Word: kodaks
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Polaroid's sonar focus will help in its bruising marketing fight with Eastman Kodak, which also held its annual meeting last week. Though Kodak offered no new products, it had good news: earnings for the first quarter rose a record 50% from the depressed period of a year ago, to $141 million...
...Still, Kodak has cause for concern. It plans an appeal of an adverse judgment in an antitrust case brought by Berkey Photo; Kodak could be ordered to pay damages as high as $113 million. Despite its dominance of the $8.5 billion photographic-supply market, Kodak has been unable to dethrone Polaroid in the instant-photography field, which accounts for 40% to 50% of the sales of nonmovie, amateur cameras. Kodak remains the industry's giant, but Polaroid has been catching up. On sales of $5.9 billion last year, Kodak's net earnings dipped 1%, to $643 million; meanwhile...
...When Kodak plunged into the instant market two years ago, it seemed to have a chance to win top spot. Within a year it captured a third of the fast-growing market−but then went no higher. Polaroid came out with its $39.95 OneStep to challenge Kodak's identically priced Handle. Though both cameras were immediate successes, accounting for more than half of all instant-camera sales, the OneStep outsold the Handle by about 2 to 1. The OneStep has a motor that instantly ejects the print after exposure, while the Handle must be cranked before the print...
...clash between Kodak and Polaroid has done much to expand the market. Polaroid spent about $30 million and Kodak $20 million in advertising for instant photography last year, and in the process won many new converts. One result: Polaroid is now selling more cameras than before Kodak elbowed in. During 1975 Polaroid shipped 3.5 million cameras in the U.S., v. 4.5 million units last year, and plants are working three shifts to meet a large backlog of orders. As for Kodak last year, says President Colby H Chandler: "We sold more than 2 million Handles−all we could make...
...instant market is attracting the covetous glances of other firms. Japan's Fuji Photo Film may show off a new instant camera later this year. Other firms, too, are developing instants. Though al] this activity will spur sales, both Kodak and Polaroid may find that holding on to their market shares could become increasingly tougher...