Photo-Me International PLC
17 July 2000
PHOTO-ME WINS CONTRACT TO SUPPLY DIGITAL MINILABS
TO MAJOR CHAIN OF JAPANESE PHOTOGRAPHIC DEVELOPMENT STORES
Photo-Me International plc has been chosen by Shashinyasan 45
- which is one of the largest photographic development store
chains in Japan, with more than 600 retail sites - to supply
digital photographic development machines. The initial order
is for 62 of Photo-Me's DKS (Digital KIS System) machines,
which have a unit list price of approximately £80,000. There
is the intention that all stores in the Shashinyasan 45 chain
should have a DKS machine. Initial production of the new
machines at Photo-Me's Grenoble (France) factory started last
Monday, 10 July, and the delivery of the 62 machines to
Shashinyasan 45 is expected to be made by October 2000.
Serge Crasnianski, CEO of Photo-Me, said 'We are delighted to
have been chosen by Shashinyasan 45. Japan is a highly
competitive market for minilabs, which includes local names of
global repute, and it also leads the world in ownership of
digital cameras with around 10 million already in
circulation.'
Mr. Takeo Otsuka, President of Shashinyasan 45, said: 'We were
very happy with the test carried out with the DKS minilab for
several months and we are really pleased to have the
opportunity of working with the Photo-Me Group. I am sure
that we shall make great things together in Japan.'
It is the liquid crystal display (LCD) booster together with
the pixel gun that lies at the heart of the exposure system in
the DKS minilab. This allows each image to be produced with
15 million pixels. The LCD booster will also be employed in
the PhotoPlanet, Photo-Me's Internet access photobooth, which
was launched in May of this year, and there are many other
important applications.
The DKS minilab can be connected to the Internet, allowing
customers on their computer to preview their entire film frame
by frame, format, crop and order. Selected photographs can be
despatched to themselves and third parties via the Internet.
Serge Crasnianski concluded 'This is a huge market. Digital
minilabs offer a much higher quality picture and a fuller and
more flexible service than their analogue predecessors.
Shortly, all the 180,000 non-digital minilabs in the world
will become obsolete. Photo-Me is well positioned to secure a
substantial share of the world market for digital minilabs
and, before too long, Photo-Me's technology manufacturing and
licensing activities could become major profit generators for
the Group.'
Notes for Editors
Photo-Me launched the DKS minilab, which has a processing
capacity of 650 prints per hour, in March 2000 at the
important SIPI exhibition in Paris, where it received over 100
individual orders.
Photo-Me is a rare example of a substantial public company led
by an inventor. Its Chief Executive since October 1998, Serge
Crasnianski, has over 100 patents to his name, including the
minilab in 1979 and the LCD booster in 1997.
Enquiries:
Photo-Me International plc 01372-453399
Serge Crasnianski (CEO) 00 33 6 11 95 63 63 (mobile)
Bankside Consultants Limited 020-7220 7477
Charles Ponsonby 01993-811717 (weekend)
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