like_no_other Posted December 14, 2008 Share #1 Posted December 14, 2008 Advertisement (gone after registration) I read more and more messages in various camera forums that japanese manufacturers plans are to increase prices next year by 20-25% based on yen development. To be specific I read this about Nikon and Sony. I'm not sure about their price-sales functions but would say that at the background of economic crisis this would result in an accelerated sales decrease. Are they just interested in motivating customers to buy this year to meet their sales targets or would it be a wise decision from the customers point of view to buy a camera one is interested in, this year and not next year because price increase will overcompensate the usual price decrease for cameras. What do you think? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted December 14, 2008 Posted December 14, 2008 Hi like_no_other, Take a look here Prices next year. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
andit Posted December 14, 2008 Share #2 Posted December 14, 2008 Personally I think that they will increase prices by 20 to 25%. Nowadays, accountants run businesses and they sit behind their computers and play with figures that look nice to them. They will first try to rip people off for all that they are worth. However, come second quarter when the majority of people have said no to these prices by simply not buying any products, the corporates will be forced to rethink their pricing and will be forced to drop prices in order to maintain some sort of turnover. The one thing about this financial crises is that it hit at a bad time of the year. What I mean by this is that it happened just before Year End. In the western world this coincides with the festive season and gifts. People have not yet grasped the full impact that this will have and still spend like there is no tomorrow. Come March/April next year, the full impact will be felt. Living in a third world country, the people here have just about no idea what has happened and are spending like mad. Some people have felt what is happening though. Our copper industry closed down at the beginning of December, leaving hundreds of people (including myself) without a job. The price of copper fell from USD 8500-00 per ton to less than 3000 per ton in the space of 8 weeks. The price of Uranium, Vanadium, Palladium, Silver etc have all fallen by some 70%. I must stop complaining!!! Prices will fall in the medium term. In the short run though, they will try to get more money out of us.... Andreas Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
like_no_other Posted December 14, 2008 Author Share #3 Posted December 14, 2008 Your predicion regarding the price development looks plausible for me. I wish you all the best to find a new job very soon!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Niemeyer Posted December 14, 2008 Share #4 Posted December 14, 2008 Andres, I think your projection is accurate. Cameras and photo equipment are "extras" that most of us buy enjoyment, except of course the professionals that are tools to them. I also suspect that prices may rise significanty, however after a quarter or two, we'll see them drop again via "rebates" or out and out discounts. Leica has already seen this trend perhaps, hence the price drop on the DLux4 and other recent incentive offerings. I suspect the other big three will do the same. I for one, will wait awhile to purchase the new 5DMkII to see where the price settles. Besides so many are standing in line to buy one, the first shipments are/will be grabbed up quickly anyway. Besides, I am also interested in seeing what Leica produces re the R10. I think this is the time for consumers to think and move carefully. Rich Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
marknorton Posted December 15, 2008 Share #5 Posted December 15, 2008 I thnk camera prices will be influenced much more by the rapidly changing exchange rates than by raw material costs. The Japanese have a huge problem because their currency has appreciated greatly over the last three months against the USD, the GBP and the Euro. Nikon have been condemned for their pricing of the D3x but it's not surprising. Since August, the Euro is down 30%, the USD is down 18% and the GBP is down 34% against the Yen. I'm expecting Leica prices to go up by at least 10% here in the UK at the start of the year. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
parigby Posted December 15, 2008 Share #6 Posted December 15, 2008 I don't have any answers, but if Leica do increase their prices in the first quarter of 2009, this seems to suggest that management are firmly of the opinion that their niche market is immune from a global recession ! Somehow l don't think that can be correct for the whole of it's market. Leica must surely lose some market share, and must therefore be calculating that any increase in price will be offset by any increases in price. I cannot see in todays market conditions that increase in price on what is already an expensive luxury item, will lead to increased revenue stream. philip Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sliversurger Posted December 17, 2008 Share #7 Posted December 17, 2008 Advertisement (gone after registration) Increasing prices in this economic environment will be suicide for any company. Most likely camera companies might keep prices the same or decrease while cutting costs such as R&D, labour, and other fatty overhead thus still increasing profit but keeping camera selling prices constant. And that's what you're seeing with many companies now with massive layoffs. Keep in mind that most high end cameras are made in Japan while the bulk of the low-mid level cameras are made in South East Asia and China, where labour is relatively cheap. These low-mid level cameras are what drives profit margins for these camera companies. