Just as digital cameras are clicking with consumers, Hewlett-Packard wants to make your hometown photo developer digital too. HP on Wednesday announced its Web Photography initiative, introducing its PhotoSuite equipment. With it, the company hopes to dominate the entire photo process - from electronic capture to glossy final print - and pipe photos straight onto the Net.
The idea behind Web Photography is to cut out all development costs for consumers. After the initial investment, consumers "won't need to spend a dime on photos, except for paper," said spokesman Bill Murphy.
Not to be outdone, Kodak, the company perhaps most threatened by HP's initiative, is already retooling its business around the digital model, marketing a line of digital cameras and nontraditional film formats like CDs and floppy disks, and developing directly to Web sites.
"Kodak doesn't need to worry today," says Summit analyst Tom Kucharvy, since the technology would attract only the most sophisticated users. "[HP's initiative] will only appeal to the radical fringe - photo enthusiasts who also happen to be computer literate."
PhotoSuite includes a digital camera (originally produced by Konica), scanner, and a PhotoSmart ink-jet printer, and is intended for general consumers at US$200-$300. HP's partnership with PhotoNet will allow consumers to store their photos on the Net.
From the Wired News New York Bureau at FEED magazine.
