In the world marketplace, the battle between D-SLRs and ILCCs is hotting up. Presently, all manufacturers except Canon have a presence in the ILCC market. Panasonic, Sony and Olympus have the lion’s share but Nikon is fast catching up.
Fuji and Pentax have also made their presence felt. The D-SLR market however continues to be domi-nated by Canon and Nikon.
It is very evident that with every new D-SLR, Canon and Nikon are raising the technological bar. Just look at the D4, D800 and D3200 from Nikon and the EOS 5D Mark III from Canon. Apart from raising the level of technology packed into their cameras, Canon and Nikon have also been raising their prices. Simultaneously, new lenses are being introduced at much higher price levels. The new 70-200mm f/2.8 lenses launched by Canon and Nikon are roughly 40% more expensive than their predecessors! It does seem that the D-SLR makers are carving a niche for themselves in the upper echelons of Nikon D4Canon EOS 5D Mark IIIOlympus OM-DPanasonic GX1the market and vacating the lower end.What about the players in the ILCC market? At the moment, each one has its own strategy. The ones
Nikon D4 |
 Canon EOS 5D Mark III |
using an APS-C sensor face the problem of having lenses that are the same size as D-SLRs. Having very little by way of stakes in the D-SLR market, both Sony and Samsung are probably not bothered by this fact. But for the ultimate consumer, the main reason for moving to ILCCs is size and weight and the APS-C ‘wallas’ are likely to fall at this hurdle. The likes of Nikon and Pentax have taken very small sensors to produce cheeky little cameras. Market response to these cameras is tepid, although the Nikon brand name will bring in initial results. That leaves the Micro-Four Thirds brigade led by Panasonic and Olympus. Olympus has its own problems. Panasonic’s products are good but in markets like India, it is still to make a mark.
 Olympus OM-D |
 Panasonic GX1 |
With a rapidly expanding ILCC market, we feel all the players have a good chance of grabbing decent market share.
What is the forecast from experts? One study indicates that by 2015, ILCCs will grab a 51% slice of the global market for interchangeable lens cameras. In markets like Taiwan, ILCCs already have a 54% market share; in Japan, it is currently 51%. The UK gives ILCCs 28%, and the US 18%.
Is Canon listening?
H. S. Billimoria
