Thursday, January 19, 2012

Who could have thought about this in 80s or 90s..

I am sure many oldtimers (including me as well ;-)) will still find this news strange.. Kodak.. the company such a force to reckon with some time back.. it only re-affirms one thing..

Change is only Constant!!!

This takes down even companies which are known to be synonyms of the industry they helped create.. I guess, in this case, entire industry or entire list of synonyms of that industry was out of people's mind..

Great lesson for "Built to Last" companies or case study for B-Schools.. in this case what to do, not to get into this kind of trap.. and loose the value.. In my view there is only one way not to get into such traps.. "Innovation".. keep innovating and keep your customers happy.. and loyal.. that is the only way to be survive forever.. if there is anything like forever...

In the case of Kodak.. they simply lost on usability and simplicity of digital camera.. if we think about it.. conventional film based camera is still two to three times better than best of the digital camera in terms of resolution or quality.. and hell a lot cheaper than digital camera (at least in terms of Capex).. However, simplicity, ease of use and sharing overshadowed the key advantage of films and forced Kodak to restrict themselves to movie industry.. sooner or later.. that will also go completely digital way.. so unless, kodak doesn't come up with great 3D camera/camcorders for movie industry they will be taken over by companies like Sony or Cannon..

We will say that once upon a time this used to be "Kodak Theater"!!!

Eastman Kodak files for bankruptcy protection

Photography icon Eastman Kodak has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, as it seeks to boost its cash position and stay in
 business. The move comes as the ailing company has failed to find a buyer for its trove of 1,100 digital imaging patents. Kodak said in November that it could run out of cash in a year if it didn’t sell the patents, for which it hoped to fetch billions of dollars. Eastman Kodak said early Thursday that it has secured $950 million in financing from Citigroup, and expects to be able to operate its business during bankruptcy reorganization and pay employees. The Rochester, N.Y.-based company, which was pummeled by foreign competition and then severely shaken by the digital revolution, has invested huge sums in new lines of inkjet printers that are finally on the verge of turning a profit.

CEO Antonio Perez said in a statement that the bankruptcy filing is “a necessary step and the right thing to do for the future of Kodak.”

Kodak expects to complete
 its U.S.-based restructuring during 2013. 

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