Olympus Corporation
Encyclopedia
is a Japan-based manufacturer of optics
and reprography products. Olympus was established on 12 October 1919, initially specializing in microscope and thermometer businesses. Its global headquarters are in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan, while its USA operations are based in Center Valley, Pennsylvania
, and European operations are based in Hamburg
, Germany. Its original global headquarters was in Hatagaya, but it is currently under reconstruction.
In late 2011 the company sacked its newly-appointed British president, precipitating a scandal that wiped 75% off the company's stock market valuation. The scandal culminated in admission by the company that some of its board members had engaged in one of the biggest and most durable loss-concealing scams in the history of corporate Japan.
, launched in 1959. Half-frame format, allowing 72 pictures of 18 × 24mm format on a standard 36 exposure roll of film, made Pen cameras compact and portable for their time.
The Pen system design team, led by Yoshihisa Maitani
, later created the OM system
, a full-frame professional 35mm SLR system designed to compete with Nikon
and Canon's
bestsellers. The OM system introduced a new trend towards more compact cameras and lenses, being much smaller than its competitors and presenting innovative design features such as off-the-film (OTF) metering and OTF flash automation. Eventually the system included 14 different bodies, approximately 60 Zuiko-branded lenses, and numerous camera accessories.
However, Olympus did not implement autofocus, ultimately leading to their decline as a maker of professional film camera systems.
In 1983, Olympus, along with Canon, branded a range of video recording equipment manufactured by JVC
, and called it "Olympus Video Photography", even employing renowned photographer Terance Donovan to promote the range. A second version of the system was available the year after, but this was Olympus' last foray into the world of consumer video equipment until digital cameras became popular.
Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, who was later to become President of Olympus, foresaw the demand for the digital SLR, and is credited with the company's strategy in digital photography. He fought for commitment by Olympus to enter the market in high-resolution photographic products. As a result of his efforts, Olympus released an 810,000-pixel digital camera for the mass market in 1996, when the resolution of rivals' offerings were less than half. The very next year, Olympus hit the market with a 1.41 million pixel camera. By 2001, the company's annual turnover from digital photography was in excess of ¥100 billion. Olympus manufactures compact digital cameras and is the designer of the Four-Thirds System standard for digital single-lens reflex camera
s. Olympus' Four Thirds system
flagship DSLR camera is the E-5
released in 2010. Olympus is also the largest manufacturer of Four-Thirds lenses, under the Zuiko brand.
At one time Olympus cameras used only the proprietary xD-Picture Card for storage media. This storage solution is less popular than more common formats, and recent cameras can use SD
and CompactFlash
cards. The most recent development is Olympus' focus on the Micro Four Thirds system
.
Olympus first introduced the Microcassette
. The Olympus Pearlcorder L400, released in the 1980s, was the smallest and lightest Microcassette Voice recorder ever offered for sale, 2.9 (L) × 0.8 (H) × 2.0 in. (W) / 73 (L) × 20 (H) × 52 (W) 3.2 oz (90.7 g).
software, industrial videoscopes, fiberscope
s, light sources, XRF
and XRD analyzers, and high-speed video cameras.
, 51, was named president and chief operating officer – the first ever foreigner to hold the position – replacing Kikukawa, who became chairman. Woodford, an Olympus veteran of 30-years, was previously Executive Managing Director of Olympus Medical Systems Europa. Olympus appointed Woodford its CEO six months later, but the board suddenly removed him as chief executive two weeks into the job, whilst allowing him to retain his board seat.
Woodford alleged that his removal was linked to several prior acquisitions he questioned, particularly the US$2.2 billion deal in 2008 to acquire British medical equipment maker Gyrus Group. Thomson Reuters
reported that US$687 million was paid to a middle-man as a success fee
– a sum equal to 31% of the purchase price, and which ranks as the highest ever M&A fee. According to the Daily Telegraph, some of the sums paid out relating to the acquisition of a technology company ITX were also under examination. Woodford noted that an article in Japanese financial magazine Facta in July prompted his suspicion of the transactions. Reports also said the company acquired three other Japanese companies outside its core business, and recognised that the assets were worth US$721 million less than their acquisition value 12 months previously.
