable businesses.
Additionally, the company will also stop making digital picture frames. Both lines of products will be phased out by the end of the quarter, adds the company.

Into the future, the company will focus only on photo printing and desktop inkjet printers. By dropping the other products, the company should save $100 million per year.

Last month, the storied company filed for bankruptcy protection, looking to shred major expenses.

Kodak released the world's first consumer camera in 1888 and is still looking to sell off some of its patent portfolio and a successful deal would keep the company out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company has 1100 very valuable photography and digital photography patents and internally they value the portfolio at around $2 billion.

Despite inventing the digital camera in 1975, the company never capitalized on it, instead sticking to their film business, which has all but disappeared and had already begun shrinking in the 1990s.

Previous Next  

7 user comments

110.2.2012 11:49

Rather run-of-the-mill garbage cameras anyway.

Yet another pioneer stuck in a rut of original technology and lack of innovation. Complacency kills business!

210.2.2012 14:41

Photography - as a hobby - took a hit when digital cameras came out;Kodak are merely the first to get out of the business.
I would guess that most photos - and even video - are shot with cell phones now - similar to the way that the Walkman killed audio as a hobby.

310.2.2012 16:03

Originally posted by attar:
Photography - as a hobby - took a hit when digital cameras came out;Kodak are merely the first to get out of the business.
I would guess that most photos - and even video - are shot with cell phones now - similar to the way that the Walkman killed audio as a hobby.
Kodak makes some okay DLSR's but really nothing special.

Still shoot with my old Nikon D70.

Just a shame another business is going down.

Cellphone cameras are good for spur of the moment pictures but really can't be taken seriously for photography.

Where's my Land camera?

Jeff
This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 10 Feb 2012 @ 4:06

411.2.2012 07:17

digital photo frames,wonder why people use them.. waste of money imo

511.2.2012 07:23

Originally posted by xaznboitx:
digital photo frames,wonder why people use them.. waste of money imo
To slideshow pics just about anywhere.

A lot of people own them. Even my cats veterinarians office has one to slideshow all the animals they have treated.

Jeff

611.2.2012 09:13

To bad the fall of another U.S. icon...Hopefully they can stay afloat.

713.2.2012 23:47

Kodak cameras, while not the best, have always been an excellent value

Another pioneer company getting flushed due to bad corporate management . . .

I think that I'll go out and purchase a Kodak digital camera, just to have one

. . . although most of the time, I still use my 35mm Argus

Comments have been disabled for this article.

Latest news

VLC hits milestone: over 5 billion downloads VLC hits milestone: over 5 billion downloads (16 Mar 2024 4:31)
VLC Media Player, the versatile video-software powerhouse, has achieved a remarkable feat: it has been downloaded over 5 billion times.
1 user comment
Sideloading apps to Android gets easier, as Google settles its lawsuit Sideloading apps to Android gets easier, as Google settles its lawsuit (19 Dec 2023 11:09)
Google settled its lawsuit in September 2023, and one of the settlement terms was that the way applications are installed on Android from outside the Google Play Store must become simpler. In the future, installing APK files will be easier.
8 user comments
Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets (06 Jun 2023 9:19)
Roomba Combo j7+ is the very first Roomba model to combine robot vacuum with mopping features. And Roomba Combo j7+ does all that with a very clever trick, which tackles the problem with mopping and carpets. But is it any good? We found out.
Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations (02 May 2023 3:38)
Neato Robotics has ceased its operations. American robot vacuum pioneer founded in 2005 has finally called it quits and company will cease its operations and sales. Only a skeleton crew will remain who will keep the servers running until 2028.
5 user comments
How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp (20 Mar 2023 1:25)
The world's most popular messaging platform, Meta-owned WhatsApp has enabled sending messages to yourself. While at first, this might seem like an odd feature, it can be very useful in a lot of situations. ....
18 user comments

News archive