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted December 17, 2008 Share #8 Posted December 17, 2008 I have been told by two clients, both large electronic goods manufacturers, that they are increasing their prices in the new year by 20-30%. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanG Posted December 17, 2008 Share #9 Posted December 17, 2008 Increasing prices in this economic environment will be suicide for any company. Most likely camera companies might keep prices the same or decrease while cutting costs such as R&D, labour, and other fatty overhead thus still increasing profit but keeping camera selling prices constant. And that's what you're seeing with many companies now with massive layoffs. Keep in mind that most high end cameras are made in Japan while the bulk of the low-mid level cameras are made in South East Asia and China, where labour is relatively cheap. These low-mid level cameras are what drives profit margins for these camera companies. About a month and a half ago I was at the photo show in NY. I bought a Canon ipf 6100 wide format printer because I thought the special price of $2399 plus $600 worth of paper looked very good. This had a list price of $3500 when it first came out and is not being discontinued or replaced. After ordering it, I saw another store was selling them for $2150. So the first store matched the price. A few weeks later, I saw that stores were selling them for $2000 then $1950 - with maybe $480 worth of paper. Then last week, Atlex.com sent me an email that had the price at $1499 with $480 of paper plus an additional 24" x 100' roll of paper. All of the deals had free shipping. So the price on this printer dropped $650 below what I paid for it in a month and half. Then the price went up to $1950. For a short while, the Canon ipf 5100 was selling for less than the ink and paper that comes with it so I bought one for $799. (It comes with about $600 worth of ink, $300 and $300 worth of paper. The pair of replaceable print heads alone cost $1100-$1200) Epson has big rebates on their printer too. So I think there will be pressure to lower prices across the board, not raise them. There is such a thing as "deflation." Especially when consumer spending is very low. It is happening in housing and other sectors too. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
crbirchenhall Posted December 19, 2008 Share #10 Posted December 19, 2008 There is such a thing as "deflation." Especially when consumer spending is very low. It is happening in housing and other sectors too. The world is in recession and is likely to enter a depression with a wide ranging deflation. Governments are trying to stop that process but their success will be limited. Essentially we are all paying for the excesses of recent years and a good deal of shake out will take place. Creative Destruction? This process will be uneven with many losers and some winners. Every business will have to identify its best way forward given its business model and current "stock". Those with the deep pockets will invest ready to reap the rewards of the upturn when it comes. My reading of recent developments at Leica is they are working on two fronts, the consumer market with Panasonic and the high end with the S2/R10/M8.2 and matching new lenses. My guess is that the PanaLeica market will be highly competitive with some deflation. I am not so sure about the higher end. My guess is Kaufmann will hold fast and aim for stable or rising prices at the high end while continuing to invest in R&D. Well that is my bet and I have just acted on that bet!! I hope I am right. Chris B Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter L Posted December 20, 2008 Share #11 Posted December 20, 2008 If you can't see the the writing on the wall, you must be blind, the world is in recession, if not depression, and worse is to come, increasing the cost of luxury items by 20-30%, such as cameras and the like, will not do anything for their bottom line , even without a price increase they may go broke anyway , hence the pleading letter from Leica to please buy their goods. My perception is that most people will hunker down and hang on to what they have (their house, etc.) , that "full frame quadriilion pixel rangefinder, SLR" can wait until next year or the year there after, the "old" one still makes fine photos. If you don't see the drastic financial change coming, start thinking about it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinb Posted December 20, 2008 Share #12 Posted December 20, 2008 Maybe time to get a D700 now? I've heard a lot of price increases, especially regarding Nikon. The D3X probably already had that price increase baked in, in it's high price tag.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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