Shareholders expressed concern after Olympus' share price nearly halved in value following the Woodford revelations, and asked for "prompt action". Following his dismissal, Woodford passed on information to the British Serious Fraud Office, and requested police protection. He said the payments may have been linked to "forces behind" the Olympus board. Japanese newspaper Sankei
suggest that a total of $1.5bn in acquisition-related advisory payments could be linked to the Yakuza
.
The company responded on 19 October that "major differences had arisen between Mr. Woodford and other management regarding the direction and conduct of the company’s business". On the Gyrus acquisition, it also declared the Audit Board's view that “no dishonesty or illegality is found in the transaction itself, nor any breach of obligation to good management or any systematic errors by the directors recognised.” On 26 October, the company announced that in order to assuage shareholders' concerns, Kikukawa resigned as chairman; he was replaced by Shuichi Takayama. Olympus shares rebounded 23 percent.
On 8 November 2011, the company admitted that the money had been used to cover losses on investments
dating to the 1990s and that company's accounting practice was "not appropriate", thus coming clean on "one of the biggest and longest-running loss-hiding arrangements in Japanese corporate history", according to the Wall Street Journal. The company laid the blame for the inappropriate accounting on ex-president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, auditor Hideo Yamada and executive VP Hisashi Mori.
Optics
Optics is the branch of physics which involves the behavior and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behavior of visible, ultraviolet, and infrared light...
and reprography products. Olympus was established on 12 October 1919, initially specializing in microscope and thermometer businesses. Its global headquarters are in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan, while its USA operations are based in Center Valley, Pennsylvania
Center Valley, Pennsylvania
Center Valley is an unincorporated village one mile north of Coopersburg, Pennsylvania, at the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 309 and Pennsylvania Route 378 in Upper Saucon Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States....
, and European operations are based in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Germany. Its original global headquarters was in Hatagaya, but it is currently under reconstruction.
In late 2011 the company sacked its newly-appointed British president, precipitating a scandal that wiped 75% off the company's stock market valuation. The scandal culminated in admission by the company that some of its board members had engaged in one of the biggest and most durable loss-concealing scams in the history of corporate Japan.
Cameras & audio
In 1936, Olympus introduced its first camera, the Semi-Olympus I. The first innovative camera series from Olympus was the PenOlympus Pen
The Pen series is a family of half-frame cameras made by Olympus from 1959 to the beginning of the 1980s, and from 2009. Aside from the Pen F series of half-frame SLRs, they are fixed-lens viewfinder cameras....
, launched in 1959. Half-frame format, allowing 72 pictures of 18 × 24mm format on a standard 36 exposure roll of film, made Pen cameras compact and portable for their time.
The Pen system design team, led by Yoshihisa Maitani
Yoshihisa Maitani
Yoshihisa Maitani was a designer of cameras for Olympus after joining Olympus in 1956 he went on to work for them for a further 40 years. He was involved with the design of many of their most well known cameras including the Pen and Pen F half frame cameras, the OM System, the XA and later the...
, later created the OM system
Olympus OM system
The Olympus OM System was a line of 35mm single-lens reflex cameras, lenses and accessories sold by Olympus between 1972 and 2002 ....
, a full-frame professional 35mm SLR system designed to compete with Nikon
Nikon
, also known as just Nikon, is a multinational corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, specializing in optics and imaging. Its products include cameras, binoculars, microscopes, measurement instruments, and the steppers used in the photolithography steps of semiconductor fabrication, of which...
and Canon's
Canon Inc.
is a Japanese multinational corporation that specialises in the manufacture of imaging and optical products, including cameras, camcorders, photocopiers, steppers and computer printers. Its headquarters are located in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan.-Origins:...
bestsellers. The OM system introduced a new trend towards more compact cameras and lenses, being much smaller than its competitors and presenting innovative design features such as off-the-film (OTF) metering and OTF flash automation. Eventually the system included 14 different bodies, approximately 60 Zuiko-branded lenses, and numerous camera accessories.
However, Olympus did not implement autofocus, ultimately leading to their decline as a maker of professional film camera systems.
In 1983, Olympus, along with Canon, branded a range of video recording equipment manufactured by JVC
JVC
, usually referred to as JVC, is a Japanese international consumer and professional electronics corporation based in Yokohama, Japan which was founded in 1927...
