Originally posted by monochrome for some reason this thread won't let me read beyond page 2.
Ominous.
That is because it is of two minds.
When the true history of Ricoh Imaging is told, we will discover the company has always had a dual personality disorder. One part of it thought of itself as Asahi Pentax, the innovator and IT camera of the Mod era, purveyors to the Beatles, masters of the screw mount, constructor of the K mount. At other times, the company thought it was Ricoh, that low cost quality rip off business with the good lenses and excellent cameras. The two personalities knew of each other, but as completely separate beings, and often engaged in mortal combat in the marketplace.
That the two were slowly becoming reconciled is shown by the following gradual rappoachments: The first K mount Ricoh was made by Asahi Pentax under agreement with Ricoh (i.e. the two did not recognize themselves as being the same entity, but at least worked together)... Ricoh took on more of the old Pentax innovation (solar camera, autofocus p&s) as time went on, and it seemed Pentax was also taking on characteristics of the old Ricoh.
Eventually, the two, in order to maintain the illusion of separation, minimized their competition by focusing on somewhat different market niches. Through the corporate therapy provided by several investment banks, the corporation has finally reconciled and merged its two personalities. However, what's missing now is the acknowledgement of the true history of this personage, i.e. the newly integrated personality believes itself to be heir to the original Asahi Pentax, and has almost completely suppressed the great 35 year struggle for dominance between 'Pentax' and 'Ricoh' that started in the late 60s.