Kyocera and Contax Update

[M. Walter Lyon]

Well its official kyocera will be ending production of ALL Contax brand cameras.

Here's the link.
http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/News/Details.aspx?NewsId=12838

 

[Ian Grant]

Well I looked at their stand at Focus on Imaging (UK Trade show) on the 2nd and this had been released:
http://db.riskwaters.com/public/showPage.html?page=210204

 

[M. Walter Lyon]

Doesn't Kyocera have interests in Minolta also? Wonder what is going to happen with them?

 

[Dave Parker]

Doesn't Kyocera have interests in Minolta also? Wonder what is going to happen with them?

No Kyocera is not involved in Minolta, Konica Minolta merged last year to become one company, which was the savior of Minolta as there were brankrupt and heading into the dust.

Kyocera has done this type of action with several different types of product lines in the past, they purcahsed a couple of high end amplifier companies several years ago and produced high end audio components and then when the market changed to the compacts and all-in-one audio systems with surround sound, they ceased production and moved on, so this really does not surprise me in the least.

Dave

 

[M. Walter Lyon]

Thanks for clarifying that...I am geting my "K"'s mixed up.

 

[fingel]

Just for further clarification, the brand Contax isn't owned by Kyocera. They licence the name from Carl Zeiss... so Contax as we know it now may cease to exist, but my gut tells me this isn't the end of the Contax brand.

I see maybe a renaming of the new Zeiss Ikon M rangfinder to say maybe the Zeiss Ikon Contax IVa with both a film and (digital ) version available with Cosina building the bodies and Zeiss supplying the lenses. That is just speculation and wishful thinking but I could see it happening, especially since they already brought back the Zeiss Ikon name.

 

[jon koss]

... my gut tells me this isn't the end of the Contax brand.
I see maybe a renaming of the new Zeiss Ikon M rangfinder to say maybe the Zeiss Ikon Contax IVa with both a film and (digital ) version available with Cosina building the bodies and Zeiss supplying the lenses. That is just speculation and wishful thinking but I could see it happening, especially since they already brought back the Zeiss Ikon name.

Yep, I think you are onto something. The whole ZI Rangefinder launch has a rat-like aroma to it, methinks. Even the Luddite Almalgamated Photographic Industries Corp. itself would not launch a "film-only" camera at this late date. Good news is - if there are new lenses being designed for the system, and they are in the normal focal length range for 35mm film, then maybe the digital version will have a 24x36mm sensor and will have great image quality! Woo-hoo... we can dream can't we....

JK

 

[Bruce Osgood]

Back in January, Kyocera announced ToCad (Sunpak etc.) would be the distributor of Contax products. But that was January.

http://www.sunpak.com/news.html