Surprise Canon Fire?

Last week Canon announced an exciting new pro DSLR, the 10.1MP EOS-1D Mark III, and I can’t wait to get my hands on one to test! In addition to a blazing 10fps burst mode, advanced AF system, low light sensitivity as high as ISO 6400, a smart battery, and new dynamic range controls, it’s the first Canon DSLR to feature a 3-inch LCD with Live Preview mode. EOS-1D Mark III news release.

But Canon’s successful “cone of silence” around the information prior to launch drew some cry baby reactions from journalists who didn’t see it coming, and their outrage has become a fun topic on our Pop Forums.

I’m actually impressed that Canon was able to keep tight reigns on the news–especially In a day and age when information on almost every major product gets leaked intentionally or by accident. In this case, I’ll bet more than 1,000 Canon employees were in on the secret worldwide, so keeping everything Hush-Hush was no small undertaking. I’d be even more impressed if it wasn’t for the fact that Canon pulled this off before (Circa August, 2003) with an even more news worthy DSLR—the original 6MP EOS Rebel. I still remember how that announcement took everyone by surprise and stole the spotlight completely away from Olympus just days after it announced its flagship Evolt E-1. Canon went on to sell over 1 billion dollars worth of Rebels, and while no one expects the same from the more expensive EOS-1D Mark III, you can see why complete surprise has become part of Canon’s marketing strategy.

You might wonder, “Did anyone at Pop get pre-briefed on this new Canon camera prior to the announcement?” For legal reasons, I’m not at liberty to answer that question. But even if we hadn’t been briefed, I still wouldn’t be upset in the least with Canon’s “surprise”. It used to be that when a leak appeared in a print publication, or someone accidentally forgot the official Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) date prior to a product announcement, only the publication’s readers (and competitors) would notice right away. The rest of the world wouldn’t notice, and the original transgressor might get slapped on the wrist or black listed for a little while. Not really much damage done in most cases.

In cyberspace (just as in outer space), a small leak is a dangerous thing. Once an obscure web site operating on solar batteries in Outer Mongolia leaks a tiny bit of information on a product, other web sites spread it like a virus around the world within minutes or hours. Why? They all want to get the news to their readers first, increase traffic so they can sell ads, or just boast about their incredible hits per month. (Hey, just like us!) But many secondary sites do so even if they have signed an NDA agreement, since once information is out there the NDA is harder to enforce. As a result, it pays for a company to keep a tight lid on product information until it can publish the final specs and have all its marketing ducks in a row.

However, sometimes companies intentionally leak information about their upcoming products in a desperate attempt to offset sales of their competitor’s products. In this case, they rely on the “viral marketing” abilities of the Web to get their information (or disinformation) out to the public. It doesn’t take long to spot a viral campaign, and that’s what serious journalists should really be complaining about–not tight security around a new product launch.

(Secret note to web staff: After you post this blog, could you please return the pre-production 12.4MP Canon EOS 40D to the lab? I want to finish checking out its Live Preview and Infrared modes before I send it back on Friday.)

Comments

[JMS(of the forums)]

I have to say that this was probably the best McNamara Report that I've seen in a while. And just in case that last bit wasn't a joke, I'm watching PopPhoto.com's front page. Along with DPReview.

[Alex]

Good sir, your PostScript is bloody brilliant. Simply bloody brilliant.
Thanks for saying in print what we've all been thinking.

[Debby Richard]

I can't wait to get my hands on one either.