, and called it "Olympus Video Photography", even employing renowned photographer Terance Donovan to promote the range. A second version of the system was available the year after, but this was Olympus' last foray into the world of consumer video equipment until digital cameras became popular.
Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, who was later to become President of Olympus, foresaw the demand for the digital SLR, and is credited with the company's strategy in digital photography. He fought for commitment by Olympus to enter the market in high-resolution photographic products. As a result of his efforts, Olympus released an 810,000-pixel digital camera for the mass market in 1996, when the resolution of rivals' offerings were less than half. The very next year, Olympus hit the market with a 1.41 million pixel camera. By 2001, the company's annual turnover from digital photography was in excess of ¥100 billion. Olympus manufactures compact digital cameras and is the designer of the Four-Thirds System standard for digital single-lens reflex camera
Digital single-lens reflex camera
Most digital single-lens reflex cameras are digital cameras that use a mechanical mirror system and pentaprism to direct light from the lens to an optical viewfinder on the back of the camera....
s. Olympus' Four Thirds system
Four Thirds System
The Four Thirds system is a standard created by Olympus and Kodak for digital single-lens reflex camera design and development.The system provides a standard that, with digital cameras and lenses available from multiple manufacturers, allows for the interchange of lenses and bodies from different...
flagship DSLR camera is the E-5
Olympus E-5
The Olympus E-5 is Olympus Corporation's flagship camera, positioned as a professional DSLR camera. It is the successor to the Olympus E-3, which was launched on October 17, 2007. The E-5 was announced on September 14, 2010...
released in 2010. Olympus is also the largest manufacturer of Four-Thirds lenses, under the Zuiko brand.
At one time Olympus cameras used only the proprietary xD-Picture Card for storage media. This storage solution is less popular than more common formats, and recent cameras can use SD
Secure Digital
Secure Digital is a non-volatile memory card format developed by the SD Card Association for use in portable devices. The SD technology is used by more than 400 brands across dozens of product categories and more than 8,000 models, and is considered the de-facto industry standard.Secure Digital...
and CompactFlash
CompactFlash
CompactFlash is a mass storage device format used in portable electronic devices. Most CompactFlash devices contain flash memory in a standardized enclosure. The format was first specified and produced by SanDisk in 1994...
cards. The most recent development is Olympus' focus on the Micro Four Thirds system
Micro Four Thirds system
The Micro Four Thirds system is a standard created by Olympus and Panasonic, and announced on August 5, 2008, for mirrorless interchangeable lens digital cameras and camcorders design and development...
.
Olympus first introduced the Microcassette
Microcassette
A Microcassette is an audio storage medium introduced by Olympus in 1969. It uses the same width of magnetic tape as the Compact Cassette but in a much smaller container. By using thinner tape and half or a quarter the tape speed, microcassettes can offer comparable recording time to the compact...
. The Olympus Pearlcorder L400, released in the 1980s, was the smallest and lightest Microcassette Voice recorder ever offered for sale, 2.9 (L) × 0.8 (H) × 2.0 in. (W) / 73 (L) × 20 (H) × 52 (W) 3.2 oz (90.7 g).
Medical and surgical
Olympus manufactures endoscopic, ultrasound, electrocautery, endotherapy and cleaning & disinfection equipment. The first flexible Endoscope in the world was co-developed and manufactured by Olympus in Tokyo. Through its comprehensive product range and its reactivity to market innovations, Olympus enjoys a virtual stranglehold of the world market in gastro-intestinal endoscopes. Its has roughly 70% share of the global market whose estimated valued at US$2.5 billion.Scientific
Since the beginning, the company has also been a manufacturer of microscopes and optics for specialised needs, such as medical use. The first microscope manufactured at Olympus was called the Asahi. Nowadays Olympus is a worldwide renowned manufacturer of microscopes. Olympus offers a complete range of microscopes, which covers applications from education and routine studies up to state of the art research imaging systems both in life science and materials science.Industrial
Olympus manufactures and sells industrial scanners, flaw detectors, probes and transducers, thickness gages, digital cameras, image analysisImage analysis
Image analysis is the extraction of meaningful information from images; mainly from digital images by means of digital image processing techniques...
software, industrial videoscopes, fiberscope
Fiberscope
A fiberscope is a flexible fiber optic bundle with an eyepiece at one end, and a lens at the other. It is used for inspection work, often to examine small components in tightly packed equipment, when the inspector cannot easily access the part requiring inspection.The lens is often a wide-angle...
s, light sources, XRF
X-ray fluorescence
X-ray fluorescence is the emission of characteristic "secondary" X-rays from a material that has been excited by bombarding with high-energy X-rays or gamma rays...
and XRD analyzers, and high-speed video cameras.
