GoPro released its latest action cam model, the GoPro HERO12 Black, on September 13. It is available on the official website and at retailers in Japan, and is priced at 62,800 yen. We had the opportunity to speak with GoPro founder Nick (Nicholas) Woodman, who was in Japan for the promotion. As a surfer himself, Mr. Woodman founded GoPro to create a camera that would allow people to take powerful angles for selfies while surfing. Of course, he is still an active surfer and carries a GoPro with him. GoPro was born out of a deep-seated desire to create what users want. The latest model, the HERO12, inherits the basic specifications from the HERO11, including the built-in processor, sensor size, and body size, and is capable of 10-bit shooting at 5.3K 60fps or 4K 120fps. It also newly supports 5.3K and 4K HDR video, 27MP HDR photos, GP-Log + LUT color adjustment, and HyperSmooth 6.0 image stabilization. The biggest topic is the revamped battery management to improve power efficiency, with a continuous shooting time of 70 minutes at 5.3K60fps with HyperSmooth 6.0 on. This is twice as long as the HERO11 (35 minutes) under the same conditions. In addition, the camera now supports Bluetooth audio connectivity for wireless audio recording with only the main unit, and the Max Lens Modular external option for a wide viewing angle has been updated to 2.0, enabling ultra-wide 177-degree shooting at 40K60fps.
Sales strategy changed after the Corona disaster Woodman said he had been in Japan with his family in private, but not since 2019 to promote GoPro. During that time, the world was hit by the Corona disaster, which was a headwind period for GoPro, which is used for outside activities. GoPro’s sales strategy also changed: the HERO8 was released in October 2019 and the HERO9 in September 2020, just in time for the plunge into the Corona disaster. The company began offering a discount on the price of the unit if you sign up for a subscriber program at the time of the HERO9’s introduction. Travel is a very big part of our business,” Woodman said at the time. At the Corona Disaster, we made a very bold change in our sales strategy and changed the way people could purchase GoPros through our official website. Our business was shrinking at the time, so we had to maximize profitability,” he recalls. He continues, “But that phase is over now, and many people are going to physical stores to make purchases. They are also becoming more active in travel. The more people are active, the more room we have for growth,” he said, welcoming the change in the current situation. The discount on the main unit price through subscriptions will end in May 2023, allowing customers to purchase at the same price regardless of whether or not they subscribe to the service. At the same time, the price of the HERO11 was revised to 62,800 yen (78,000 yen at the time of release), a substantial price reduction.
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