Thaindian News

New Delhi, Nov 3 (IANS) India’s digital camera market recorded a 76 percent growth in sales in the April-June quarter at 621,000 units compared to the like period of 2009, said a report released Wednesday.

The majority segment of the digital camera market — point-and-shoot (P&S) cameras — grew 17 percent to 588,000 units, according to a survey by market tracking firm IDC India.

Digital single lens reflex (DSLR) category witnessed a significantly higher uptake, registering a growth of 557 percent at 33,000 units in the quarter under review.

In the P&S category, Sony was the market leader with market share of 24 percent in terms of unit shipments during the second quarter of 2010, followed by Nikon with a markets share of 21 percent, Canon with 16 percent and Kodak with 14 percent.

In the DSLR category, Nikon was the leader with a 55 percent share in terms of unit shipments during the April-June quarter, followed by Canon with a 32 percent share.

“With rapid technological changes and evolving consumer preferences, a virtuous cycle of adoption of lifestyle enriching devices such as cameras has gathered pace,” said Anirban Banerjee, associate vice-president of research, IDC India.

“In recent years, social networking has picked up in a big way amongst Indian internet users, giving rise to the trend of sharing photos online. In this context, digital cameras score over their analogue counterparts providing ease of use, ease of sharing content and affordability,” added Banerjee.

As per IDC’s India quarterly Digital Camera Tracker, the digital camera price segment “below Rs. 10,000″ contributed around 70 percent of total shipments in the country during the April-June quarter.

Owing to increased competition in recent quarters, companies have launched cameras at affordable price points. The trend is seen to pick up just ahead of the festive season.