The Canon Difference

Canon started out as a company with a handful of employees and a burning passion. That company soon became a world-renowned camera maker and is now a global multimedia corporation. The Canon Corporate Philosophy of Kyosei The corporate philosophy of Canon is kyosei. A concise definition of this word would be "Living and working together for the common good," but our definition is broader: "All people, regardless of race, religion or culture, harmoniously living and working together into the future. "The presence of imbalance in our world -in areas such as trade, income levels and the environment-hinders the achievement of kyosei. Addressing these imbalances is an ongoing mission, and Canon is doing its part by actively pursuing kyosei. True global companies must foster good relations, not only with their customers and the communities in which they operate, but also with nations and the environment. They must also bear the responsibility for the impact of their activities on society. For this reason, Canon's goal is to contribute to the prosperity of the world and the happiness of humanity, which will lead to continuing growth and bring the world closer to achieving kyosei. Canon Innovation Innovation has been a key ingredient in Canon's success throughout our history. As a leading inventor of consumer and professional imaging solutions, Canon ranks third worldwide among all companies issued U.S. patents in 2004. For the last 20 years, Canon has maintained a global ranking in the top five, with a total of 26,528 U.S. patents granted in our almost 70-year corporate history. Canon Inc. consistently devotes approximately 10% of its net sales to R&D investment each year. Our R&D divisions in Japan and nine R&D facilities throughout the world are dedicated to developing custom products and solutions for customers worldwide.