TOKYO—Nikon is acquiring digital cinema camera manufacturer Red Digital Cinema, one the most disruptive and pioneering camera makers in the world. RED’s innovations go back to the original RED One camera that rocked NAB in 2007 to the 8K V-Raptor, used on blockbuster Hollywood films including Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3, and many in between–the Epic, the Scarlet, the Monstro, and more. The influence of Red cameras cannot be overstated–at many an NAB there were lines around the block, Much of what is considered the natural progression of resolution was supercharged by Red’s iconoclastic presence in an industry dominated by the established camera makers. There were many agents of the digital camera resolution–this brings two of the big ones together. The terms of the deal were not released.
Founded in 2005 by Jim Jannard, who previously founded Oakley, famous for its sunglasses, RED gained a reputation as a non-traditional outlier in the professional camera business given its rapid rise amid more traditional camera makers like Sony, Panasonic, Canon or even Grass Valley (which had acquired Philips cameras when purchased by Thomson). The question over whether Nikon was planning on entering the professional digital cinema camera market is not new—speculation has been around for several years now.
Over its nearly 15 year existence, RED has introduced a number of industry-defining products such as the original RED ONE 4K to the cutting-edge V-RAPTOR [X] with its proprietary RAW compression technology. RED’s contributions to the film industry have not only earned it an Academy Award but have also made it the camera of choice for numerous Hollywood productions.
“This agreement was reached as a result of the mutual desires of Nikon and RED to meet the customers’ needs and offer exceptional user experiences that exceed expectations, merging the strengths of both companies,” Nikon said in a statement. “Nikon’s expertise in product development, exceptional reliability, and know-how in image processing, as well as optical technology and user interface along with RED’s knowledge in cinema cameras, including unique image compression technology and color science, will enable the development of distinctive products in the professional digital cinema camera market.”
