Digital SLRs

You have to feel for the vendors of digital cameras.

The smartphone industry has gouged their market and they are living in a shrinking market; the very worst place to be in the corporate world.

They might counter that the premium DSLR end can’t be touched because of the need for proper optics that just can’t fit into the smartphone format.

This may be true but I wouldn’t underestimate the R&D dollars being invested into smartphone sensor technology and processing software in attempts to ameliorate these issues.

In any case, a shrinking market often requires a re-think of the business model.

No one wants to be the last seller of buggy whips do they?

Today their primary business model for the vendors of DSLRs is capital equipment sales, the cameras themselves.

Then there is all this other income from accessories which they share with any number of third party companies.

They don’t own their channels – they use any number of parallel distribution channels and they can’t control the message that their end customers receive.

My suggestion to them of an alternative business model is this:

1. Sell a camera body with basic specs at cost, or even give it away

2. But sign people up to a web-based subscription service that is required to use the camera. Recurring revenue is the key.

3. Offer proprietary software upgrades and aggressively block third party accessories through patents and registered design features.

4. Include a web based ‘iTunes’ style environment for purchasing of all sorts of things such as accessories, upgrades, apps, extra features. Allow third parties to use this platform but only after being vetted and then also with a significant clipping of the ticket.

5. Offer hardware upgrades through the store – they could even make all the hardware components replaceable within the body so that users could slowly upgrade the camera with better sensors, more memory and the like.

6. Through the web subscription service offer and control third party services such as printing, photo sharing, competitions, curated photo sites, etc – all of these exist already, but the idea would be to force them into a iTunes like model where quality in controlled and revenue is licensed.

In fact, if I was to advise Nikon and Canon, I would say to them team up to do this and freeze everyone else out into the cold.

Game over.