GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

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biker jk
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GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby biker jk » Tue Jan 09, 2018 1:54 pm

Can't say I'm surprised.

GoPro shares slump as it sacks 255 workers, slashes CEO's pay to $US1
By business reporter David Chau
Posted 44 minutes ago

GoPro camera on dashboard
PHOTO: GoPro will cut 20 per cent of its global staff, targetting a headcount of less than 1,000. (ABC News: Giulio Saggin)
MAP: United States
In a sign of troubled times ahead, camera maker GoPro has decided to cut 20 per cent of its global workforce.

GoPro is planning to re-structure through an $80 million cost-cutting program, which will see least 255 employees lose their jobs to achieve a headcount of "fewer than 1,000 employees worldwide".

The company will also exit the drone business and stop manufacturing its Karma line of aerial drones.

On top of that, the cash compensation for the company's CEO and co-founder, Nicholas Woodman, will get slashed to just $US1 this year.

This is in comparison to his $US800,000 salary and US$1.2 million target bonus in 2016.

After the market digested this news, GoPro's shares plunged to by almost 30 per cent — to an all-time low of $US5.10 in early morning trade on Monday (New York time).

By the close of trade, it moderated its losses to 12.8 per cent to achieve a closing share price of $US6.56.

GoPro's fortunes have become so dire that it is even open to the idea of getting sold to another company.

Disappointing revenue
The trigger for these extreme measures was GoPro's announcement that it expects disappointing revenue results for the last quarter.

In particular, the company forecast its revenue will fall sharply by 37 per cent to $US340 million, which is far short of Wall Street estimates (of a more lofty $US472 million).

GoPro also had to slash prices on its cameras to drive more sales, as it faced weak demand for its products during the holiday season.

Back in its hey-day (October 2014), the company's share price was around $US87, which is 17 times higher than its current value.

"At the start of the holiday quarter we saw soft demand for our HERO5 Black camera," Mr Woodman said.

"Despite significant marketing support, we found consumers were reluctant to purchase HERO5 Black at the same price it launched at one year earlier."

In an announcement to the market, the company said it has lowered the price of its premium model, HERO6 Black, from $US499 to $US399 "to align with its good, better, best product strategy".


http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-01-09/g ... ff/9314278

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby queequeg » Tue Jan 09, 2018 3:01 pm

Is this self-inflicted? I know when I looked at action cameras for the bike, I had to rule out using GoPro devices because the cheapo camera they had was intentionally hobbled, and the next model up was too expensive to run on the bike. Then they ditched all the cheap cameras...

I kind of feel their focus on the premium market has been their undoing.
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby RonK » Tue Jan 09, 2018 3:55 pm

Thinking they could take on the world's leading drone maker was their undoing...
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby biker jk » Tue Jan 09, 2018 4:28 pm

queequeg wrote:Is this self-inflicted? I know when I looked at action cameras for the bike, I had to rule out using GoPro devices because the cheapo camera they had was intentionally hobbled, and the next model up was too expensive to run on the bike. Then they ditched all the cheap cameras...

I kind of feel their focus on the premium market has been their undoing.
I bought a Hero 4 Silver only to discover it doesn't do proper continuous loop recording as claimed on the GoPro web site. After many emails back and forth, the GoPro engineer finally admitted that their camera doesn't do continuous loop recording. I suggested they make this a feature, which would make the camera more attractive to cyclists, but they didn't care. I sent my camera back for a full refund.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby queequeg » Tue Jan 09, 2018 5:24 pm

RonK wrote:Thinking they could take on the world's leading drone maker was their undoing...
So, in a bit of irony, it's Karma?
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby bychosis » Tue Jan 09, 2018 10:43 pm

Seem to have cornered the ‘professional’ market. GoPro seem to be the weapon of choice in Tv and the more professional YouTube clips. They’ve forgotten about the cheaper end of the market and the extension to the likes of dash cams and safety cams.
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby Cyclophiliac » Wed Jan 10, 2018 12:43 pm

This news is no surprise. For years, GoPro have been piling on the features with every new version (but ignoring commonly-requested features as mentioned above), but doing NOTHING about improving some basics such as battery life and weight.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby PA » Wed Jan 10, 2018 1:12 pm

I didn't buy a GoPro because of the form factor that it is. They should repackage the housing to create a shape like the Contour Lipstick camera. They don't need new tech just repackage current tech.
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby RonK » Wed Jan 10, 2018 1:31 pm

queequeg wrote:
RonK wrote:Thinking they could take on the world's leading drone maker was their undoing...
So, in a bit of irony, it's Karma?
Hehe - for sure. :lol:
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby Kronos » Thu Jan 11, 2018 3:49 pm

Its all about sensor size. The DJI uses a micro four thirds sized sensor... You can almost pack a full frame sensor from a Sony A7/A9 into a small box these days minus the size of the lens. Mirrorless cameras of higher quality killed GoPro.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby trailgumby » Thu Jan 11, 2018 6:17 pm

No doubting the quality of the image capture is great with GoPro. My old Hero3 Black still beats my FLy12 and FLy6 hand down.

The problem with GoPros is the crap battery life and lack of continuous loop recording. Add to that the challenge of fiddling around with fog-prone waterproof casings, managing water absorption (fog prevention) strips in wet weather, and having to remove from the housing to recharge and it all got too painful. Oh, and there's that chip/software fault that means it keeps turning itself on.

They didn't listen to their customers so their customers went elsewhere.

