[Samsungian]

"Seiko Pentax" instead of "Pentax"

Occasionally I see commerical on TV for Pentax Glass eyeglasses. Now the commerical says:

Seiko Pentax

Maybe this is an example of Hoya seeking partners?

Or not, its just an observation.


Seiko Optical Products of America, Inc.

[Kunzite]

I hope this won't degenerate into a "Hoya will sell Pentax to Seiko" kind of thread.
Pentax has a lot of partners, in various fields. Why one would assume they will extend this (eyeglass) partnership to cameras?

[Asahiflex]

Another funny fact: when Asahi made their first Asahiflex camera, they needed a distributor to get the cameras out to the customers. This distributor was Hattori Tokeiten K.K., known today as "Seiko"! And of course several Pentax cameras such as the ME Super had Seiko shutters. So Seiko is no stranger to Pentax...

[jeffkrol]

"Seiko Pentax" instead of "Pentax"

Occasionally I see commerical on TV for Pentax Glass eyeglasses. Now the commerical says:

Seiko Pentax

Maybe this is an example of Hoya seeking partners?

Or not, its just an observation.


Seiko Optical Products of America, Inc.

Actually this is kind of old:
Seiko/Pentax Announces Organizational Changes - OptiBoard Discussion Forums
August, 2004 -- Seiko Optical Products of America, Inc., and Pentax Vision, Division of Seiko Optical Products of America, Inc., recently announced corporate organizational changes.

Atsushi Iwasaki, president of Seiko Optical Products of America, Inc. stated, “Now that we have completed the acquisition of Pentax Vision, we can concentrate on building our combined business. Toward this end, we have made organizational adjustments that will enable us to better serve our customer base and more efficiently manage our company.”

Mr. Iwasaki continued, “Mr. Mike Rybacki is now Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing, with overall sales and marketing responsibility for both our frames and lens business units. Mr. Dan Mathis is promoted to Vice-President of Operations, with responsibility for distribution in both our New Jersey and Minnesota locations, as well as the Coating Lab at the Minnesota location. Mr. Gerry Carnevale is named Director of Administration in our New Jersey location. Gerry will assume additional financial duties and will be responsible for the New Jersey IT functions. Finally, Mr. Norman Nelson is appointed Director of Lens Sales for the entire company.”

In conclusion, Mr. Iwasaki stated, “Seiko Optical Products and Pentax Vision became a single company in January of 2004, and consolidated operations the following April. In addition to our titanium and CELINE eyewear frame product lines, our combined business expands our offerings in the high index and conventional ophthalmic lens categories, creating in effect, ‘One Company Powered by Two Brands.’”

As a side note: Brief history prior to Hoya... actually gives me a bit more info on the "fall" errr salvation of Pentax (light humor intended)
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3483600073.html
http://www.mail-archive.com/pdml@pdml.net/msg390886.html

---

Last edited by jeffkrol; 12-05-2009 at 11:36 AM.

[monochrome]

Here's the Seiko Pentax logo for Seiko Optical USA

[jeffkrol]

I hope this won't degenerate into a "Hoya will sell Pentax to Seiko" kind of thread.
Pentax has a lot of partners, in various fields. Why one would assume they will extend this (eyeglass) partnership to cameras?

of why some of us still remain cautious;
Excerpts;
when Pentax shareholders demanded a review of the proposed stock-swap
ratio, but on a deeper level "it's all about digital cameras," said a Pentax
executive.

Hoya CEO Hiroshi Suzuki will convene an extraordinary board meeting on
Tuesday to change its plan for Pentax from a merger to a takeover bid.
The negotiations were going smoothly until Suzuki said at Hoya's Jan. 22
briefing on its financial settlement that "selling off (Pentax shares) will
be an option if they don't bring enough return on investment in general terms."
Hoya enjoys a high ratio of consolidated operating profit, nearly 30%,
"which cannot be attained with digital cameras. We may not be able to
afford
to continue the operations," said a Pentax director.
Under pressure from an investment fund "to sell off the poorly performing
digital-camera operations and concentrate on medical equipment and
devices," Urano, who wanted to keep digital-camera operations, conceded to Hoya's proposal that it send in three directors against Pentax's two, a plan that
was
announced on Dec. 21.
The selloff proposal by the fund and the Hoya remark implying
a lack of commitment came as unwelcome surprises.
Pentax developed the first made-in-Japan 35mm SLR camera in 1952, and
> has
> a special attachment to camera operations even though medical equipment
> brings
> it more profit. The founding Matsumoto family, including former president
> Tohru Matsumoto, who led the firm for 22 years, still owns 7-8% of the
> company.
> They will likely vote against a merger or tender offer.
>
> While it has reduced investment in compact models to pursue quality
> over
> quantity, the future remains as uncertain for Pentax as the longer-term
> growth
> prospects of the digital SLR market.
>

-- Translated from an article written by Nikkei staff writers Shimao Ojima
> and
> Soichi Inai.
> (The Nikkei Business Daily Tuesday edition)
> -0- Apr/10/2007 2:18 GMT

Old history but suspicions on motives run deep....

