THE BIRTH OF KODAK EMPIRE

THE RISE OF THE KODAK EMPIRE

THE FALL OF THE KODAK EMPIRE

TYPE: PUBLIC COMPANY

TRADED AS : NYSE:KODK

INDUSTRY: DIGITAL IMAGING PHOTOGRAPHY

FOUNDED: 1888

FOUNDER: GEORGE EASTMEN

HEADQUARTERS: ROCHESTER, NEW YORK

GEORGE EASTMEN WAS “ALSO”

A COLLEGE DROPOUT!!!!

THE COMPANY WAS FOUNDED BY GEORGE EASTMEN FOLLOWING HIS INVENTION OF THE

DRY PLATE FORMULA

THE INITIAL MANUFACTURING BEGAN IN A LEASED BUILDING IN ROCHESTER, NEW YORK.

AND HENCE THE BUSINESS TOOK UP…

KODAK’S LEADERSHIP CAME FROM

ITS MARKETING AND

ITS REALTIONSHIPS WITH RETAILERS.

USED THE RAZOR BLADE STRATEGY:

SOLD CAMERAS FOR LOW COST, AND FILM FUELED KODAK’S GROWTH AND PROFIT.

THE IDEA THAT MONEY CAME FROM CONSUEMABLES NOT FROM HARDWARE WAS

INDEED HANDY……

BUT…… KODAK ALWAYS AVOIDED ANYTHING RISKY OR INNOVATIVE.

WORKED TO DEVELOP COLOR FILMS SINCE 1921 AND SPENT OVER $120

MILLION BY 1963.

ITS PHOTO FINISHING PROCES BECAME THE INDUSTRY STANDARD WORLDWIDE.

BY 1976 KODAK CONTROLLED 90% OF THE FILM MARKET AND 85% OF THE

CAMERA SALES IN THE UNITED STATES…

IN 1981 ITS SALES REACHED $10 BILLION.

WOW THAT INDEED BIG…

BETWEEN 1983 AND 1993, KODAK ACQUIRED:

IBM: COPIER SERVICE BUSINESS

MASS MEMORY: WHICH SOLD FLOPPY DISK

STIRLING DRUGS: PHARMACEUTICAL FIRM.

CLINICAL DIAGNOSTIC: PRODUCED IN-VITRO BLOOD ANALYZERS.

“WE WERE THE IMAGING COMPANY OF THE WORLD. WE LITERALLY HAD NO

COMPETITON FOR SO LONG, MANAGEMENT HADN’T BECOME

ACCUSTOMED TO IT. HISTORICALLY, IF THERE WAS A COMPETITOR, KODAK

WOULD BLOW THEM AWAY.”

-- A FORMER KODAK EXECUTIVE

THE COMPANY’S WORLDWIDE EMPLOYEMENT REACHED 75,000 BY

1960 .

IN LESS THAN 130 YEARS, KODAK BECAME A GLOBAL FORCE.

THE COMPANY BROADENED THE SCOPE OF PRODUCTS THROUGH

MOTION PICTURE,

MEDICAL IMAGING,

DOCUMENT IMAGING,

PRINTING AND PUBLISHING,

SPACE EXPLORATION.

A VARIETY OF PRODUCTS INCLUDE:

FILM ROLL HOLDERS,

AREIAL CAMERAS SPECIFICALLY FOR WORLD WAR I,

16 MILLIMETER MOTION FILM AND CAMERA,

X RAY PAPERS,

STEREOSCOPIC CAMERA USED ON APOLLO 11 MISSION

LIGHT EMITTING HIGH SPEED PRINTER,

PHOTO CD SYSTEM AND MUCH MORE.

THIS BUSINESS MAGNET KODAK KEPT GATHERING MANY AWARDS, NAME AND FAME BUT THEN SOMETHING

HAPPENED IN THE MID 1980s.

SOMETHING THAT CHANGED THINGS FOREVER……

INSTANT PHOTOGRAPHY

IT THREATENED KODAK’S PROFITS FROM CHEMICALS AND FILMS.

KODAK RESPONDED BY INTRODUCING ITS OWN INSTANT PHOTOGRAPHY

PRODUCTS.

BUT POLAROID SUED ALLEGING THAT BETWEEEN 1976 AND 1986 KODAK

STOLE ITS TECHNOLOGY, ASKING FOR $12 BILLION IN DAMAGES

CUT RATE FILM FROM JAPAN

FUJI STARTED SELLING FILMS AT THE LOWEST OF PRICES POSSIBLE, FAR

BELOW THAT OF KODAK’S.

DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY

THOUGH DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY WAS INVENTED BY RESEARCHERS AT KODAK, YET IT COULDN’T HELP IT FLOAT ON THE

POOL OF DEMOLITION.

WITH THE ADVENT OF DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY THE DEMAND FOR FILMS

ROLLS VANISHED AND SO DID KODAK.

THE BIGGEST THREAT AND COMPETITION TO KODAK CAME UNDER

THE BRANDNAME

“FUJI FILM”

FUJI STARTED SELLING COLOR FILMS AT COST NEARLY 20% LESS THAN KODAK’S.

CANON INC.

FUJI PHOTO FILM CO.

HEWLETT PACKARD CO.

NIKON

SONY CORP.

IN JANUARY 2012, KODAK FILED FOR CHAPTER 11 BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION AND IN FEBRUARY 2012, KODAK ANNOUNCED THAT IT WOULD CEASE MAKING DIGITAL CAMERAS, POCKET VIDEO CAMERAS AND DIGITAL PICTURE FRAMES AND FOCUS ON THE CORPORATE DIGITAL IMAGING MARKET.

IN AUGUST 2012, KODAK ANNOUNCED IT IS PLANNING TO SELL ITS FILM, COMMERCIAL SCANNERS AND KIOSK DIVISIONS. ALL, THESE EVENTS HAVE AFFECTED THE SHARE PRICE OF KODAK AND THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

“AND REMEMBER THAT CHANGE IS THE

ONLY THING IN THE NATURE THAT

CANNOT BE CHANGED……

SO IF YOU DON’T CHANGE WITH TIME,

YOUR TIME WOULD CHANGE FOR EVER”

AUSTEEN CYGNUS.