Casio to Quit Compact Digital Camera Market

May 10, 2018

Tokyo- Casio Computer Co. has decided to put an end to its compact digital camera business after over 20 years of operation, due to a rapid decline in demand.

Casio will terminate production of such cameras as their profitability has deteriorated markedly amid smartphone cameras keeping evolving, the company said Wednesday.

In 1995, Casio launched the QV-10, the first digital camera for consumers in the world with a liquid crystal display allowing users to immediately check images taken.

The model had drawn popularity and led to an expansion in the compact digital camera market. But due to the rise of smartphones with cameras, Casio's camera sales shrank in a decade to less than 10 pct of the peak level of 6.85 million units, scored for fiscal 2007.

In fiscal 2017, which ended in March, the company suffered a loss in its digital camera division for the second straight year.

"We were able to provide a new value to consumers (with the QV-10)," Casio President Kazuhiro Kashio said at a press conference. He then noted that the company now aims to attract corporate demand further by capitalizing on image-processing technology it has developed for digital cameras. Jiji Press