[Kunzite]

Exactly what I was talking about
Sorry, but even if those words were true (and not only to ease up the shareholders), I choose not to live in fear, nor to spread panic without any reason. After all, there is a very slight possibility that Pentax could survive under Hoya, without being sold to every company name that one founds on the internet.

[jeffkrol]

Exactly what I was talking about
Sorry, but even if those words were true (and not only to ease up the shareholders), I choose not to live in fear, nor to spread panic without any reason. After all, there is a very slight possibility that Pentax could survive under Hoya, without being sold to every company name that one founds on the internet.

Very true.. and Hoya has been very patient (and un-western in re: to corporate raiding) w/ cameras. WAY more so then I ever envisioned. But the fact remains that, short of us getting err.. short changed in some manner, Hoya will not allow a 10% or less net survive for long.. Thus the "Partnership" rattlings.... Sometimes Suzuki should just keep his mouth shut...
I think that Pentax (or more likely the K mount) will survive in one form or another. I miss the old independent one, and don't like the current bean counting one.
and it still bugs me that right when the corner was turning on them...bam..gone.....
Photography is for the "moment" your cameras should be too... as for lenses, the large throw on the DSLR lenses means that when EVF is finally matured there should be adapters for all sorts of brands. And there will always be collectors.... Buy what you like, worry about it later. Remember Canon and Nikon all cut out their old lens bases at one time or another.....
think happy thoughts.......

[Kunzite]

Well, the Japanese people aren't known for their quick reactions They like to talk things over before acting.
We, on the other hand, are much more impatient. I'm sure Hoya will give Pentax more time than we think. Not sure about "bean counting"... I was skeptical about Hoya at first (and sad they couldn't remain "independent" - weren't, really, with shareholders like Sparx), but now things aren't looking bad. R&D budget is there, nice products (more to follow)... remember what Hoya said about old Pentax, that they lacked a strategy?
And btw, there is another Hoya division with 4.x% operating margin, besides Pentax - I'm talking about Photonics.

[Ratmagiclady]

Oooh. Let's get Bronica.

[LeDave]

Besides from photography, I really love timepieces and am into watches a bit. Seiko ain't bad at all; Aside from having a reputation for being the top watchmakers in Japan and a rich history of making quality timepieces, they make superb timepieces for the pricing that rivals that of its Swiss counterparts. Just Google up Grand Seiko and you'll see some of the most beautiful timepieces there are.

[nanok]

uhm.. i concur with dave here. what's wrong with seiko again? sounds like a brilliant idea actually, and, as somebody already mentioned, seiko has been involved in making shutters and other camera parts long time now (if i am not mistaking, pentax still uses shutters made by them, and pentax are not the only ones to do so, but this is just a hunch, not fact).

but the truth of the matter is, we really don't know, do we? i could never understand what the fuss is all about. i think pentax has been pronounced dead so many times now that we can safely pronounce it undead, which is a flavour of immortal. so be joyful, and take some pictures instead (with your perfectly functional pentax camera). eh?

[monochrome]

uhm.. i concur with dave here. what's wrong with seiko again? sounds like a brilliant idea actually, and, as somebody already mentioned, seiko has been involved in making shutters and other camera parts long time now (if i am not mistaking, pentax still uses shutters made by them, and pentax are not the only ones to do so, but this is just a hunch, not fact).

I do know the K2 and K2DMD used a Seiko Seikosha stepless electronic vertical run titanium shutter.

[stevebrot]

Apparently this arrangement with Seiko goes back to about 2004.

http://www.seiko-opt.co.jp/l/company/co_02.html

Steve

(Nothing to see here folks...let's just move on...)

[stevebrot]

I do know the K2 and K2DMD used a Seiko Seikosha stepless electronic horizontal titanium shutter.

Oh, No! My Ricoh has a Seiko shutter as well!

Steve