Full-frame mirrorless sales: Canon the big winner in Japan

Following the entry of Canon and Nikon into the full-frame mirrorless camera market with the EOS R, Z6 and Z7, it's no surprise to see Sony's near 100% market share of the mirrorless sector take a bit of a hit.

Japanese analyst BCN has released its latest rankings for the full-frame mirrorless camera market in Japan, and the numbers make for some interesting reading. 

As expected, Sony's market share has dropped, from 99.7% to 67%, with the big winner being Canon, which has taken a 22.1% market share with the EOS R, while Nikon's pricier Z7 is hovering at 10.4%. 

We reckon, though, that once the Z6 starts to ship (which should be any day now), Nikon should make up some ground as it goes head-to-head with Sony's Alpha A7 III.

Sony's overall market will certainly continue to shrink now that both Canon and Nikon have launched full-frame mirrorless models, while there's likely to be even more competition in 2019, with Panasonic set to enter the fray. It's going to be interesting to see how Sony responds to these new competitors.

Bear in mind though that this data is only for Japan, where Canon holds the number one spot for all mirrorless cameras – it'll be interesting to see data for North American and European markets when that becomes available. 

Phil Hall

Phil Hall is an experienced writer and editor having worked on some of the largest photography magazines in the UK, and now edit the photography channel of TechRadar, the UK's biggest tech website and one of the largest in the world. He has also worked on numerous commercial projects, including working with manufacturers like Nikon and Fujifilm on bespoke printed and online camera guides, as well as writing technique blogs and copy for the John Lewis Technology guide.

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