Camera & Imaging Products Association
MA Shibaura Building 3F, 3-8-10. shibaura,Minato-ku, Tokyo, 108-0023 Japan
Phone +81-3-5442-4800
PRESS RELEASE

February 3, 2020
Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA)

2020 Outlook on the Shipment by Product-Type Concerning Cameras and Related
Goods
The Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA: President Masaya Maeda) has announced the outlook
on the shipment by product-type concerning cameras and related goods for the 2020 term.

1. Track record of shipments 2019
In 2019 total shipments decreased by 21.7% year on year in digital cameras and21.4% in interchangeable lens cameras, items which are core products.
Total shipments of digital cameras in 2019 (the cumulative total of shipments from January to December)fell by 21.7% year on year to 15,216,957 units (represented by units of one million in the attached table.)
After the dramatic continued growth of the early-days of the digital camera market since 1999, the year
our statistics started, shipments fell for the first time in 2009. The market shrunk again in 2011 because of
the serious impact on production brought about by the Great East Japan Earthquake and flooding inThailand, as well as the emergence of smartphones. Shipments have since continued to decline. An increase
was observed in 2017, though 2018 and 2019 saw consecutive declines.
Seen by product category, interchangeable lens digital cameras, products that now account for more thanhalf of total shipments thanks to their higher value added and unit prices, failed to reach the level ofshipments of a year before.
Shipments of digital cameras with a built-in lens (so called compact digital cameras) decreased by 22.0%
year on year to 6,755,467 units.
Shipments of interchangeable lens digital cameras (single-lens reflex and mirrorless) also decreased by
21.4% year on year to 8,461,490 units.
Within the category, mirrorless cameras performed rather well in contrast to single-lens reflex cameras,
whose shipments fell by 32.0%. Shipments of mirrorless products decreased as little as 4.4%, almost thesame as in 2018, when the subcategory experienced modest year-on-year growth.

1Despite a decline on a year-on-year basis, shipments of interchangeable lenses for
digital cameras were 70% larger than those of bodies.
Shipments of interchangeable lenses decreased by 21.0% year on year to 14,236,912 units.
Interchangeable lenses are often regarded as a supporting player for camera bodies, both single-lens reflex
or mirrorless. In fact, however, they play another starring role in the camera industry because
photographers need a set of high-performance lenses with unique characteristics to take photos with great
artistic quality that no smartphone camera can deliver.
For years, many more lenses had been shipped than bodies (interchangeable-lens digital camera). Nochange was observed in this trend in 2019 as shipments of lens were 70% larger than those of bodies.
Broken down by region, total shipments of digital cameras to Japan and regions outside of Japan decreased
18.6% and 22.2%, respectively. As for shipments of digital cameras with built-in lenses, those to Japan andregions outside of Japan decreased by 16.9% and 23.3%, respectively. As for shipments of digital cameras
for interchangeable lenses, those to Japan and regions outside of Japan decreased by 21.5% and 21.3%,respectively.
As for shipments of interchangeable lenses, those to Japan and regions outside of Japan decreased by
20.3% and 21.1%, respectively.
Shipments to Japan had been decreasing more moderately than those to regions outside of Japan.
Nonetheless, the latter maintained a large share in the total shipments of digital cameras at around 85%, afigure that demonstrates overwhelming presence of Japanese brands in the worldwide market.

2.

Outlook on shipments in 2020

Total shipments (the cumulative total of shipments from January to December) of digital cameras in 2020are projected to be 11.67 million units, a year-on-year decline of 23.3%. Of those, shipments to Japan andthose to regions outside of Japan are projected to be 1.78 million units (a year-on-year decrease of 23.3%)
and 9.89 million units (a year-on-year decline of 23.3%), respectively.
Broken down by product type, shipments of built-in lens digital cameras are projected to be 4.8 millionunits (a year-on-year fall of 29.0%). Of those, shipments to Japan and those to regions outside of Japan are
projected to be 1.1 million units (a year-on-year decrease of 25.7%) and 3.7 million units (a year-on-yeardecline of 29.8%), respectively. Shipments of interchangeable lens digital cameras are projected to be 6.87
million units (a year-on-year fall of 18.8%). Of those, shipments to Japan and those to regions outside of2

Japan are projected to be 0.68 million units (a year-on-year fall of 18.1%) and 6.19 million units (a yearon-year decrease of 18.9%), respectively.
Shipments of interchangeable lenses are projected to fall 16.4% year on year to 11.9 million units. Of those,shipments to Japan and those to regions outside of Japan are projected to decline 15.2% year on year to
1.4 million units and 16.6% year on year to 10.5 million units, respectively.
In light of the results in 2019, we have made conservative projections for 2020. However, precisely because
we live in the age where everyone can take photos with their smartphone, it is not unreasonable to expectthat there will be an increase in those who desire new digital cameras in order to take photos that give thema greater sense of satisfaction, take scene pictures that they could never achieve with their smartphone, andtake pictures with a great sense of artistic quality that they really feel content with.
In 2019, we conducted a questionnaire survey, asking camera users, including those using only
smartphones to take photos, "Which device or instrument would you like to buy within a year?" Amongthe teenage respondents, the most common answer was "Digital camera". In their reports, some news
media mentioned the result as "a sign of hope."
Photographic equipment makers will continue releasing new products with great ambition while adopting
approaches to lower hurdles that might put off new users. Our industry will make tireless endeavors toregain momentum for growth.

The end3

PRESS RELEASE

2020/2/3

2020 Outlook on the Shipment by Product-Type Concerning Cameras and Related Goods
Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA)

In 10,000 units

Total shipments
Shipments to Japan

Item

Except for Shipments to Japan

2019(Results)% ofresults ayear
before2020(Projection)% ofresults ayear
before2019(Results)% ofresults ayear
before2020(Projection)% ofresults ayear
before2019(Results)% ofresults ayear
before2020(Projection)% ofresults ayearbefore

Digital Camera(Total)

1522

78.3%

1167

76.7%

232

81.4%

178

76.7%

1290

77.8%

989

76.7%

Camera with
Built-in Lens

676

78.0%

480

71.0%

148

83.1%

110

74.3%

527

76.7%

370

70.2%

Camera with
Interchangeable
Lens

846

78.6%

687

81.2%

83

78.5%

68

81.9%

763

78.7%

619

81.1%

1424

79.0%

1190

83.6%

165

79.7%

140

84.8%

1259

78.9%

1050

83.4%

Interchangeable
Lens]
Note: figures may not add up due to rounding.

Contact information:
Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA)
E-mail: infostat@cipa.jp
URL: http://www.cipa.jp/