August 19, 2010:Rumours have emerged recently that Canon intends to establish its own online sales channel.
The launch of the new Canon sales channel could be in a matter of weeks. At time of going live, Photo Counter was unable to secure absolute confirmation from Canon, but neither was there any kind of denial that this was indeed about to happen. Instead a company spokesman responded:
‘Canon is continually reviewing its channels to market to expand coverage and ensure we have a presence where consumers choose to buy.’
Retailers we spoke with were reluctant to comment either way.
Of course, Canon will not be the only camera company selling direct to the public in Australia – Sony has been doing so for some time on its SonyStyle site.
However Canon is clear market leader in digital cameras, and this bold move will undoubtedly provoke other camera suppliers to at least reconsider their channel strategies. Let’s hope we don’t see a domino effect as others follow the leader down this slippery slope.
For some time now there’s been reasonably idle speculation in the digital imaging trade that Canon had ambitions to go direct to the public with its own online sales channel. The company has certainly been pumping money into The World of EOS and Pixma websites. The absence of a dealer locator on these sites becomes more understandable in the context of the current plans! (It’s worth noting in passing that Nikon’s consumer lifestyle website does incorporate a ‘Where To Buy’ tool.)
Canon brought its camera repair servicing in-house on January 1 this year.
We will have a full report on this development in the next few days.
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