Case
Teaching Notes
Abstract
Eastman Kodak Eastmanwas one of the most successful companies in the first decades of the 20th century and it played a large role in making cameras and photographic supplies cheap enough to appeal to the middle class. This case considers what led to the company’s success. Certainly the early entry into the field and the innovative ideas of George Eastman played a role, as did a well-thought-out and aggressive marketing campaign. But a judge in an anti-trust case in 1915 declared that some of Eastman Kodak’s business practices were anti-competitive. Were Eastman Kodak punished because they had acted in a criminal manner, or were they punished because they were successful? Would they have been punished more severely if they weren’t a popular household name?
