Olympus CEO Yasuo Takeuchi today announced that the company will sell its imaging business after recording operating losses for three consecutive fiscal years. The new owner of the OM-D and ZUIKO brands, Japan Industrial Partners (JIP), wants to restructure and maintain the imaging business. The deal should be closed by the end of this year. Olympus sells its Imaging business. Source: Unsplash.com/Olympus Olympus has been in the camera business for a very long time, 84 years to be exact. The company’s Imaging business started with the manufacture and sale of a camera using photographic lens ZUIKO in 1936. In the more recent history, Olympus has been at the forefront of the mirrorless camera market, and along with Panasonic they started and maintained the Micro Four Thirds ecosystem. Although for most filmmakers, Olympus cameras have probably never been a number one choice, the OM-D brand of cameras has become really popular among many photographers. The last new camera announcement from Olympus was the OM-D E-M1 Mark III in February 2020. Olympus’ Micro Four Thirds m.ZUIKO lenses, on the other hand, are in some regards even more suitable for filmmaking than Panasonic M4/3 lenses and many filmmakers use them with their LUMIX bodies. Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III Announcement. Source: Olympus Olympus Sells its Imaging Business The truth is that Olympus is a large company and they have been earning most of their money in other fields – selling medical, scientific, and industrial systems. In fact, the company has been subsidizing its Imaging business for the last three...
Published By: CineD - Wednesday, 24 June, 2020