In the wake of Canon’s acquisition of Axis Communications, the company faces a communication challenge in the market – to reiterate the camera manufacturer’s commitment to open systems- acknowledges Fredrik Nilsson, General Manager, North America of the Swedish IP camera vendor.
“We say nothing will change, and we will show it in our action as well as say it,” he comments. “There have been companies that have claimed openness, but then don’t support certain features. If you say you’re open, you have to show it, or you lose credibility. We will prove it by showing it. We will continue to work side-by-side with the same companies.”
It’s the same communication challenge that open video management system (VMS) company Milestone faced last year when it was acquired by Canon.
“Both companies have been very successful with the open structure, and that is our best opportunity for the foreseeable future,” says Nilsson. “We will be separate entities, not even part of the same division.”
But what might the future hold? “If the market changes, Canon is ahead,” says Nilsson. “They can change. For now, there is no change.”
In other words, in the future, if the market starts to favor a “one-stop solution” from a single manufacturer, Canon will be well positioned to adapt to the new model (perhaps alongside the current model), given that they have the expertise – considering Axis combined with Milestone – to provide complete systems.
“Who knows?” says Nilsson. “It may happen in a year, or in eight years, or it may never happen. Canon is an extremely long-term company, and they’re not looking to change things in a quarter. The other thing is, when they do something, they do it very well. They decided not to dabble in the security market – they acquired big companies in each category.”
