Pentax to sell Tokyo HQ, Discontinues 645D Development

[nickleback]

What you see here is beginnibg integration of camera/back, just
like it is seen for Hasselblad.

The ultimate in camera/back integration is to have both as one piece, which is the Mamiya ZD and could (but apparently won't) be the 645D.

--
Seen in a fortune cookie:
Fear is the darkroom where negatives are developed

 

[mandm]

I just called Pentax USA and was told that both medium format cameras listed above are in stock and they still have shipments coming in from Japan every 6 to 7 weeks. That does not sound like they are discontuined.

I just checked Pentax Europe on the net and the UK still has both on their web site and Germany has the 645N II on their web site.
--
mandmp

 

[Tim in upstate NY]

...and it is Canon's entry into the studio camera market. But I
guess this is a difficult concept for you, since you've wasted two
postings attacking me for saying just that.

.....Your words: "The 1Ds series is aimed at studio shooters"

......My words: "the 1Ds is a professional quality DSLR that's is intended for general use in many environments and situations"

.......Studio cameras don't need weather sealing and your narrow description of the 1Ds as being targeted for professional studio applications is not true. It happens to fill that need very well but you've been wasting bandwidth trying to backpedal on your original assertion. Give it a rest!

 

[nlex]

can we stop with this Canon thread, it becomes painfull for everybody…

...and it is Canon's entry into the studio camera market. But I
guess this is a difficult concept for you, since you've wasted two
postings attacking me for saying just that.

.....Your words: "The 1Ds series is aimed at studio shooters"

......My words: "the 1Ds is a professional quality DSLR that's is
intended for general use in many environments and situations"

.......Studio cameras don't need weather sealing and your narrow
description of the 1Ds as being targeted for professional studio
applications is not true. It happens to fill that need very well
but you've been wasting bandwidth trying to backpedal on your
original assertion. Give it a rest!

 

[HerbChong]

if they are selling them in the EU, it's illegal.

http://www.pentaxuser.co.uk/pages/news/nws_eclaw.html

http://www.pentaxuser.co.uk/pages/news/nws_eclawstatment.html

http://www.bjp-online.com/public/showPage.html?page=322515

the Pentax Japan site doesn't seem to have the release.

Herb...

 

[tweedle]

The ultimate in camera/back integration is to have both as one
piece, which is the Mamiya ZD and could (but apparently won't) be
the 645D.

The ultimate in product integration, yes.

More important in future competition will be the business integration, so that the electronics/digiback manufacturer is also the active agent in brand/marketing/sales/service. LEAF/Kodak and JENOPTIK/Sinar have more business muscle than Mamiya.

 

[nickleback]

.....Your words: "The 1Ds series is aimed at studio shooters"

A camera can't be aimed at more than one segment? My, that's interesting.

Three wasted postings. Your pedantry is unequaled. Please knock it off, it's quite boring.

--
Seen in a fortune cookie:
Fear is the darkroom where negatives are developed

 

[nickleback]

can we stop with this Canon thread, it becomes painfull for everybody…

I'll second that, and that's the last I'll say on this.

--
Seen in a fortune cookie:
Fear is the darkroom where negatives are developed

 

[Tim in upstate NY]

.....Your words: "The 1Ds series is aimed at studio shooters"

A camera can't be aimed at more than one segment? My, that's
interesting.

Three wasted postings. Your pedantry is unequaled. Please knock
it off, it's quite boring.

......Your ego driven persistence is a sad example of what happens with anonymity on the internet. My statement was virtually what you just said.......to paraphrase.......a versatile camera for many different environments and situations. Boring isn't even half of what's wrong with your nonsense. As for turning this into a Canon thread as another poster alleged.....this a general discussion forum and it takes two clicks to get to the Pentax forum for those who want to go there.

 

[tweedle]

Pentax to sell land, facility HQ in Tokyo
The Yomiuri Shimbun

Pentax Corp. plans to sell the land and buildings of its headquarters in Tokyo after transferring most of its functions to offices in Saitama and Tochigi prefectures, and spend the 12 billion yen it stands to gain on strengthening its finances, according to the firm's management plan obtained by The Yomiuri Shimbun on Thursday.

