Japan's Hoya, Pentax to merge in latest camera shakeup

0 Comments | AFP, December, 2006

TOKYO (AFP) — Japan's leading optical glass maker Hoya and Pentax, a manufacturer of digital cameras, has agreed to merge next October in the latest reshuffle of the nation's camera industry. The two companies, which are both manufacturers of medical equipment, said they planned to sign a contract in April and integrate into Hoya Pentax HD Corp as of October 1.

Japan's camera industry has been transforming itself in the face of falling prices and stiff competition, with leading makers giving up on traditional film cameras in favor of digital models. Pentax president Fumio Urano said the merger offered needed support as his company concentrates on building up sales of high-end single-lens reflex (SLR) digital cameras. "We were always aiming to expand our digital camera...