Interesting (If it's true)

[John 2]

Just for interest.

https://petapixel.com/2017/06/06/rep...ji-help-nikon/

[Black Pearl]

Nikon Rumours have pulled it apart and basically proved its all just made up to drive footfall.

[John 2]

Like all these things, nothing is certain until they happen but there seems to be a degree of confirmation as of today:

http://www.fujirumors.com/fact-japan...azine-sentaku/

[IzzieK]

Interesting times...do you think we should all think of going Canon then instead of sticking to Nikon?

[tao2]

Interesting times...do you think we should all think of going Canon then instead of sticking to Nikon?

Hi Izzie,

Go Sony....or Fuji, or Panasonic. They're years ahead of both Canon and Nikon.

PS both Fuji rumours and Nikon rumours are laughingly useless...

[billtils]

Setting aside whether or not it's true, the question that really matters is "does it matter" and I very much doubt that it does. From a personal perspective, I don't see me doing anything with my D750 in the next 10 years other than keep it and enjoy it, and I suspect that the same applies to most folks here with their own choice of gear.

Slightly tongue in cheek though, wouldn't it be nice if it resulted in a merger between nikon and canon and brought about an end to the pointless, sterile and artificial 'rivalry' between the two brands?

[John 2]

One of the reasons that I found this interesting was that unlike in the UK, the Japanese government would seem to be taking steps to ensure that one of their major companies does not fall into foreign hands - if it's true that is.

[IzzieK]

Hopefully, they find a solution. Not to start a Nikon/Canon war but I want to stick to Nikon and I got good support from local brick and mortar store near me.

[Pippan]

Slightly tongue in cheek though, wouldn't it be nice if it resulted in a merger between nikon and canon and brought about an end to the pointless, sterile and artificial 'rivalry' between the two brands?

Not really, as it would reduce competition and provide less incentive for improvement (though the fanboi-ism is certainly annoying).

[Manfred M]

One of the reasons that I found this interesting was that unlike in the UK, the Japanese government would seem to be taking steps to ensure that one of their major companies does not fall into foreign hands - if it's true that is.

That has definitely been the case in the past. The Japanese Ministry of Trade & Industry has a long history of deciding who the "winners" are and ensured that these sectors (automotive, electronics and optics spring to mind) are successful internally and externally (export driven). They decided who the "winners" would be in the 1950s and we know how successful they have been.

There has always been a bit of a cosy relationship in terms of propping up companies that would have been allowed to "die" in the English speaking world. Toshiba, Sharp, Olympus and even Sony should have been broken up and allowed to die rather than become the "zombie" companies that they are today. Toyota bought up Daihatsu and Isuzi when they got into trouble. Sony bought out Konica-Minolta (after of course Konica bought out Minolta). Ricoh bought out Pentax, etc. etc.

I very much doubt that Nikon is going to go away. They are a significant player in the lithography equipment used in integrated circuit fabrication, as well as medical devices, industrial devices and ophthalmics.

Let's face it; digital cameras are now a mature product and I see no great improvements in image quality in high end cameras produced in the last five years; so the "mandatory" three year upgrade cycle has pretty well disappeared. The low end cameras have been largely replaced by camera phones, so this market has dried up. Canon, Sony, Panasonic, etc. are all in similar positions.

[tao2]

That has definitely been the case in the past. The Japanese Ministry of Trade & Industry has a long history of deciding who the "winners" are and ensured that these sectors (automotive, electronics and optics spring to mind) are successful internally and externally (export driven). They decided who the "winners" would be in the 1950s and we know how successful they have been.

There has always been a bit of a cosy relationship in terms of propping up companies that would have been allowed to "die" in the English speaking world. Toshiba, Sharp, Olympus and even Sony should have been broken up and allowed to die rather than become the "zombie" companies that they are today. Toyota bought up Daihatsu and Isuzi when they got into trouble. Sony bought out Konica-Minolta (after of course Konica bought out Minolta). Ricoh bought out Pentax, etc. etc.

I very much doubt that Nikon is going to go away. They are a significant player in the lithography equipment used in integrated circuit fabrication, as well as medical devices, industrial devices and ophthalmics.

Let's face it; digital cameras are now a mature product and I see no great improvements in image quality in high end cameras produced in the last five years; so the "mandatory" three year upgrade cycle has pretty well disappeared. The low end cameras have been largely replaced by camera phones, so this market has dried up. Canon, Sony, Panasonic, etc. are all in similar positions.

Post -war it was more or less the USA which decided who was getting what, in Japan. Japan always had a strong tradition of trade union involvement in major industries (despite the country being, more or less a military dictatorship). The US solved that thorn in Japanese industry's side, by throwing nearly all the union leaders and activists in jail, often for up to 10 years at a time. This cleared the decks for a restructured industrial base. Manfred's correct that many companies should have failed and if ye look at Japanese lens making history, ye'll see that many did, due tae favouritism and nepotism.

Ah'd hardly call Toshiba et al, "zombie" companies.

A few corrections, Manfred - Isuzu is still an independent company, yer maybe thinking of Suzuki? Konica-Minolta was a merged partnership, not a takeover. Sony only bought the SLR/DSLR camera division. Pentax was owned by Hoya when Ricoh bought them.

Nikon and Canon have spent so many years trying tae prove who has the biggest... They , in their arrogance and complacency, have both lost sight of innovation. Both companies reduced ta bringing out the same camera with a different name/number and pretending it's a newer model, simply in pursuit of market share. They won't go down the tubes but are fading gently intae chintzy, chintzy cheeriness as serious camera producers.

[Manfred M]

.

Ah'd hardly call Toshiba et al, "zombie" companies.

They seem to have hit that wall recently with the purchase of Westinghouse's nuclear division and the questionable "due diligence" related to that purpose. There is a view that Toshiba will go under without serious help.

A few corrections, Manfred - Isuzu is still an independent company, yer maybe thinking of Suzuki?

My mistake - I was thinking Hino. I don't know why I wrote Isuzu

Konica-Minolta was a merged partnership, not a takeover. Sony only bought the SLR/DSLR camera division.

I believe that is the spin that was put on the transaction, but the general view was that Konica ended up in the driver's seat. The company still exists, but as you correctly mentioned, Sony acquired the camera side of the business and Konica-Minolta continue in the office equipment market.

Olympus was very badly hurt by a massive accounting scandal coverup and both Sony and Mitsubishi (which partially owns Nikon through the Tokyo-Mitsubishi Bank) invested in it.

Other former camera makers like Topcon got out of the camera business but are still in business as an ophthalmic and survey equipment maker. I believe Bronica was bought by Tamron. Mamiya was taken over by Phase One, in a rare example of a foreign takeover of a Japanese company.

Pentax was owned by Hoya when Ricoh bought them.

Agreed

[lunaticitizen]

The rumor might be true, although I must point out that the magazine that published it is not among the sources you want to refer to for business-related news. Usually it's The Nikkei, or any other major newspapers (Yomiuri, Asahi, etc).