Sony and Konica Minolta to develop dSLR cameras

Bloomberg writes Sony and Konica Minolta will work together on new digital cameras that use interchangeable lenses.

Sales of these new dSLR cameras will start next year. The cameras will be sold under both company names and will be Sony's first digital camera that can use multiple lenses.

Sony is currently the second biggest seller of digital cameras and hopes to boost its earnings by providing more profitable digital SLR models as competitors are pushing down prices of compact models.

``Digital SLRs used to be a field that was protected from price declines because consumer electronics makers couldn't enter the market,'' said Kunihiko Kanno, an analyst at Credit Suisse First Boston who covers Japanese technology companies. ``Matsushita and Sony's entry suggests increased competition in the industry.''

Konica Minolta recently presented the new 6.1 megapixel Maxxum 5D dSLR camera which will ship for only $799. This will be one of the cheapest digital SLR cameras on the market.