serene said:
I read through the watch impress article again and felt there are some interesting info here warranting closer look. I will translate it in stages. It looks like there will be much technology sharing ( something akin to Wintel affiliation?) culminating in new products to be announced in 2006. It also appears that though some technologies will be jointly developed, the product lines will be distinct and each company will be differentiating itself strategically. The cooperation seems to apply to the future technology rather than current technology. Happy reading..
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Hello Serene,
Thanks ! You have gone through way too much trouble to translate
The key points of the agreement are actually well explained in their press release, so you can save some effort & translate comments by industry experts or observers. If I may extract a underlined section (credited to DPreview) ...
"Olympus Corporation (Olympus) and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (Panasonic) today announced the signing of a
joint development agreement for
interchangeable lens type digital SLR cameras based on the Four Thirds System standard. Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies will jointly develop technologies and devices, and promote the development of digital SLR cameras that maximize the extensive user benefits of the Four Thirds System.
The aim of the agreement is to meet the needs of the rapidly growing global market for digital SLR cameras*1 by
fusing Olympus's industry-leading SLR camera technology with Panasonic's advanced digital AV technology, and by developing innovative new design concepts for
next-generation digital SLR cameras.
The agreement covers the following three main points:
The two firms agree to
jointly develop technologies and devices related to SLR camera systems (including camera bodies, interchangeable lenses, and related system peripherals) based on the Four Thirds System standard.
The two firms will
individually develop digital SLR system cameras and related system products that incorporate the abovementioned technologies and devices.
With the aim of promoting widespread adoption of the Four Thirds System standard, the two firms will
encourage other firms to participate in, and develop products for, the Four Thirds System standard."
- End of Extract -
It fruits of this partnership will take time to bear, but one thing is certain, you certainly won't see a "PanOly" branded DSLR on the streets
Thanks !