Name & logo
- 1919: The company was founded as Takachiho Seisakusho. In Japanese mythologyJapanese mythologyJapanese mythology is a system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculturally based folk religion. The Shinto pantheon comprises innumerable kami...
, deities live on TakamagaharaTakamagaharaTakama-ga-hara , literally "High Heaven's Plain" but often translated as the "High Plain of Heaven," is a place in Japanese mythology. In Shinto, Takama-ga-hara is the dwelling place of the Kami. It is believed to be connected to the Earth by the bridge Ama-no uki-hashi...
, the peak of Mt. Takachiho. The first corporate logo was TOKIWA, derived from Tokiwa Shokai, the company that the founder, Takeshi Yamashita, had worked for. Tokiwa Shokai held an equity stake in Takachiho Seisakusho and was responsible for marketing Takachiho products. The logo reads "TOKIWA TOKYO". The "G" and "M" marks above are believed to be the initials of, Goro Matsukata, the president of Tokiwa Shokai. - 1921: The Olympus brand was introduced in February 1921. This logo was used for microscopes and other products. Brochures and newspaper ads for cameras also used this logo. The OLYMPUS TOKYO logo is still in use today. There was a period in which OIC was used instead of TOKYO in the logo. OIC stood for Optical Industrial Company, which was a translation of Olympus' Japanese corporate name at that time. This logo was used for the GT-I and GT-II endoscopes, among others.
- 1942: The company was renamed to Takachiho Optical Co., Ltd., when optical products became the mainstay of the company.
- 1949: The name changed to Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. It was named after Mount OlympusMount OlympusMount Olympus is the highest mountain in Greece, located on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, about 100 kilometres away from Thessaloniki, Greece's second largest city. Mount Olympus has 52 peaks. The highest peak Mytikas, meaning "nose", rises to 2,917 metres...
, which like Mt. Takachiho is the home of gods, this time of Greek mythologyGreek mythologyGreek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
. In the words of the company, they chose the name to "reflect its strong aspiration to create high-quality, world-famous products". - 1970: The new logo was designed to give impressions of quality and sophistication.
- 2001: The yellow line underneath the new logo is called the "Opto-Digital Pattern" and it represents light and boundless possibilities of digital technology. It symbolizes dynamic and innovative nature of Opto-Digital Technology and Olympus Corporation. This logo is called the Communication Symbol of Olympus and it represents Olympus' brand image.
- 2003: Renamed Olympus Corporation.
Ownership
Shareholding in Olympus is dispersed, and the company's key institutional investors are largely passive. As of 31 March 2011, investors include Nippon Life Insurance (8.4%), Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi (4.98%), and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking (3.13%), and the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (2.55%). Foreign institutions and individuals speak for 27.71% of Olympus shares.Governance
According to its 2011 Annual Report, Olympus is governed by a 15-person board of directors, with Tsuyoshi Kikukawa as its President and CEO, and Michael C. Woodford as President and chief operating officer. It has three "outside directors". It has a four-member 'Board of Auditors' which supervises and audits directors' performance. The company's executive committee consists of 28 members, responsible for the day-to-day operations.Accounting scandal
On 1 April 2011, Michael WoodfordMichael Woodford (executive)
Michael C. Woodford, MBE is a British businessman and former President and CEO of Olympus Corporation.He was the first non-Japanese person to be appointed as the company's CEO...
, 51, was named president and chief operating officer – the first ever foreigner to hold the position – replacing Kikukawa, who became chairman. Woodford, an Olympus veteran of 30-years, was previously Executive Managing Director of Olympus Medical Systems Europa. Olympus appointed Woodford its CEO six months later, but the board suddenly removed him as chief executive two weeks into the job, whilst allowing him to retain his board seat.
