Yesterday the company launched seven new models in the PowerShot and Ixus families. Two - the five-million pixel PowerShot A530 and four-million pixel A430 - are offered at Bt7,990 and Bt6,990 respectively.

Warin Tantipongpanich, director and general manager for Consumer Imaging and Information Division of Canon Marketing (Thailand), said the low prices would attract many new consumers who always wanted to buy Canon but never found affordable prices like ones offered now.

Another strategy to gain new customers is to offer digital cameras with other accessories such as printers, photo paper and accessories that link digi-tal cameras with other equipment.

Warin said the strategy was practical because prices for the accessories had already decreased to an affordable level for most consumers.

The company plans to arrange marketing events in department stores and shopping complexes nationwide to give shoppers a chance to try out Canon products.

The company plans to arrange 40-50 such events between now and August 31. The road events will be sepa-rated into two kinds: for Canon's IT products and its seven new digital camera

models.

The budget for the events is Bt30 million, according to Warin. Last year, the company conducted 20-30 marketing events.

He said other marketing shindigs would be held later after August.

The company hopes to add five per cent market share by this year-end from the 11 per cent it held at the end of last year.

That would make Canon the second-largest digital camera firm, compared to third today. It hopes to snare the top spot before 2010.

This year, the company expects to sell 128,000 came-ras, 50-per-cent more than in 2005.

The seven new models that were launched yesterday are Ixus 800 IS, Ixus 65, Ixus 60, PowerShot A700, PowerShot A540, PowerShot A530, and PowerShot A430.

The most expensive model costs Bt19,900.

Nitida Asawanipont

The Nation