Pentax + Ricoh news and more

Ricoh is considering to withdraw from the camera business – this news comes from Nikkei, here is the English version:

The Japanese company will radically review a production and manufacturing strategy centered on cameras for the retail market, including such brands as Pentax and GR. Options include withdrawing from this segment altogether.

In America, Ricoh is laying off 1,000 workers as it restructures its sales network to reduce overlap with companies it has acquired. In Japan, the company plans to offer early retirement, including to employees who have stayed on past the usual retirement age.

Update: Ricoh issued a statement denying the report, saying that they are focusing on expanding “high-value-added models” (Google translated from Japanese).