Woodford alleged that his removal was linked to several prior acquisitions he questioned, particularly the US$2.2 billion deal in 2008 to acquire British medical equipment maker Gyrus Group. Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters Corporation is a provider of information for the world's businesses and professionals and is created by the Thomson Corporation's purchase of Reuters Group on 17 April 2008. Thomson Reuters is headquartered at 3 Times Square, New York City, USA...
reported that US$687 million was paid to a middle-man as a success fee
Contingent fee
A contingent fee or conditional fee is any fee for services provided where the fee is only payable if there is a favourable result...
– a sum equal to 31% of the purchase price, and which ranks as the highest ever M&A fee. According to the Daily Telegraph, some of the sums paid out relating to the acquisition of a technology company ITX were also under examination. Woodford noted that an article in Japanese financial magazine Facta in July prompted his suspicion of the transactions. Reports also said the company acquired three other Japanese companies outside its core business, and recognised that the assets were worth US$721 million less than their acquisition value 12 months previously.
Shareholders expressed concern after Olympus' share price nearly halved in value following the Woodford revelations, and asked for "prompt action". Following his dismissal, Woodford passed on information to the British Serious Fraud Office, and requested police protection. He said the payments may have been linked to "forces behind" the Olympus board. Japanese newspaper Sankei
Sankei Shimbun
is a daily newspaper in Japan published by the . It has the sixth highest circulation for a newspaper in Japan, and is considered as one of the five "national" newspapers...
suggest that a total of $1.5bn in acquisition-related advisory payments could be linked to the Yakuza
Yakuza
, also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...
.
The company responded on 19 October that "major differences had arisen between Mr. Woodford and other management regarding the direction and conduct of the company’s business". On the Gyrus acquisition, it also declared the Audit Board's view that “no dishonesty or illegality is found in the transaction itself, nor any breach of obligation to good management or any systematic errors by the directors recognised.” On 26 October, the company announced that in order to assuage shareholders' concerns, Kikukawa resigned as chairman; he was replaced by Shuichi Takayama. Olympus shares rebounded 23 percent.
On 8 November 2011, the company admitted that the money had been used to cover losses on investments
Tobashi scheme
A Tobashi scheme is a financial fraud where a client's losses are hidden by an investment firm by shifting them between the portfolios of other clients. Any real client with portfolio losses can therefore have their accounts flattered by this process. This cycling cannot continue indefinitely and...
dating to the 1990s and that company's accounting practice was "not appropriate", thus coming clean on "one of the biggest and longest-running loss-hiding arrangements in Japanese corporate history", according to the Wall Street Journal. The company laid the blame for the inappropriate accounting on ex-president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, auditor Hideo Yamada and executive VP Hisashi Mori.
See also
- Four Thirds SystemFour Thirds SystemThe Four Thirds system is a standard created by Olympus and Kodak for digital single-lens reflex camera design and development.The system provides a standard that, with digital cameras and lenses available from multiple manufacturers, allows for the interchange of lenses and bodies from different...
- Laboratory equipmentLaboratory equipmentLaboratory equipment refers to the various tools and equipment used by scientists working in a laboratory. These include tools such as Bunsen burners, and microscopes as well as speciality equipment such as operant conditioning chambers, spectrophotometers and calorimeters...
- List of digital camera brands
- List of Olympus products
- List of photographic equipment makers
- Micro Four Thirds SystemMicro Four Thirds systemThe Micro Four Thirds system is a standard created by Olympus and Panasonic, and announced on August 5, 2008, for mirrorless interchangeable lens digital cameras and camcorders design and development...
- Olympus OM systemOlympus OM systemThe Olympus OM System was a line of 35mm single-lens reflex cameras, lenses and accessories sold by Olympus between 1972 and 2002 ....
- Variable Control Voice ActuatorVariable Control Voice ActuatorThe term Variable Control Voice Actuator refers to a digital recording technology developed by Olympus, which is implemented in many of their digital voice recorders...
- xD-Picture CardXD-Picture CardxD-Picture Card is a flash memory card format, used mainly in older digital cameras. xD stands for Extreme Digital.xD cards are available in capacities of 16 MiB up to 2 GiB.- History :...
and SmartMediaSmartMediaSmartMedia is a flash memory card standard owned by Toshiba, with capacities ranging from 2 MB to 128 MB. SmartMedia memory cards are no longer manufactured.- History :...