Herb wrote: > when you run a business, you stay in business only by doing what > consistently makes money and dropping what doesn't. if those 40% of all > Japanese medium format photographers buy as many 645Ds as Pentax hopes, the > camera will make money and be profitable at something resembling what their > film bodies were.
I'm not sure the 645D is meant to make money. Theres isn't a single slr system in existence were every item is profitable. Maybe its function is image boosting reason and to keep customers who buy profitable items like eg. lenses? The alternative is to discontinue the whole MF department something that could be far less profitable. > the only way out is to rise above it, literally, by having higher end > products. why do you think the Japanese car manufacturers started all those > premium car lines in the US? the Acura NSX may be viable, and even > profitable, competition to the Italian supercars, but it makes very little > difference to the bottom line for Honda. making lots and lots of Honda > Civics doesn't make a lot of money for Honda compared to what they make from > Accords and other mid-priced vehicles. Right! And the 645D fits right into this picture. It is more upmarket than any 35mm based DSLR. It goes into a territory where competition so far at least is non-existing. It fits with Pentax high-end user demographics. The fact is that a high-end K-mount DSLR will have much more difficulties in the market place: firstly, this market is "owned" by Nikon and Canon. Secondly, Pentax doesn't have much of a customer base in this segments. >working on the 645D only delays the middle and high end bodies. I thought the 645D was a high-end body... > sensible business people are the ones that are saying what i have been > saying here. it's sensible business people that are saying how much longer > can Pentax continue to have an entire division lose money, to continue to > forecast losing money, and not do something drastic. as i have said earlier, > doing something drastic may mean moving to a niche market, sacrificing > market share and revenue for profitability, or exiting the finished camera > market entirely, producing only components for other brands. Huh? They don't lose as much money as much of the competition. Pål