The camera maker intends to focus on camera, medical equipment and optical component business fields, while withdrawing from unprofitable fields such as making printers, according to the plan.

Pentax plans to increase its operating profits from the 6 billion yen estimated for the business year ending in March 2007 to about 10 billion yen over three years. The firm will officially announce the plan Friday.

Pentax is reluctant to accept a takeover bid by glass maker Hoya Corp. and will attempt to seek survival on its own with the management plan. The firm will sell the 10,000 square meters of land it owns in Itabashi Ward and its headquarters building and a research facility located there.

The research facility will be sold to a major real estate company within this fiscal year. Most of the firm's research division personnel and functions will be transferred to its office in Mashikomachi, Tochigi Prefecture. The company will invite bids for the land within the next three years, according to the plan.

Regarding business operations, the firm will withdraw from unprofitable fields such as manufacturing printers and measurement equipment. A medical research facility in Saitama Prefecture will be dismantled, and some affiliated sales companies in the United States will be sold.

The firm does not plan any layoffs. Instead, it will put most of its staff and funds into the three main businesses, according to the plan.

(May. 11, 2007)

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/business/20070511TDY08005.htm

 

[tweedle]

Re: Pentax cashes Yen 12 billion from sale of Tokyo HQ

 

[Caat]

Re: Pentax cashes Yen 12 billion from sale of Tokyo HQ

woah, that's a lot of cash: £50,567,727 (at current exchange rates)

--
http://www.homepages.ucl.ac.uk/~ucsacco/

 

[austinphotog]

That should be enough cash to throw into the camera division for a little while. I would take it to show that pentax can stay independant, but... no layoffs. That doesn't make much sense if pentax is going to have a profitable company for shareholders. Maybe they are going to sell afterall and the move is just to buy time for a better offer.

Pentax to sell land, facility HQ in Tokyo
The Yomiuri Shimbun

Pentax Corp. plans to sell the land and buildings of its
headquarters in Tokyo after transferring most of its functions to
offices in Saitama and Tochigi prefectures, and spend the 12
billion yen it stands to gain on strengthening its finances,
according to the firm's management plan obtained by The Yomiuri
Shimbun on Thursday.

The camera maker intends to focus on camera, medical equipment and
optical component business fields, while withdrawing from
unprofitable fields such as making printers, according to the plan.

Pentax plans to increase its operating profits from the 6 billion
yen estimated for the business year ending in March 2007 to about
10 billion yen over three years. The firm will officially announce
the plan Friday.

Pentax is reluctant to accept a takeover bid by glass maker Hoya
Corp. and will attempt to seek survival on its own with the
management plan. The firm will sell the 10,000 square meters of
land it owns in Itabashi Ward and its headquarters building and a
research facility located there.

The research facility will be sold to a major real estate company
within this fiscal year. Most of the firm's research division
personnel and functions will be transferred to its office in
Mashikomachi, Tochigi Prefecture. The company will invite bids for
the land within the next three years, according to the plan.

Regarding business operations, the firm will withdraw from
unprofitable fields such as manufacturing printers and measurement
equipment. A medical research facility in Saitama Prefecture will
be dismantled, and some affiliated sales companies in the United
States will be sold.

The firm does not plan any layoffs. Instead, it will put most of
its staff and funds into the three main businesses, according to
the plan.

(May. 11, 2007)

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/business/20070511TDY08005.htm

 

[HerbChong]

last year Canon spent Y41.1 billion on research and development and Y31.5 billion on capital expenditures just for its camera operations. this is almost four times what Pentax estimates it spent for R&D and capex on all of its businesses, which also include medical equipment and digital components. i.e., the entire Y12 billion is one years worth of R&D at Pentax to put it where it is today. it's also 1/10 of what Hoya has as cash on hand.

Herb...

