ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, July 9, 1996 TAG: 9607090065
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: THE NEW YORK TIMES
Fuji Photo Film Co. fired a fresh salvo Monday in its war against Eastman Kodak Co. for a bigger share of the American photofinishing market. It said it would buy Wal-Mart Stores' six photofinishing plants at a price analysts estimated at $200 million.
The sale would increase Fuji's network of wholesale photofinishing plants to 21 from 15. More significantly, it includes an agreement for Fuji to provide photofinishing supplies for Wal-Mart's in-store photo-processing labs, wresting away one of Kodak's plum customers.
``Obviously, Kodak remains the market leader, but this will definitely strengthen our position in the U.S. photofinishing market,'' said Thomas Shay, a Fuji spokesman.
Brenda Lee Landry, an analyst with Morgan Stanley & Co., said, ``Fuji scored a real coup.''
Few analysts expect the sale to alter the balance of power between Kodak, which controls more than 80 percent of the roughly $5.5 billion amateur-photo processing market in the United States, and Fuji, which had less than 10 percent before the Wal-Mart deal.
``This is a modest positive for Fuji, but Kodak still has momentum,'' said Eugene G. Glazer, an analyst with Dean Witter Reynolds Inc.. He added that Kodak has been on a lab acquisition spree for two years.
Alexander V. Wasilov, Kodak's vice president for consumer imaging, said, ``We feel we made a very aggressive bid for the labs, and we were sorry not to get them.''
LENGTH: Short : 38 linesby CNB