[mlt]

I know a couple of photographers that like the Olympus size and features, particularly with the 12-200 zoom ( 24-400 range on ff ) when they don’t want to or can’t cary their normal DSLRs.

If Ricoh could get Tamron’s 18-400 done for the K mount, that lens coupled with a KP would be a good alternative to the m43 cameras for travel.

[fiveseven]

It was all bs.

Olympus Shuts Down The Circus and Finally Ends All The Speculation

[Rondec]

It was all bs.

Olympus Shuts Down The Circus and Finally Ends All The Speculation

If your read their statement it is pretty tepid. This statement in particular stood out to me: "For Imaging, however, we currently have no plans to sell the business..." To me that is statement saying that they are "evaluating all of their options," but don't want to commit to anything for fear of drying up whatever market share they currently have. I don't read it as a strong endorsement of their ILC future.

[fiveseven]

Their imaging is mainly a medical equipment not comercial/consumer cameras.

[Mistral75]

Their imaging is mainly a medical equipment not comercial/consumer cameras.

Nope.

Olympus group:

- 81% Medical segment
- 13% Scientific Solutions segment
- 5% Imaging segment
- 1% Others segment.

Imaging segment:

- 72% 'Digital SLR' (mirrorless cameras actually)
- 16% 'Compact'
- 12% 'Others' (voice recorders mainly)

Source: https://www.olympus-global.com/ir/data/brief/pdf/Olympus_Q2FY2020_Supplemental_E.pdf

[fiveseven]

Well, if it's only 5% then they can completely neglect it and it wouldn't matter.

[Rondec]

Well, if it's only 5% then they can completely neglect it and it wouldn't matter.

If you have read what Mistral75 has written, it is an underperforming 5 percent that has lost 1 billion dollars over the last decade. The board has had reshuffling with foreign seats appointed at the beginning of the year. The status quo is unlikely to continue.

I don't want to see Olympus shut down camera operations, I just know that if Ricoh put out the statement Olympus did, "Imaging is important, blah blah blah, working on making it profitable, blah blah, blah, not currently considering selling..." I don't think I would feel comforted.

[Mistral75]

Well, if it's only 5% then they can completely neglect it and it wouldn't matter.

5% of sales but wiping out a good chunk of the operating income from the other segments.

[fsge]

If you have read what Mistral75 has written, it is an underperforming 5 percent that has lost 1 billion dollars over the last decade. The board has had reshuffling with foreign seats appointed at the beginning of the year. The status quo is unlikely to continue.

I don't want to see Olympus shut down camera operations, I just know that if Ricoh put out the statement Olympus did, "Imaging is important, blah blah blah, working on making it profitable, blah blah, blah, not currently considering selling..." I don't think I would feel comforted.

Speech indeed could change very quickly, especially if board now includes fresh appointees with different non Japan centric view

[mlt]

Not knowing the size and makeup of their board, new board members may have a big, little, or no influence, so until an official statement, all is conjecture. Olympus’s camera division being shutdown or sold off to someone not able to carry it on in a positive way would not be good news for the remaining m43 still camera makers.

[fiveseven]

This is my opinion on the whole thing..... The bigger you are the harder you fall, like Kodak (same might be true for Nikon as well). I like Olympus and have a few but I'm not a brand loyalist or fanatic. Pentax and Olympus were my first door in to photography but as much as I like them, I discovered many other great cameras from other companies, including Sony and Sigma. The thing is, there will always be some good cameras regardless if some fail, if anything survival or the fittest is true in business world just as it is in animal one. But with all that, I really don't believe Olympus cameras are done just yet. If the company continues, one day they might rethink and revive their camera sector, if the company completely falls then that's a different story.

[Mistral75]

Not knowing the size and makeup of their board, new board members may have a big, little, or no influence, so until an official statement, all is conjecture. (...)

Apart from the three members appointed by ValueAct Capital the whole board is made of Olympus employees. Yet the new Chairman and CEO was chosen by ValueAct Capital and the former one forced to step out.

[Mistral75]

(...) If the company continues, one day they might rethink and revive their camera sector, if the company completely falls then that's a different story.

The Olympus group is doing fine thanks to its Medical segment, it's the Imaging segment that's bleeding money but it's become small enough not to harm the group too much.

[Kunzite]

I don't want to see Olympus shut down camera operations, I just know that if Ricoh put out the statement Olympus did, "Imaging is important, blah blah blah, working on making it profitable, blah blah, blah, not currently considering selling..." I don't think I would feel comforted.

Olympus making a quite weak statement about not currently considering selling the camera division: people are happy with that and confident in the brand's future.
Ricoh making a stronger statement about continuing to develop consumer cameras including Pentax: PentaxIsStillDoomed

[Mistral75]

^ That's unfair, isn't it?