As the craze for compacts continues, and amid rumors that a new generation of PowerShot is being released this year, Canon has officially confirmed that it "will increase production and sales" of compact cameras. And there is a possibility that this will be achieved by outsourcing production to a third-party.
Citing perhaps its most popular compact, the Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III – which is perpetually on back-order, and is selling for as much as $500 above retail price on the American used market – the company pledged to increase production to meet the demand that has been fed by social media frenzy.
"With the spread of social media, compact cameras, which can easily capture images different from those captured by smartphones, are becoming increasingly popular, especially among young people, and back orders are piling up, especially for high-priced models such as the PowerShot G7 X Mark III," stated Canon in its latest financial report.
"We aim to increase sales by increasing supply by establishing a production expansion system".
Intriguingly, this "production expansion system" could involve Canon outsourcing production to a third party (having shut down its Chinese facility in Zhuhai, Guanadong Province, which used to produce compact cameras).
"We want to make… low-end digital camera models that are produced in Asia fabless (by outsourcing the manufacturing)," Canon CEO Fujio Mitarai said last month.
"It is expected that the assembly process will be mainly outsourced," wrote Nikkei Shimbun, which conducted the interview with Mitarai. "The design, development and production of main products and key components will continue to be done consistently in Japan to prevent technology leaks."
Not only does this save Canon from having to reopen its own factories, it also protects it (and its customers) from global politics affecting the supply chain.
"Rather than having Its own factories, it can lighten its assets by outsourcing a number of products commensurate with production volume," continues Nikkei. "It also aims to avoid geopolitical risks such as supply chain disruptions."
While Canon's financial statement mentioned the PowerShot G7 X in specific, it is entirely possible that the intention to bolster production of compact cameras is in support of a rumored new product.
Camera rumors have been spreading about the Canon PowerShot V1 – a new compact that might use a Micro Four Thirds-sized sensor, reportedly set to hit the market this year and replace the likes of the G7 X line.
Whether or not the new product materializes, I'm glad to see that Canon is heeding the call from consumers and getting back into the compact camera game. It's about time!
If you don't know what all the fuss is about, check out our Canon PowerShot G7X Mark III review. And if you still don't get it, take a look at the best Canon cameras in other product categories.
