Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/02/12

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Subject: Re: Zeiss/Contax/Yashica (May be off topic)
From: Marc James Small <msmall@roanoke.infi.net>
Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 13:33:14 -0500

It's a contractual arrangment only.  When the Zeiss Foundation decided to
terminate camera production by Zeiss Ikon, they shopped around for a
Japanese partner.  After an abortive effort to work with Pentax -- which
gave Pentax the rights to the T* coating, which they called SMC, and the
Zeiss-designed K-mount -- Zeiss negotiated a deal with Yashica under which
they gave to Yashica their rather strong electronic-shutter technology and
agreed to provide lenses for the new camera.  Yashica in turn agreed to
produce the camera bodies and lenses in Japan.

(This is the probable reason the deal with Pentax didn't work.  The Japanese
did NOT want to produce lenses in Japan, as they were convinced the home
market would never accept that Japanese-produced Zeiss lenses were identical
in quality to German-produced Zeiss lenses;  at the same time Zeiss, as has
been their policy since 1945, wanted to minimize camera-lens production.
Yashica raised this point with some force and the compromise struck with
them is that all final inspection is performed in a room to which only
German nationals are permitted.)

The result is:  Zeiss and Kyocera (the deal was carried over to Kyoto
Ceramics when Yashica went south) jointly develop the concept for new
cameras and accessories.  The initial camera development is done in Germany
and all detailed work in Japan.  The lenses are completely German designed
and initial production is normally German, moving to Japan once the bugs are
ironed out.  All of the super-wide-angle and fisheye lenses, to my
knowledge, are German produced.  All technology is pooled:  thus, Zeiss's
work on night-vision devices, for instance, would be made available as
necessary to Kyocera for their use, and Kyocera's work on shutter designs is
fed back to Oberkochen.

Marc

msmall@roanoke.infi.net  FAX:  +540/343-7315
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