Fuji Promoting Kodak

I am sure there are many examples like this in the connected world, but here's a funny little tale about how digital technology is taking the wind out of the once-fierce competition between Kodak and Fuji.

Fuji operates a web site designed to make it easy for consumers to find outlets for printing images from their digital cameras and camera cellphones. The site is www.digitalcameradeveloping.com.

Anyway, the site is driven by zip codes. So, for example, choose the option "order pictures online and pick up the same day" and then click on the "Start Now" oval.

Enter a Rochester-area zip code and the site will return a list of printing outlets, including this one:

EASTMAN KODAK # 1
1600 LEXINGTON AVE
ROCHESTER, NY 14652

In case you're wondering, that address is in the heart of Kodak Park.

This piece of irony is provided by Jerry O'Neill, a Rochester-based freelance writer specializing in the photo industry. He surmises that opposition research may be the explanation -- in other words, Kodak has purchased a Fuji photoprocessing machine for the sake of reverse engineering. But he quickly adds: "Who Knows?"