London, March 07, 2007 – Eastman Kodak Company today demonstrated a range of digital imaging solutions aimed at helping retailers tap growing consumer demand to do more with their digital pictures. At the Photo Marketing Association’s Annual Conference and Exposition, Kodak unveiled a lineup of custom photo books, collages and digital photo merchandising products, and services that can be produced in-store, on-line and at wholesale.
“Each day some 315 million digital images are taken and stored, but not printed, creating a tremendous opportunity for retailers to help consumers do more with their digital images,” said Julian Baust, Chairman & Managing Director, Kodak Limited. “If the industry is to unlock this potential treasure chest of images, we must work together to offer consumers a variety of easy-to-use products and services that are readily available from multiple pathways.”
“Our approach will be to offer retailers a portfolio of in-store, on-line, and wholesale products and services, all based on open architecture, that will leverage their existing assets to profitably grow the digital business – while offering consumers the ability to do more with their pictures than capture and print 4x6-inch photos and enlargements,” says Julian Baust. “These products and services will enable consumers to move beyond capturing and sharing moments to creating and sharing stories.”
At PMA, Kodak is showing:
· KODAK EASYSHARE Custom Creations Software that will make it easy for consumers to design their own photo products at home for printing at retail. The desktop software application provides consumers with an easy, fast, and fun way to create photo books, calendars, collages, greeting cards and other photo specialty items. Once completed, consumers can simply download their creation to a CD and bring to a retail location, or send on-line to a retailer for production.
· KODAK Picture Kiosk Software (Version 1.5) with New Auto Collage feature that provides consumers with a new level of flexibility to easily create custom collages that can be printed in minutes on the kiosk or in-store mini-lab. Plus the new KODAK GS Compact Picture Kiosk with countertop design and easy installation for maximum ROI in low burn locations.
· KODAK EASYSHARE Digital Cameras and Accessories, including the Z885 and Z712 IS with high ISO and image stabilisation for taking action pictures in any lighting conditions.
· KODAK s1220 Photo Scanning System that provides an in-store solution for converting consumers’ photo prints into digital files on KODAK Picture CDs, KODAK Picture Movie DVDs, and the wholesale KODAK picture shoebox scanning service.
· KODAK HQ Maximum Versatility Single Use Camera that emulates the sleek stylish look of a digital camera and is 20% smaller than the model it replaces; and new KODAK GOLD 100 and 200 speed consumer films with enhanced emulsions for brighter pictures.
· KODAK NEXPRESS Digital Production Color Press enhancements for increased productivity and higher image quality for photo book applications.
The In-Store Experience
As digital imaging becomes more commonplace, consumers are turning to retailers to print their digital images. Retailers can expand their in-store offerings with KODAK products and services to produce custom photo books, collages, calendars, greeting cards, and other photo specialty items. According to Julian Baust, Kodak is offering retailers the most comprehensive and flexible portfolio designed to meet each retailer’s market requirements.
More information about Kodak is available at www.kodak.co.uk
