Regarding the Kodak deal in China: In 1998 Kodak realized that the
emergence of a more prosperous middle class in China would create huge
demand for photographic products. Obviously, people would want to buy
film, and lots of it. So they got into China big time, with considerable
cost added by the Chinese government limiting their options. They
figured that by 2008 the demand for film in China would be huge and
sales would sky rocket...
Oops - the Chinese market went directly to digital and largely by passed
film...
Two quotes from The Economist:
May, 1998:
"But Kodak is really buying something more valuable: admission to what
could be the biggest film market in the world within a decade (it is
already the third-largest, and is growing by 20-40% a year). It has paid
dearly for its entry ticket, but the rewards could be commensurate.
Local manufacturing and distribution should bring a big cost advantage
over Fuji, and lots of goodwill from the Chinese government. And the
deal will allow Kodak to escape the official 40% import duties China
imposes on film."
http://www.economist.com/node/159001
January, 2012
"Kodak also failed to read emerging markets correctly. It hoped that the
new Chinese middle class would buy lots of film. They did for a short
while, but then decided that digital cameras were cooler. Many
leap-frogged from no camera straight to a digital one."
http://www.economist.com/node/21542796
I keep hoping that someone in China will fire up the factories and make
some good B&W film, maybe even something like Plus X. Not sure if that
will happen. The only films I know of are Shanghai and Lucky. There was
speculation at one time that J&C's old Classic Pan 100 was made in China
but no one ever seems to have figured that out. The other Classic Pan
films are rumored to be Forte? or Foam? I don't remember.
I wonder where the Ultrafine Xtreme products are made - including the T
grain film that they produce - but so far I have only shot one roll of
Xtreme 400 and could not even accurately describe its properties. My
first impression was good, though.
Mark
On Mon, Jul 22, 2013 at 12:58 PM, P.J. Alling wrote:
I'm thinking that the reason they outsourced to a firm in China is
that they sold the machinery to a firm in China.
It makes for a nice closed logic loop, and a certain amount of irony.
Kodak couldn't make a profit selling the same film they made to the
same specifications on the same machinery, but they can make a profit
reselling that film if someone else operates the machinery.
On 7/22/2013 12:40 PM, John wrote:
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