Konica Minolta
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Konica Minolta

Konica Minolta, Inc. (コニカミノルタ, Konika Minoruta) is a Japanese multinational technology company headquartered in Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo, with offices in 49 countries worldwide. The company manufactures business and industrial imaging products, including copiers, laser printers, multi-functional peripherals (MFPs) and digital print systems for the production printing market. Konica Minolta's Managed Print Service (MPS) is called Optimised Print Services. The company also makes optical devices, including lenses and LCD film; medical and graphic imaging products, such as X-ray image processing systems, colour proofing systems, and X-ray film; photometers, 3-D digitizers, and other sensing products; and textile printers. It once had camera and photo operations inherited from Konica and Minolta but they were sold in 2006 to Sony, with Sony's Alpha series being the successor SLR division brand.

Konica Minolta was formed by a merger between Japanese imaging firms Konica and Minolta, announced on 7 January 2003 with the corporate structure completing the re-organization in October 2003. Different group companies, such as the operations in the headquarters and national operating companies, began the process around the same time, however the exact dates vary for each group company.

Konica Minolta uses a "Globe Mark" logo that is similar to but slightly different from that of the former company. It also uses the same corporate slogan as the former Minolta company: "The Essentials of Imaging".

On 19 January 2006 the company announced that it was quitting the camera business due to high financial losses. SLR camera service operations were handed over to Sony starting on 31 March 2006 and Sony has continued development of cameras that are compatible with Minolta autofocus lenses. Originally, in the negotiations, Konica Minolta wanted cooperation with Sony in camera equipment production rather than a sell-out deal, but Sony vehemently refused, saying that it would either acquire everything or leave everything that had to do with the camera equipment sector of KM. Konica Minolta withdrew from the photography business on 30 September 2006. Three thousand seven hundred employees were laid off.

Konica Minolta closed down its photo imaging division in March 2007. The color film, color paper, photo chemical and digital mini-lab machine divisions have ceased operations. Dai Nippon Printing purchased Konica's Odawara factory, with plans to continue to produce paper under Dai Nippon's brand. CPAC acquired the Konica chemical factory.

Konica expanded its business presence and currently sells its products in the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Konica and Minolta have been competitors in the 35 mm SLR market since the development of the manual-focus (MF) SRT and other models in the mid-1960s. Minolta positioned most of its cameras to compete in the amateur market, though it did produce a very high quality MF SLR in the XD-11. Konica left the SLR market in 1987. Minolta's last MF SLR cameras were the X370 and X700. Shanghai Optical Co. (Seagull) purchased tools and production plant from Minolta at different times, making some X300 series for Minolta branding, and continues to release MD mount film SLRs compatible with the old system under the Seagull name.

Until the sale of Konica Minolta's Photo Imaging unit to Sony in 2006, Konica Minolta produced the former Minolta range of 35 mm autofocus single-lens reflex cameras, variously named "Minolta Maxxum" in North America, "Minolta Dynax" in Europe, and "Minolta Alpha" in Japan and the rest of Asia. This range was introduced in 1985 with the Minolta Maxxum 7000, and culminated with the professional Maxxum 9 [de] (1997) later made in a titanium body (9Ti) and technically advanced 7 (1999). The final Minolta 35 mm SLR AF cameras were the Maxxum 50 and 70 (Dynax 40 and 60), built in China.

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