August 28, 2006 – An IDC study found that Canon Inc. was the number one U.S. shipper of digital cameras in the first half of 2006, according to a Friday Canon press release. Canon holds a market share of 21 percent for the first six months of the year.
“By designing and manufacturing our own lenses, CMOS image sensors (found on the company’s digital SLRs) and image processors, we can control both image quality and cost – ultimately providing consumers with the best digital imaging options,” said Canon senior vice president Yukiaki Hashimoto in the release.
Canon, which traditionally has been named one of the largest manufacturers of digital cameras, has a 70-year history of making cameras. In 1996, Canon released their first internally developed camera, the PowerShot 600. Since then, the manufacturer has launched cameras ranging from entry-level point-and-shoots to professional DSLRs. Just last week, Canon launched the new XTi DSLR and three A-series point-and-shoots, the PowerShot A710, A640, and A630.
IDC predicts Canon will reach a new all-time high of U.S. digital camera shipments with 31 million shipments by the end of the year, stated the release.
Canon currently makes $33.3 billion in global revenue.
