Panasonic is confident that its grip on the Compact System Camera (CSC) market puts it in a ?unique? position to fend off any future threat from Canon or Nikon.
Though Canon and Nikon have yet to enter the increasingly competitive CSC arena, Nikon has hinted at plans to launch a mirrorless model and Canon is known to be considering such a camera.
Asked whether Panasonic fears a loss of market share, should Canon or Nikon launch a CSC model, Panasonic UK?s Lumix G product manager John Mitchell said: ?It?s good news for us that we pioneered the market.
‘We brought [out] the first product, the G1, and we already have 11 lenses in our range… so we are in a nice, unique position being the first…
?There is a clear trend towards the advantages offered by small size and high quality, so competition will come and it?s great news for consumers.?
Mitchell, who was speaking to AP at the Focus on Imaging show in Birmingham, added: ?There?s strong growth globally. The market is growing by huge amounts, more than doubling year on year.
?In the UK we are expecting over 200,000 of our Compact System Cameras to be sold in the UK.?
However, he acknowledged that Panasonic must not rest on its laurels, ensuring that it brings ?exciting products? to market.
Panasonic says it held an 11.3% share of the UK changeable lens camera market in December 2010, with more than one in ten cameras sold being Lumix G models.
Earlier this year we reported that Canon and Nikon are losing sales of interchangeable lens cameras to rival firms racing to compete with a growing armoury of compact system models.
For a fuller version of this interview, which includes Panasonic’s view on why CSCs have proved a big hit in the UK, see the video below.
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