It’s been a bad few days for GoPro. Despite having the second best-selling brand in the drones market, GoPro announced that it is exiting the drones market and won’t be making any more of its Karma model once current inventory are all gone.
In a press release, the company gave an insight into its finances and said; ‘Fourth quarter revenue includes a negative impact of approximately $80 million for price protection on HERO6 Black, HERO5 Black and HERO5 Session cameras, as well as the Karma drone. ’
But why is the brand calling it a day on drones? Well, GoPro (which is still the market leading action camera brand) explained; ‘the product faces margin challenges in an extremely competitive aerial market. Furthermore, a hostile regulatory environment in Europe and the United States will likely reduce the total addressable market in the years ahead. These factors make the aerial market untenable and GoPro will exit the market after selling its remaining Karma inventory. GoPro will continue to provide service and support to Karma customers. ’
GoPro is exiting the drone market and will no longer produce the Karma.
But the bad news didn’t end there as GoPro also announced that it is reducing its global workforce by a fifth, from 1,254 employees to fewer than 1,000 employees.
It appears there is action planned to steady the ship with GoPro lowering the price of its premium model, HERO6 Black, from $499 to $399 to align with the brand's ‘good, better, best’ product strategy. What’s more, the press release stated that GoPro founder and CEO, Nicholas Woodman, plans to reduce his 2018 cash compensation to $1.
GoPro’s drone endured a bumpy ride and the Karma was voluntarily withdrawn in November 2016 after issues with the battery disconnecting were reported. An updated design saw the Karma return to the market in February 2017 but the Karma’s modular design split opinions within the photography industry and the company ultimately faced major competition from DJI, who won plaudits with its Inspire, Phantom, Mavic and Spark model. So, will you miss GoPro in the drone market or is this simply ‘Karma’ for not keeping up with other brands? Let us know in the comments section.
. digitalrev.com2018-1-11 03:00