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Several Australian retailers attending the 2012 CES show in Las Vegas have said that they are set to follow the lead of JB Hi Fi and start selling grey imported cameras in an effort to match overseas web site pricing.The move could see the price of digital cameras cut in Australia by up to 50%.
Executives from two major groups told ChannelNews that they “had no choice”.
Shalin Thomas General Manager Buying and Merchandising at Brisbane based Wow Superstores told ChannelNews that representatives from Canon had recently approach his company to discuss the issue.
“We almost have no choice, the price difference between products sourced overseas vs locally is significant. JB HiFi are selling grey imported cameras and we are considering doing the same as consumers are aware of the price difference”.
Another major retailer who has stores across Australia said “JB HI Fi set the ball rolling by selling grey imported cameras from companies like Canon, Sony and Nikon. We have no choice but to follow their direction. As more retailer web sites go online in Australia, consumers are going to be able to compare prices and buy direct. If they see the same branded camera for a cheaper price and it is being sold and a warranty offered by a known retailer, they will buy it”.
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| New Canon Camera set to be cheaper from grey importer than from Canon direct. |
“There is no difference, in most cases the charger has a common power input, all that we have to do is give them an Australian plug that fits”.
A GFK spokesman at CES said “The move will hurt the local camera companies’ budgets but overall it could drive sales up for the likes of Canon and Nikon as more people could end up buying a branded camera because it is cheaper. We anticipate that consumers will buy SLR and mirrorless cameras from an overseas supplier as opposed to a budget compact camera”.
Camera vendors set to be hit by the move include Sony, Canon, Nikon, Panasonic and Samsung.
GFK said the demand for digital SLR and mirrorless cameras are set to grow.
They said that globally there was a boom in the first nine months of 2011 with the market growing by 35% in some markets.
GFK said that new digital compact system cameras, including the likes of Nikon’s N1 and new Lumix mirrorless models, are also driving the global market and up to now, have not cannibalised the demand for SLR models.
They said that sales of DSC changeable lens grew by 17% in the Asia Pacific region. Also up is demand for accessories.
Analysts at CES said that technical innovation is critical in driving growth.
GFK said that in spite of how many consumers already have photo products, new features and technology advancements are important for market growth.
They also said that smartphones could hinder the development of digital cameras because of the inclusion expanded digital camera features in the new generation of smartphones that can easily access the web for online distribution of images.
They said that smartphones will cut out demand for low end compact cameras.
On the other hand smartphones are increasing demands for high end models as consumers get use to using their smartphone and suddenly want to move to the next level.
GFK said that the share of compact system cameras is higher in the Asia Pacific than in European countries.
From January to September 2011, a fifth of all digital cameras sold worldwide were 16 megapixel models, while the bulk of smartphone digital cameras were 5 megapixels.
They said that smartphones are leading in the areas of connectivity and touch screen technology.
Global figures show that in the first nine months of 2011, only 10% of digital cameras were equipped with Wi-Fi, while 87% of smartphones had Wi Fi for uploading photos to social networking sites.
GFK said that there is no doubt that future trends and developments of the smartphone market will have a significant impact on the digital camera market, whether it be for demand, features and price class structure.
