Replies to post #6356 on Billionaire Boys Club Member Forum (BBCMF)

[mick]

EK ,,, Kodak Leads in U.S. Digital-Camera Market
Monday May 9, 4:26 pm ET
By Ben Dobbin, AP Business Writer
Kodak Retains Lead Over Japanese Giants in U.S. Digital-Camera Market, Research Firm Says


ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) -- Eastman Kodak Co., which shipped more digital cameras in the United States in 2004 than any of its Japanese rivals, retained its edge in the first quarter, a market research firm said Monday.
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Kodak shipped 900,000 point-and-shoot digital cameras to domestic retailers in the January-to-March quarter -- 41 percent more than in the first quarter of 2004 -- and its market share rose to 20.4 percent from 18.1 percent a year ago, according to IDC, based in Framingham, Mass.

Canon Inc. strengthened to a second-place ranking with 850,000 shipments, up 72 percent from a year ago. Its slice of the U.S. market surged from 14 percent to 19.3 percent, IDC said.

Sony Corp., the perennial front-runner, dropped down to third spot with 800,000 shipments, or 18.1 percent.

Four other companies filled out the top seven slots.

Olympus Corp. held onto fourth place, shipping 480,000 cameras, but its market share fell to 10.9 percent from 12.7 percent a year ago. Next were Palo Alto, Calif.-based Hewlett-Packard Co. with 7.5 percent, Fuji Photo Film Co. with 6.8 percent and Nikon Corp. with 5.7 percent.

In the annual digital-camera derby, Kodak chalked up its first win on home soil in 2004. It shipped 4.88 million digital cameras to domestic retailers, swelling its market share from 17.9 percent to 21.9 percent, IDC said.

Sony was next with 4.33 million shipments, its slice of the U.S. market falling to 19.4 percent from 21.7 percent in 2003.

Digital cameras, a novelty item in the late 1990s, began outselling film cameras in the United States in 2003. They were the most popular U.S. electronics gift in 2004, the Consumer Electronics Association said.

More than 22.3 million digital cameras were shipped nationwide in 2004, up from 16.4 million in 2003, IDC analyst Christopher Chute said. In 2005, an estimated 27.3 million cameras will be shipped to U.S. retailers, he said.

Kodak shares closed unchanged at $25.72 in Monday trading on the New York Stock Exchange.





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