Would Kodak get back into the instant film business?

[Chan Tran]

Fuji is doing well with its Intax line of instant film. Polaroid is also selling a lot of films and cameras. Polaroid I understand is having problem making their film as good as the old Polaroid. I found the short lived Kodak instant film to be very good and in some aspect I liked better than Polaroid. Now the Polaroid patents what ever they were would be expired and Kodak I believe has the expertise to make it so would they get back in the business?

 

[brbo]

That's in the "bringing back Kodachrome" category.

I think Kodak is quite happy with box-design level of changes to their film lineup.

 

[Don_ih]

I don't think the market exists for it, not at a significant scale. Instax is well-established and it would be impossible to compete realistically with it.

 

[Lachlan Young]

Instax is by all accounts effectively based off Kodak's instant film technology that they sold off after the lawsuit with Polaroid.

 

[Chan Tran]

But there is enough money in it for Polaroid and Fuji to make it. As far as significant scale? Kodak makes film which is a niche market now. The reason I think about this is how bad the current Polaroid film is and Kodak can make a far superior product as they actually have made it in the 80's.

 

[EarlJam]

Kodak had to exit the instant market due to Polaroid patent infringement issues. As I recall, it was a quite bloody court fight. Where Kodak could get back into the instant market would be the manufacture of Polaroid film packs, as they did for Polaroid in the mid-late 1960s. I agree that Fuji has a niche with Instax that doesn't leave much, if any, room for a competitor, but there may be a decent market remaining for Polaroid camera and third-party film pack camera back users.

(https://library.torontomu.ca/asc/2013/08/kodak-versus-polaroid-the-battle-for-instant-photography-2/)
https://www.rkdewan.com/blogs/paten...novation-click-clash-cash-kodak-vs-polaroids/

 

[Chan Tran]

Kodak had to exit the instant market due to Polaroid patent infringement issues. As I recall, it was a quite bloody court fight. Where Kodak could get back into the instant market would be the manufacture of Polaroid film packs, as they did for Polaroid in the mid-late 1960s. I agree that Fuji has a niche with Instax that doesn't leave much, if any, room for a competitor, but there may be a decent market remaining for Polaroid camera and third-party film pack camera back users.

(https://library.torontomu.ca/asc/2013/08/kodak-versus-polaroid-the-battle-for-instant-photography-2/)
https://www.rkdewan.com/blogs/paten...novation-click-clash-cash-kodak-vs-polaroids/

Yes but all those patents have long since expired. Polaroid B.V. on the other hand can't quite make the film as good as the old Polaroid could. I believe if Kodak makes instant film it would be far superior to Polaroid.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Ain't gonna happen... just like HIE... ain't gonna happen.

 

[Lachlan Young]

Yes but all those patents have long since expired. Polaroid B.V. on the other hand can't quite make the film as good as the old Polaroid could. I believe if Kodak makes instant film it would be far superior to Polaroid.

There are components that were used in the emulsions and chemical pods that now have environmental restrictions on them. Getting a direct positive emulsion & thickened monobath to work well is a lot more challenging than people seem to assume it to be. Fuji have had the benefit of Kodak doing most of the hardest work for them in the 1970s/80s.

 

[Paul Howell]

There would little room for it the market, and the upfront cost would be very high. Return on investment would be difficult.

 

[BrianShaw]

Before you give up, float the idea by Kodak and find out what they really think!

 

[Sirius Glass]

Ain't gonna happen... just like HIE... ain't gonna happen.

Just like bringing back HIE, IR Ektachrome, and Kodachrome.

 

[zfshi]

I certainly hope so. Based on the new kodacolor release, it brings a slight hope to the analog community.

 

[Pieter12]

Kodak was never a big player the instant film business. Polaroid kicked their ass.

 

[Hassasin]

The biggest detriment to innovation has always been scepticism.

All the same - you cannot fail if you don't try (paraphrasing - you cannot win, if you don't play)

 

[Chan Tran]

Kodak was never a big player the instant film business. Polaroid kicked their ass.

That's not true! In fact Kodak instant film was less expensive and better than Polaroid. Polaroid sued and successfully shut them down for patent infringement plus almost a billion dollars in award to Polaroid. If Polaroid is correct they claimed that Kodak cost them over 4 billions dollars in lost business so Kodak instant film wasn't bad.

 

[Paul Howell]

Kodak instant film and cameras were given good reviews in Pop and Modern Photography. Polaroid had professional level films which Kodak did not make.

 

[Lachlan Young]

Polaroid had professional level films which Kodak did not make.

Kodak thoroughly researched peel apart films, but did not commercialise them for various reasons.

 

[xya]

Kodak thoroughly researched peel apart films, but did not commercialise them for various reasons.

The professional Polaroid peel-apart colour film was produced with Kodak made negative film. So they were quite into this business...

...and seen by today's legal standards, Polaroid would have lost the case, because the Kodak Instant film was quite different from the Polaroid film. In fact the Instax film is a copy of the Kodak Instant film...

 

[pentaxuser]

Ain't gonna happen... just like HIE... ain't gonna happen.

Damn I was just about to dream about Instant film, colour IR etc. I blame the onset of the Canadian winter for all this pessimism

pentaxuser

 

[Chan Tran]

The professional Polaroid peel-apart colour film was produced with Kodak made negative film. So they were quite into this business...

...and seen by today's legal standards, Polaroid would have lost the case, because the Kodak Instant film was quite different from the Polaroid film. In fact the Instax film is a copy of the Kodak Instant film...

The reason I wish Kodak to make instant film because they have the ability to make it. The Instax is good but they are available only in very small format. The Polaroid is not up to the quality the old Polaroid was.

 

[Hassasin]

Current Polaroid should have never been allowed to be called that name, period.

 

[Lachlan Young]

because they have the ability to make it

They don't. They could potentially make some of the film components and some of the processing components, but I think you are failing to understand the level of complexity involved in the systems integration and mechanical assembly steps. Impossible had the benefit of being able to strip several Polaroid factories for the process machinery needed. Fuji had the benefit of Kodak essentially selling off their entire instant system to them.

The professional Polaroid peel-apart colour film was produced with Kodak made negative film. So they were quite into this business

There's a huge difference between making film components and making the entire product. It took a lot of Kodak's R&D at 1970s levels to get into instant, to a level that I don't think the wishful fantasies of this thread really understand.

 

[Hassasin]

Looks we're down to ... wishful fantasies now. Would help toning down our egos.

Kodak most certainly has infrastructure and R&D capacity to produce instant film, If N Polaroid was able to produce something that many think is instant film worthy of Polaroid name, Kodak is far ahead in that capacity game, without even starting to work on one. Not same as saying it's just one hop away and whether this is something for Kodak to pursue is entire different matter.

I do wish there was an instant film larger than a food stamp, easily available, and comparatively affordable.

 

[Paul Howell]

Kodak most certainly has infrastructure and R&D capacity to produce instant film

At one time that was certainly true, what make you think Kodak still has the infranstrucre to make i? They sold the color paper plant off, it is just a shadow of what it use to be. From I understand with just one lone plant left they are at capacity making negative and slide film.