You know Tech, your on to something. I think Ford should adopt the Hasselblad plan, but just for the sake of good, sound, business profitability.
If you trade in your Taurus for a new one you get the same car, except if you want to tow a non ford branded bass boat you have to put the trailer hitch on the front of the car.
JR
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I'm not on to anything. I'm just letting people know what options are available. Companies make choices regarding the products they offer. Consumers make choices regarding which products they buy. I don't make choices for either one. I can only decide how I invest my own money.
In the case of the H2F, Hasselblad is offering a body that works with any CF series back to provide capabilities an H1 or H2 can't provide because they lack the internal electronics hardware required. CF back owners have the options of: 1) keep what they have now, 2) add an H2F body for $3,250 and gain additional capabilities with their current back or 3) update their current body with a circuit board change for $500 to convert to an H2F. Those are the options that CF back owners have available.
Owners of 3rd party backs will want to keep their H1 or H2 as the H2F does not support 3rd party backs. As you may recall, Hasselblad has decided to withdraw from the market of making cameras to support 3rd party backs.
Hasselblad and all other medium-format camera makers have had three options to consider in recent years: 1) continue to lose money on cameras to support products from which they derive no revenue, 2) make cameras at a loss to support products which are profitable and from which they derive revenue or 3) withdraw from the medium-format camera business completely. Hasselblad chose option #2. They could have chosen both options #1 and #2, but decided the best long term business decision was #2. This drained fewer limited resources and made it clear to consumers, sooner rather than later, that option #1 would not (and could not) continue indefinitely.
Now to get back to your hypothetical car example, if Ford lost money on every car they made with a universal bumper hitch and made money on cars with a proprietary bumper hitch--I think investors would demand that they drop the first option and focus their efforts on the second. But then again, you may feel more charitable and generous with your investment money than other investors do.