Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Kodak to up cost of film stock

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Posted by Ron Keillor (Member # 1790) on 04-19-2006, 03:18 AM:

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/printarticle.asp?Feed=AP&Date=20060417&ID=5645894
April 17, 2006 10:24 AM ET
Eastman Kodak Announces Film Price Hikes

All Associated Press News
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) - Eastman Kodak Co., the world's largest maker of photographic film, said Monday it is raising prices by as much as 17 percent on a variety of its film products.

The company cited rising costs for raw materials such as silver and petrochemicals. The company also attributed the price increases to growing expenses for packaging and transportation, which are tied to higher energy costs.

Price hikes for consumer and professional films will range from 3 percent to 17 percent, and price increases for some motion picture films will range from 3 percent to 5 percent, the company said.

Kodak also announced a double-digit price increase for prepress consumables including printing plates and proofing equipment.

Some of the price increases will take effect May 1. The company said it will vary the implementation of the remaining increases depending on product and location.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 04-19-2006, 12:30 PM:

Why is this newsworthy? Prices on everything are going up. Although it might be handy to print-out and keep on hand for the next time we raise ticket prices. "Sure, we raised our price by a quarter, but film is now 5% more expensive, so you're actually getting (in our case) a 6¢ bargain!"

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 04-19-2006, 05:32 PM:

A sudden 17% price hike in any commodity is newsworthy, and even 5% is well above inflation. I guess that oil price rises probably explain most of it - after all, in the case of film, both the raw materials and the energy needed to turn them into the finished product derive mainly from oil. But I suppose the underlying story is unspoken speculation as to whether the move to digital imaging is starting to push economies of scale in the wrong direction where the manufactuer of film-based technologies is concerned, and that this trend could be contributing to the headline price increase.

Posted by Richard Fowler (Member # 893) on 04-19-2006, 07:15 PM:

Kodak is also a major purchaser of silver which has gone up considerably in the last year. There have been new EPA and other government guidelines that are going into effect which are boosting prices. A friend who is a manufacturer is seeing a 400% increase on common basic components due to EPA restrictions.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 04-19-2006, 07:48 PM:

Yaall go price a 500 foot roll of THHN #12 stranded wire and compare those prices to 2 years ago. Makes Digital B Chain alot more friendly looking all the time!

Mark

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 04-20-2006, 03:16 PM:

It's the first general price increase for Kodak motion picture film in quite a few years, so film has actually gone down in inflation-adjusted price over the last decade or so. Price increases for selected motion picture films will range from 3% to 5%.

Over the past year, Kodak has been absorbing unrelenting increases in the costs of raw materials used to manufacture film, including silver (Almost doubled in price this past year!) and petrochemicals (used for making plastic film base). Other costs tied to the escalating price of energy -- including transportation and packaging-- also have increased. These pressures have reached a point where they can no longer be offset by Kodak's ongoing productivity programs.