GoPro cuts lineup of action cameras
GoPro’s struggled over the past year, with revenue dropping steeply quarter over quarter. The company took a $57 million hit with excess camera inventory and obsolete technology being described as the cause. Starting in April the company is cutting their line of cameras down to three action cameras. The lineup will now include the Hero 4 black, Hero 4 Silver, and Hero Session.
The Hero 3 cameras along with the Hero 3 cameras and Hero GoPro will all be cut from the lineup. Following the announcement GoPro’s stocks fell sharply, and continued to fall in after hours trading. Along with the line up being cut GoPro announced CFO Jack Lazar will be retiring after holding the position for two years. He will be replaced in March by Brain McGee, former Qualcomm vice president of business operations.
The companies expecting an increase in sales when there Hero5 hits the market later this year, along with the release of their consumer drone. GoPro was always used on drones, but now many drone makers produce their own camera instead of pushing users towards the companies action cameras. Also users aren’t using action cameras as much, as point and shoots have become cheaper and can shoot 4K quality. A lot of folks buying GoPro’s weren’t using the cameras for amazing adventures but instead to vlog or have a compact camera.
Can all these changes really fix the finical issues of the company? It’s hard to say as GoPro’s have become more expensive and not needed as much if you buy a drone these days. Along with the market closing GoPro’s have tough competition from Sony, Panasonic, Cannon, and dozens of other start ups. Tell us what you think GoPro could do to stay relevant today!