Kodak's Contributions to Mobile Imaging
Everyone's talking about the convergence of digital imaging and the "mobile lifestyle" -- especiallat at the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA) convention that's going on in New Orleans.
Kodak is showcasing a range of products and services related to this convergence. The most recent example of mobile picture sharing is the new Wi-Fi digital camera -- the Kodak EasyShare One. The camera incorporates many of the sharing capabilities of a mobile phone in a digital still camera.
While consumers are utilizing MMS (Multi Media Messaging) capabilities, specifically taking and sending pictures, the reality is that a full sixty percent of consumers rarely or never upload pictures to a computer while seventy percent rarely or never share photos between phones (figures based on Mintel Survey).
Kodak has been pursuing this market, starting with Kodak Mobile Service. Kodak established partnerships with leading mobile phone manufacturers and operators such as Nokia, Verizon Wireless and Cingular Wireless, to promote these products and services in 1993. Subscribers to Kodak Mobile Service have anytime, anywhere access to their digital photos and phone-captured video, directly from their handsets or PCs. According to the company, not only does the service make it easier for people to view, share and print pictures instantly from their mobile phone and allow users to send any picture from their online Kodak account over a cellular network to their mobile device, consumers can also beam images captured with their mobile phone cameras to Kodak Picture Maker kiosks via infrared and BLUETOOTH® wireless transfer technologies, and then have prints made directly.
Earlier this year, Kodak introduced their Printer Dock Plus with WiFi. which allows you to print wirelessly at home from a variety of mobile phone cameras, PDAs, and other wireless-enabled devices.