Futuresource: Strong Growth for Interchangeable Lens Compact Cameras
Futuresource Press Release
Following the release of a Futuresource industry report earlier this month on the Western European market opportunity for Interchangeable Lens Compact Cameras, James Wells, consultant with Futuresource discusses some of the key issues surrounding this market.
“Since the end of 2008 when Panasonic launched the world’s first Interchangeable Lens Compact, Olympus, Samsung and Sony have introduced their own models into this segment. The market was still relatively small last year, with just 80,000 units shipped across Western Europe, compared with 3.2m DSLRs.
“Moving forward there are some factors that will limit growth for the Interchangeable Lens Compact market in the short to mid term, such as certain technological factors that influence camera performance and higher average retail prices compared to entry level DSLRs.
“Another big influence on growth will be whether Canon and Nikon – who currently dominate the wider interchangeable lens camera market – decide to launch an Interchangeable Lens Compact product. Makoto Kimura, Nikon’s president, recently confirmed Nikon will launch a new type of SLR as early as this fiscal year, saying it ‘may adopt the so-called mirrorless structure’. To date there has been no official word from Canon regarding its future plans for Interchangeable Lens Compacts.
“In the short-term, whilst we are expecting significant growth for the Interchangeable Lens Compact market, it will still only reach shipments of 377,000 units across Western Europe in 2010, compared to expectations of 3.3m units for DSLRs.
“Panasonic, Olympus, Sony and Samsung (with a 20% combined share of interchangeable lens camera shipments in 2009) are expected to promote this segment heavily in 2010, particularly at the Photokina show in September in the run up to the important fourth quarter period. The long term aim is to try to break Canon’s and Nikon’s stranglehold on the interchangeable lens camera market. Suffice to say this will be an interesting space to watch over the next two to three years.”
Source: Photographyblog
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Comment from Jeff: While I am definitely interested in new ...
Comment from Russ: $%&# computer.
I meant to finish ...- Comment from Russ: I think that the two categories that wil...
Comment from Steve: 3.2 million DSLR's vs 80,000 IL Compact...
vvaz
2 years ago |Note that new generation of cameraphones will have big sensors: upcoming Nokia N8 will have 1/1.8″ matrix making it bigger than many P&S cameras.
Steve
2 years ago |3.2 million DSLR’s vs 80,000 IL Compacts in 2009, IL Compacts represented 2.4% of the market in Western Europe.
If the forecast of 3.3 million DSLR’s vs 377,000 ILC’s 2010 holds, IL Compacts will represent 10.25% of the market in Western Europe.
Given that Panasonic, Olympus, Sony and Samsung combined were 20% (735,500 units) of the total DSLR/IL Compact market in 2009, this also appears to translate into 50% of their total DSLR/IL Compact production. Going from 80,000 units sold in ’09 to a projected 377,000 units in 2010 also represents a phenomenal 5X+ (500%) rate of growth for this segment vs 5% for DSLR’s.
I don’t see how Canon and Nikon can afford to continue to sit this one out when faced with so clear a trend in market shift as this. Carrying these numbers forward, IL Compacts could theoretically capture over 40% of this market in 2011 (theoretically but highly unlikely as market saturation may creep in).
Long story short, we should be seeing a lot of new gear and evolving technologies from current and new manufacturers of IL Compacts over the next 12-24 months and beyond. Works for me!
Russ
2 years ago |I think that the two categories that will shrink fast are compacts and consumer DSLRs. Cell phone cameras will continue to improve, and that will be good enough for most of the P&S crowd. ILC cameras will squeeze compacts at the other end. Consumer DSLRs will get squeezed by the ILC and pro DSLRs.
Canon and Nikon will either launch ILCs, or they will see their market share shrink.
I believe that Olympus will continue to make the full spectrum of 43 cameras and lenses for as long as there is demand for these.
Russ
2 years ago |$%&# computer.
I meant to finish by writing that I wouldn’t be surprised if Olympus phases out the standard 43 lenses and E-XXX bodies, but continues with the HG and SHG lenses, as well as the E-XX and higher bodies.
Jeff
2 years ago |While I am definitely interested in new MFT developments (I would not come to this site if I were not), I will delay my first purchase of a MFT camera for quite some time. Reasons?
I think we all would agree that there is still a quality difference between a DSLR and a MFT camera – especially at higher ISOs, in respect to AF and so on. And yes, as the graph shows, this quality difference is reflected in lower prices for MFT bodies.
But while this seems right, the prices for MFT lenses are outright ridiculous for what you get. And quite logically: Olympus and Panasonic know that they can get by with offering people MFT bodies at great prices and then take premium prices for plastic lenses.
To my view the clear advantage that MFTs have over their DSLR counterparts is smaller camera bodies and smaller lenses than . But as long as the still lower image quality is not correctly reflected by the prices paid, I am just not willing to support them.