Kodak Worldwide

The imaging technology industry changes rapidly and requires extensive research and development – an area that would represent a stark change for Kodak’s raw material suppliers.

In the imaging market, the threat of substitute products is high. Nearly all major consumer electronics companies manufacture digital cameras. Kodak is not really differentiated from its competition and price and features are the primary selling factors for low end digital cameras. Moreover, the high end of the spectrum is beholden to Canon and Nikon, followed by Olympus, Pentax and Sony. Kodak would be hard pressed to enter this market due to the huge brand loyalty. Additionally, Kodak may not have the expertise to compete in the high end market due to its lack of expertise in manufacturing lenses. As mentioned, new competitors are abundant with every consumer electronics company from Casio to Samsung having digital cameras, not to mention the ubiquitous camera phone.

In terms of an analysis of the macro environment, it is clear that technological factors are the most important considerations to be taken into account. The increasing rate of innovation has made Kodak's research and development react and adjust rather fast. Consequently, Kodak is now faced with a fear that its digital technologies might begin to present fundamental threats to its core business. The technological transformation has begun to force changes within Kodak's enterprise. At this point, competitive and innovative breakthroughs can generate new entrants; proving to be very risky for Kodak, if at any time its services or products are rendered superfluous.

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