 

[Caat]

last year Canon spent Y41.1 billion on research and development and
Y31.5 billion on capital expenditures just for its camera
operations. this is almost four times what Pentax estimates it
spent for R&D and capex on all of its businesses, which also
include medical equipment and digital components. i.e., the entire
Y12 billion is one years worth of R&D at Pentax to put it where it
is today. it's also 1/10 of what Hoya has as cash on hand.

Herb...

Remember Canon has its own sensor fabrication plants - that's got to suck a huge a amount of R&D money from Canon.

Also, yes, Canon is a much larger company so this is expected - well done for pointing that out.

--
http://www.homepages.ucl.ac.uk/~ucsacco/

 

[nosnoop]

This makes Pentax achievements with its K10D (TIPA awards) and the high quality lens all the more amazing.

last year Canon spent Y41.1 billion on research and development and
Y31.5 billion on capital expenditures just for its camera
operations. this is almost four times what Pentax estimates it
spent for R&D and capex on all of its businesses, which also
include medical equipment and digital components. i.e., the entire
Y12 billion is one years worth of R&D at Pentax to put it where it
is today. it's also 1/10 of what Hoya has as cash on hand.

 

[imageswest]

Pentax Canada told me they have stopped selling them in Europe, but they are still part of the current product line here.

--
Cliff

 

[Mark VB]

Is there room for more than 1 1/2 players (I consider Mamiya
only half a player given the limited distribution of the ZD, and
one wonders about its continued viability as a stand-alone
product)? Beats me.

You may have noticed that digiback makers LEAF/Kodak and
SINAR/Jenoptik have jointly devoped a new medium format camera, the
Hy6, that will be sold also under the ROLLEI brand.

What you see here is beginnibg integration of camera/back, just
like it is seen for Hasselblad.

Pentax, unfortunately, is no digiback maker, and therefore would be
in a volatile position with the 645D.

The Pentax "problem" with digital backs is/was that it does not use interchangeable film backs like the Hassleblad, Mamiya, and Contax, to name three for which the digital back makers did make digital backs. If you get what I mean. Thus, Pentax, to offer a digital 645, needed to develop a dedicated digital body (just as it has done with its APS-C DSLRs). Yes, there is an integration of the camera/back, but that is no different than it has always been. It's just that with digital, companies other than the camera manufacturer started making the backs.

Many/most of the dedicated digital backs are quite expensive, or at least have been historically. We have no idea how Pentax was designing its 645D. Perhaps it planned to offer two versions, an 18 MP (as originally planned when first announced) and a 30 MP (as rumored to be the most recent plan). Perhaps the backs could be interchangeable, so one could start with the 18 MP at less cost and then upgrade to the 30 MP (or whatever it might be in years to come) when ready or needed. Mind you this is pure speculation on my part.

What we're talking about is not the beginning of something that's been going on for a while, but rather how Pentax intended to address the situation it was and is in, with a non-interchangeable back system.
--
Mark Van Bergh

 

[tweedle]

Pentax Canada told me they have stopped selling them in Europe, but
they are still part of the current product line here.

Must be selling from old stock.

These film cameras sell very slowly these days (2nd hand market overflown with them), so stocks last long.

You will se the same with i.e Contax cameras. Many of them still in stock (they have an active homepage too), even though manufacturing stopped some three years ago now.

 

[Anastigmat]

Well, there is a bright side here.

If Pentax has killed of the 645D development, that most likely will
mean they will do a course correction on the K mount bodies. Up
till now, Pentax has clearly been planning to stick with APS, thus
the release of all those DA lenses, even at focal lengths DA makes
zero sense.

I think you mean the telephoto DA lenses, since the front glass is the heaviest part of the lens and since the front glass is the same size regardless of whether it is DA or full frame coverage.

They could do this because their pro body was the 645D. With that
gone, Pentax will be more motivated to make a FF body at some point
to give users something to work up to.

Full frame is a lot like the 645D. It is a small market because of the expensive sensor. But as the APS-C format market becomes saturated and people want to upgrade to better equipment, it will become more mainstream and prices will fall. Until prices fall, going full frame can be very risky for a company with shaky finances. Those waiting for a full frame Pentax should be prepared for a long wait.