Olympus' recent financial reports have shown bad news for the imaging division, with a 17% year on year decrease in revenue and continued operating losses. As the mirrorless market continues to heat up and there is increased competition, rumors have emerged that Olympus may soon shut down its imaging division altogether.
Photo Rumors is reporting that Olympus may be shutting down its camera division in as little as eight months, with unrest within the company. Olympus has been all in on micro four thirds in the digital age, and as prices have dropped on APS-C and full frame cameras, the viability of the micro four thirds market has come into question for some time, as the price advantage has shrunk considerably or in some cases, been eliminated entirely. For example, while the E-M1X is highly capable, at around $3,000, many photographers were left wondering why someone wouldn't put that money toward a camera with a larger sensor.
Olympus is celebrating its 100th year in operation this year, and while it is unlikely the entire company is in trouble, it would be very sad to see the imaging division and all its history come to an end.
"oh if it were FF it would not have this problem..." Yeah, has is that working out for Nikon, story about their massive losses is right above this one, I guess they are going out of business in 6 months or less.
And Canon sales down what? 60 or 70 percent?
Even the almighty Tony Northup said m43 is dead so this must be true then, eh? Years keep on changing yet this yearly topic doesn't. Only the numbers change but not the content.
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Nothing like an false rumor to justify it.
Did you read any of the words at the end of that I wrote?
Minolta were late to the digital, too late to catch up with the others. Same story here perhaps?
Minolta failed because they were sued by Honeywell for patent infringements.
Sad news (if true). I really like their lenses. Perfects for video use on my GH5.
You call this "News"? Please do 5 minutes of semi-journalism before you recycle something from one of the least reputable rumor sites. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you... This day may eventually come, but Olympus is well-positioned to sustain themselves in a markedly shrinking camera market.
I know a lot of people think their failure is imminent. But one needs to look at the overall picture. Much of the 17% loss is involved in restructuring including a factory move. Is it possible that will still fail? Of course it is possible. But it is not as likely as some assume. Once all the restructuring is done and the factory move complete, we will see if the numbers start to climb out of the basement. Things like what they are trying to do will take at least two years.
Any camera company clinging to these ridiculous retro body designs because they're too afraid to try something new can go straight to the dumpster. Good riddance.
Olympus is a retro design!?! How many manufacturers have Artificial Intelligence in their focus? One - Olympus! Which manufacturers have 7.5 stops of stabilization? One - Olympus! Which manufacturers will provide an angle of view of 14mm to 2000mm (in 35mm terms) with only four lenses and one teleconverter and handholdable for the full range? Once the Olympus 150-400 f4.5 comes out in January or February, only one - Olympus! Retro design? Canon and Nikon can only wish that they were as far along as Sony, Panasonic, and Olympus in mirrorless technology. Canon and Nikon will eventually catch up, but they are not the innovators they use to be.
It looks more and more likely that Oly will not make it. With Sony being a rising star and Canon-Nikon cash cows, Olympus has nowhere to go but to divest unprofitable consumer-focused camera business and stick to medical imaging.
From the recent market report:
"Applying the Boston Matrix model to the digital camera market gives us a pretty clear answer why Olympus is beyond salvation"
https://www.marketanalysis.com/?attachment_id=11270
Yeah. At least Nikon is doing well: https://fstoppers.com/news/nikon-just-released-some-terrible-financial-r...
Dont listen to speculation too much,Olympus have been through much turmoil previously and are still around
The problem is not mirrorless camera sales they are made by Nikon Cannon Fuji etc they are the ones losing revenue if mirrorless was selling well they would be making better profits, the situation is simple cameras and lenses are becoming to expensive. you can buy a decent family car for the cost of a decent camera an a couple of lenses, the more they cost the less people can buy. A digital camera has a life span of so many shots they last a long time and people are finding it hard to find the large amounts of money to buy new ones, when you buy a camera its the best thing money can buy, when you try to sell it its the worst camera ever made second hand value is ni there to help get a new camera.
Just wondering, if Olympus Imaging Department goes belly up, the big question will be... "What will Joe Edelman do with his huge blue OLYMPUS tatooed on his forearm? " LOL
he's way over himself. I followed him in youtube for a bit, and just keep on finding that a lot of comments he makes are self ego'd. At first he switched from Nikon to Oly, saving the weight savings, but he only shoots studio anyway.... I've never seen him at an outside shoot where the weight saving would be utilized. and then he says how great Oly is with live capture, but everyone else has the same feature with capture1.
I am sad but not surprised. I use my (not phone) camera mainly for birds and wildlife, and weight is a real issue. I was using an omd e1 mk2. I only carry one camera and need a zoom. So had the 75-300, nice but lacks reach. Upgraded to the pana Leica 100-400. Total kit weighs about 3 1/2 pounds However, that lens has a very fragile lens mount, and turns out to be completely unsuitable for outdoor use as a result. Mine barely brushed the side of a soft duffel, and the mount exploded. Pana offered to repair under warranty for over 800$ A non starter for a lens that can’t be trusted for travel. Turns out my experience is far, far from unique. So no real option in mf3. The promised Oly150-400 sounds great but will be expensive and heavy, so what’s the point? I have switched to a Sony A7r4 with the 200-600. No appreciable weight difference between that and the projected Olympus kit. And way more reach and resolution. I am keeping the omd with the 75-300 for trips that are not specifically about birds. My pana lens broke as I was packing for Seoul, the only was fine except on a birding day when it was too short, and I used my phone on the guide’s scope. Incidentally, I went to the photo plus show in order to get info on the weight of upcoming oly zoom, and there was none to be had, and all but one rep wasn’t nice about it. Bought the Sony the next day.