In a time when everyone from grandmas to fifth-graders have smartphones, it’s not hard to believe that phone cameras have come to dominate the photo industry. According to BusinessWeek.com, Sony is now facing their weakest demand since 2009, and it’s mostly due to users choosing their ever-convenient phone cameras over traditional ones. In addition, the surge of photo-sharing apps and websites have created a more powerful dependency on phone cameras than ever before.

What This Means For The Future

“Smartphones and tablets will expand the scope of the digital imaging industry,” said Chris Ely, manager of industry relations at Consumer Electronics Associaton. “The rise of new digital imaging applications and features for these devices allows consumers to interact and use images in new ways, creating new opportunities for the industry.”

Apple, who has been in the news quite a bit recently with the release of their new iPad and because of legal issues with Samsung patents, recently released the iPhone 4S. The new version takes photos with a 60 percent higher resolution than the company’s previous model. With technology only getting better every day, it’s not hard to see why more and more people are using their phones as their primary camera.

What This Means For Camera Companies

It was reported earlier this year that Kodak is going bankrupt for the same reason, and because they failed to see the urgency in getting into the digital market until it was too late. The company, which has been around for over 100 years, began to flounder before they even realized what was happening, and by the time execs saw their mistake it was too late. By 2001 things were so bad for Kodak that it was estimated they lost $60 for every digital camera sold.

Sony is just one in a group of camera companies that are seeing their sales decline, including Nikon, Canon, and Olympus. According to the Camera and Imaging Products Association, those four companies shipped out ten percent fewer cameras this year as compared to last.