Hopefully they pull back from the brink and eat some humble pie. They'll be a much better company for the experience I hope.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby Kronos » Thu Jan 11, 2018 11:05 pm

Sensor size is an issue if you're a more serious photographer... You start out with something like the DJI Phantom if you're into drones which has the larger Micro Four Thirds sensor. For action cam stuff the Go Pro is fine mostly because it only has to capture 4K image quality which is 8megapixels or 3840 pixels × 2160... The higher end DJI stuff caters for 16megapixels... Of course you're not interested in that (yet) because your TV or computer monitor doesn't need it yet. But when we have 8K you'll get back to me.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby AUbicycles » Mon Jan 15, 2018 12:03 am

I am not surprised - for cycling it was obvious from that outset that they weren't interest but that is only a small part. Accessible consumer camera's is where there strength had to be with increased competition and options.
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby Kronos » Mon Jan 15, 2018 1:01 am

Better quality cameras that aren't much more expensive I would say is what's killing GoPro.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby Arbuckle23 » Mon Jan 15, 2018 7:23 am

An interesting analysis of Gopro's situation


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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby queequeg » Mon Jan 15, 2018 10:53 am

Arbuckle23 wrote:An interesting analysis of Gopro's situation
Interesting analysis.

Funny thing is, I have been using Garmin VIRBs on my bike for a couple of years as they were about 1/4 the price of the GoPro, didn't need an external case to protect them from the weather (Hence they don't suffer from the lens fogging up), and they unclip from the bike in 2 seconds. At the time, every new camera that came out was compared to a GoPro, and the initial incarnation of the VIRB did not do so well. That is despite the fact it's actually a pretty rock solid device (well, once they fixed a few annoying firmware glitches). Battery life was the main killer, but at least the VIRB had an easily accessible battery.

I am about to update the cameras on my bike. I did not even consider the GoPro. In the cycling market, they have been flanked. I have decided to go with the new Fly12/Fly6. I don't need a "Pro" camera with 4K or 8K recording on my bike. If I did, I would probably be more inclined to update my VIRB devices as they have all the sensor data from the bike included.
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby Kronos » Mon Jan 15, 2018 6:10 pm

Kaboom, if I were GoPro now on the basis of what I know I would be hoping for a buyout. All of this relates back in a way to the company not evolving and if you know anything business once your standing still and everyone knows what you are you go bust. What they should have done is invested in developing larger sensor cameras on the back of the GoPro name.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby djw47 » Mon Jan 29, 2018 1:14 pm

They're far too expensive - simple as that.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby Kronos » Wed Mar 21, 2018 3:05 am

djw47 wrote:They're far too expensive - simple as that.
Where a heap of competition exists in he lower end and where you have a general audience that doesn't know much about cameras and only cares that the image does not look like potato vision this is where its at. Just like with Android phones, why would I buy a premium Android phone where I can get a Chinese knock off for 1/10th the price that's just as good as the others.

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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby RonK » Wed Mar 28, 2018 11:06 am

Why would you pay GoPro's price when you can buy a 4K WiFi Waterproof Action Camera for $29.99?
This 4K WiFi Action Camera is designed to keep up with the sports enthusiast and action adventurer. It will capture all your endeavours with crystal clear clarity and allow you to relive the fun over and over again. Equipped with a 2” LCD screen, Micro SD memory card slot supporting up to 32GB, broad 170º wide angle lens and WiFi function allowing you to control the camera, watch live previews, photo & video playback and sharing all your action shots - now get out there and capture some truly awe-inspiring moments!
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby AUbicycles » Wed Mar 28, 2018 6:44 pm

Simply depends on your requirements and wishes.

From the marketing side, GoPro established itself as a well known 'me too' product. You pay more but it is easier to decide and there are fewer unknowns.Also, the top models certainly have also provided that top level (action cam style) footage.

For a cheap camera there are a lot of questions:
- Quality of the image sensor
- Quality of the lens and overall construction
- Usability
- Mounting
- Connectability
- Footage end result

All users want the best footage and I have tested a lot of action cameras and seen big differences in quality. If you want something basic, a cheap camera may be fine - but then if the lens starts fogging and you can't use it after 20 minutes because it has not been built to solve the condensation problems, this is where pricier cameras should be superior.

Australia post had some of the cheap and nastys, could be good for kids but for a reliable and suitable camera, these simply come in a different price range... and there are a lot of alternatives to GoPro.
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby RonK » Wed Mar 28, 2018 7:51 pm

All very well but events have shown the customers have voted otherwise.
Action cameras are now simply a commodity, and at current prices pretty much disposable.
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby outnabike » Thu Mar 29, 2018 2:05 pm

I don't even know what the throw away market price is though.


My tiny Mobius and the old Sony are still working fine after around five years. I can pull excellent stills off both of them.

The Mobius was around $ 100-00 the Sony $160-00
I have 3 other identical cameras as dash cams, all 2-3 years old around $90-00 complete with a 32 mg card. I just bought another one from Dick Smith as a back up.I am using it on the bike and it runs for 10 hours of a battery pack.
If you want pretty this isn't it. It's a dash cam and larger designed. If you aren't into speed and want a camera to capture folks trying to kill you the cam is working well.

I keep reading of high priced long battery specific bike cams that are a problem all to often.
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby outnabike » Thu Mar 29, 2018 4:36 pm

Go pro are hitting back with a budget cam. March 30 something.

https://www.dpreview.com/news/819933577 ... ll-cost-20
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Re: GoPro shares slump, fires 20% of its workforce

Postby RonK » Thu Mar 29, 2018 6:25 pm

Also known as "closing the gate after the horse has bolted".
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