Panasonic and Leica unveil 'L squared' project to jointly develop cameras and lenses

L squared is a new collaboration between Panasonic and Leica that will see them work together on cameras, lens and technology. Both companies are part of the L-Mount alliance and Panasonic has lent its camera tech to Leica. The new partnership goes deeper, as they will use jointly developed technologies in their respective lens and camera products.

The press release states that the two companies will invest in new technologies that can be incorporated into camera and lens products, and will incorporate technologies into each other's products to further enhance their product capabilities.

There is no word on when we will see the fruits of this collaboration. It makes sense, as Panasonic tends to get overshadowed by Canon, Sony and Nikon, despite producing good cameras. While Leica has a sterling reputation for lens quality, it gets less respect for its cameras because they are mostly rebadged, overpriced Panasonic models. Panasonic could gain some prestige off of the reputation and lens quality of Leica, while Leica will get access to Panasonic's technological chops.