Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, president of the Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA), announced CIPA’s positive 2010 forecasts for digital cameras and related goods, as well as the organization’s shipment totals for 2009. In 2009, the cumulative total shipments of digital cameras, from January to December, reached 105.9 million units, exceeding the performance in 2007 for the third consecutive year, when shipments broke through the 100-million-unit mark for the first time since CIPA began compiling statistics. However, this represents a year-on-year decrease of 11.6% compared to 2008, when shipments exceeded 119 million units. A breakdown by camera segments shows that although shipments...

Kodak reported fourth-quarter 2009 earnings from continuing operations of $430 million, or $1.36 per share, compared with a loss on the same basis of $914 million, or $3.40 per share, in the year-ago period. 4Q sales were $2.58 billion, a sequential increase of 45% from 3Q 2009 and a 6% increase from the year-ago quarter. “Our momentum is returning and our strategy is paying off. During 2009, we generated significant traction with our key digital businesses, we achieved sustainable operational improvements across the company, our earnings improved substantially, and we ended the year with more than $2.0 billion in cash...

OmegaSatter and Brandess-Kalt-Aetna (BKA), both leading distributors to the photo industry, announced they are merging to form “one of the largest and most comprehensive distributors in the industry.”    The new organization, named OmegaBrandess Distribution, will be headquartered in Hampstead, Maryland. According to company representatives, the many complementary product lines carried by OmegaSatter and BKA are part of the appeal of the merger. The new organization will provide a single source for a wide variety of imaging brands available, including Pelican Cases, Novatron Lighting, Kodak, Gary Fong, Cokin, Blue Crane Digital and many others. “Each company brings strengths that together will...

By Biz Fast Tracker Barry Tanenbaum The operative word in the headline is “was.” Almost every dealer I talked with was glad to bid ’09 a not so fond adieu. And even though crossing from 2009 to 2010 has not much to do with marketing or sales and everything to do with record keeping and the symbolism of a line of demarcation, it seems that any line at all, symbolic or not, is enough. As one dealer said, “It’s a tough time to be in retail.” What I was looking for was their perceptions of 2009 and maybe a few high...

By Biz Fast Tracker Jerry Grossman You can call me a grizzly CES/PMA show veteran. Without revealing my age, my combined trips to both of these shows are nearing 25. And while CES and PMA have historically been very separate and distinct, the shift over the years in the imaging category to digital has annually raised the “why PMA?” questions. Well, after traveling the halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center from January 7–10, now more than ever I can see why the Consumer Electronics Show should never and will never replace the PMA trade show and convention. CES is a great, if...

Photo book software developer Taopix has started 2010 by signing more than 20 new licenses for its photo book software in the last four weeks. The orders, which have come from digital print companies and Photo Labs in all of Taopix’s key international markets, signals the beginning of what Taopix’s CEO James Gray believes will be a great year for the photo book industry. “Up until December 2009, Taopix had just under 100 photo book installations worldwide,” said Gray. “So to then secure a fifth of that number in just over four weeks is quite a milestone for the company. For...

After Circuit City closed in early 2009, consumer electronics retailers large and small have been trying to grab some of that company’s market share. Now, according to an article in CEPro, “All that biting has taken a toll on U.S. No. 1 electronics retailer Best Buy,” based on a recent survey by Retrevo. While CE giant Best Buy posted 13% overall growth and 8.2% comparable store sales increases for the fiscal month of December ended January 2, 2010, Retrevo’s survey reveals a change in consumer perception “that threatens to shrink Best Buy’s market share.” And it’s Amazon and Walmart that...

Kodak filed lawsuits against Apple Inc. and Research In Motion Limited (RIM), alleging the infringement of Kodak digital imaging technology. The complaint, filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), specifically claims that Apple’s iPhone and RIM’s camera-enabled BlackBerry devices infringe a Kodak patent that covers technology related to a method for previewing images. Separately, Kodak filed two suits against Apple in U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York that claim the infringement of patents related to digital cameras and certain computer processes. “Kodak has a long history of digital imaging innovation and we have invested hundreds of...

Eliott Peck Named Sr. VP, Consumer Imaging, Canon USA Takayoshi Hanagata was appointed chairman of Canon Virginia To start the new year, Canon announced several senior appointments and promotions at Canon USA and its subsidiaries—Canon Virginia, Canon Mexicana, Canon Latin America and Canon ITS. “These executives have been instrumental in guiding the success of the Canon Group in the Americas and around the world,” said Joe Adachi, president and chief executive officer, Canon USA, Inc. “They bring tremendous experience and global perspective to our Canon USA team, which will help expand our leadership across our markets and position the company for enhanced...

Samsung Electronics Co. and Eastman Kodak have entered into a technology cross license that will allow each company access to the other’s patent portfolio. The agreement, which benefits both companies, is royalty bearing to Kodak. The company received a payment from Samsung in December that has been credited toward its royalty obligation. “We are pleased to have reached a mutually beneficial arrangement that advances the interests of Kodak and Samsung and which validates the strength of Kodak’s intellectual property portfolio,” said Laura G. Quatela, chief intellectual property officer, and vice president, Eastman Kodak Company.

Walgreens (walgreens.com) one of the nation’s largest drugstore chains, with fiscal 2009 sales of $63 billion and 7,149 drugstores, announced that Mona Kelly has been promoted to general merchandise manager (GMM) of photo and front-end services. Kelly joined Walgreens in 2005 as a divisional merchandise manager of photo operations. In October 2008, her role was expanded to include oversight of Walgreens front-end services department, then in February of 2009, Kelly was given additional responsibility for cameras, film and digital media, gift cards and prepaid phone cards. With 35 years of experience in the photo-imaging industry in both operations and merchandising,...

Best Buy Co. reported that revenue for the fiscal month of December ended January 2, 2010 increased 13% to $8.5 billion. The revenue for the five-week period compared with $7.5 billion in revenue for the five-week period ended January 3, 2009. The gain was due primarily to a comparable store sales increase of 8.2%, the addition of new stores and the favorable impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. The domestic segment generated $6.7 billion in revenue for fiscal December, an increase of 13% compared with the same period last year. The domestic revenue performance included a comparable store sales...

Pandigital named John Clough as the company’s president. Clough, previously president of Casio, Inc., brings more than 32 years of experience in the consumer electronics and computer industries in the United States, Europe and Canada to his new post. As Pandigital continues its expansion in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and South and Central America, Clough will be responsible for overseeing its strategic direction and growth, including sales, marketing, finance and operations. He reports to Dean Finnegan, CEO and founder of Pandigital, who will continue to focus on strategic alliances and product development. “John’s vast experience in leading companies that offer products that...

Memjet’s board of directors named Len J. Lauer president and chief executive officer of Memjet, a newly created role responsible for overseeing all aspects of the company’s business, including leading the Memjet printing technology into the next phase of commercialization and growth. “This is a major milestone for Memjet. Len’s leadership and broad experience in global markets, operations, strategic planning, service delivery, sales and marketing will serve us well as we move into full-scale commercialization,” said Kia Silverbrook, inventor of the Memjet technology, cofounder, chairman and chief technology officer of Memjet. Before joining Memjet, Lauer was executive vice president and chief operating...