Olympus abdicating entry level ILS market?

007peter wrote:

markintosh13 wrote: Is there anything to be gained by fighting it out on the low end?

I doubt it.The P&S wars are over - and everybody lost.

Here lies the problem with your over simply analysis. 1. A Low-End M43 isn't a point/shoot.

Didn't say it was.

Just pointing out that many companies, including Olympus, have generally given up on the much higher volume by units shipped P&S segment due to the rise of good cell phone cameras and the race to the bottom on pricing.

Kind of like what's happening now for the rest of the camera industry.

While a retailer only makes money on 1 transaction in a point/shoot sales, a retailer stands to make Multiple Transaction in a "Low-End" System camera sales.

• Camera body + kit lens
• UV filter for that kit lens
• more powerful external flash
• a Portrait Lens (olympus 45mm f/1.8)
• a 2nd battery is a must with mirrorlesss camera

Oly for the most part, barring online direct sales, is not the retailer.

Many ILC cameras buyers never have anything other than the kit lens attached, or buy another lens or a flash... etc and if a retailer talks them into a filter kit, and a backpack carrying case, and a lens pen, etc etc.... Oly still makes nothing.

That's 5 transactions you can easily push for during the 1st purchased. In the near future, the buyer will likely suffer from G.A.S (gear acquire syndrome) and upgrade their camera, upgrade their lens for fancy PRO 12-40mm f/2.8 lens. My point is that having a LOW-END M43 CAMERA is vitally important to the growth of Micro43 as a whole. Abandon the Low-End M43 = Death of M43 in the near future.

Bull. Most entry level camera buyers buy cheap period. They don't buy lenses, they don't buy batteries, they don't buy flashes. They take a few photos, and don't understand why the results are terrible and put the camera on a shelf.

Enthusiasts, who do buy lenses like PRO lenses, and flashes and accessories,  on the other hand don't usually buy entry level cameras. And it's very tough to make a profit on a camera aimed at enthusiasts if you then price it at an entry level.

A retailer once told me that when catering to a niche market, especially one that is shrinking, own the high end, build the cachet of your brand and service the heck out of your customers.

Except you're forgetting the Competition! A Full Frame Sony A7 can be have around $1200 new/$800 used. A sensor that is 4X's bigger than M43 and capture 4x's more lieght, produce (imho) 4x better bokeh. Sony A7 is a hot seller, even your own M43 MOD is shooting with one

And with Sony doing that on the high end, and selling A6000s for $400 - 600 on clearance, and A3000 faux-DSLRs for $199 at Costco (terrible body, very nice sensor)...

Don't write off the Canon yet. Canon 70D has no faults. It is the 1st DSLR that can truly compete against M43 in Video Tracking AF (something most DSLR struggle to do). In action, 70D PDAF is far more reliable, and all this can be have for around $1200.

Canon is also assaulting the Low-End market with a refurbished Canon SL1 + 18-55 STM lens + Canon 1400 point/shoot for just $324!

http://www.canonwatch.com/hot-deal-refurbished-canon-rebel-sl1-18-55mm-stm-powershot-a1400-324/

Canon is sacrificing the profit margin on a SL1 to locked the new user into their System, away from Micro43, or other mirrorless competitor. @$324, I admit, I find it nearly irresistible.

...And Canon as you say dumping endless entry level Rebels.... etc etc

Are you suggesting that the path to profitability for Olympus lies in competing on price?

The market on the high and high middle segments is tough enough without diverting resources to a bloodbath on the unprofitable entry level segment.
Sometimes strategy is deciding what NOT to do.
Seems to me Oly has been doing just fine with what they've been doing - good bodies and good lenses.

I'm not disputing your point because I actually agree with you, a race to the bottom isn't remotely profitable for any of the smaller players... That being said, Oly's camera division hasn't exactly been doing fine, financially speaking.