Demonstrating its commitment to users, Hasselblad is today launching a comprehensive new Customer Care Program, featuring special prices on product upgrades, refurbishment, and extended warranties and support for all registered Hasselblad owners. The first stage of the program, starting today, will provide owners of Hasselblad H1 and H2 cameras with an extremely beneficial trade in or upgrade of their equipment to a number of the most recent model configurations.

In the near future, the program will be expanded to cover owners of all Hasselblad digital products or V System cameras. In addition, a special customer care area on the Hasselblad website will offer informative articles, product information, and other helpful material to all registered H System users.

Christian Poulsen, CEO of Hasselblad, comments on the new program, "At Hasselblad, we are proud of the fact that we are continually striving to develop world leading products and new photographic solutions. We do this so that we can live up to our goal of producing the best cameras in the world for the most discerning photographers, helping them, in turn, to produce the finest images in the world.

"We recently announced the launch of the Hasselblad H3DII, the H3DII-39MS and H2F cameras and the discontinuation of production of certain older H System models. Some H System owners have expressed concern that this means we are abandoning these cameras - and their owners. Nothing could be further from the truth. We see the launch of this new Customer Care Program as further proof of our commitment to our customers and to our products."

One of the cornerstones of the Hasselblad philosophy has always been the long-term support and care provided to all Hasselblad camera systems and the photographers who use them. This has not changed. Hasselblad continues to launch new products - and stop producing older ones - as developments and demands dictate. "We will, however," says Christian Poulsen, "maintain the support of all our existing models and customers, so long as customer demand continues to justify it. And we will also continue to develop new lenses and accessories for use with these products. We have designed, built, and supported the world's most successful high end camera systems for over fifty years, and we will do so for at least the next fifty years. "We trust that this will be seen as a positive step by our customers," says Christian Poulsen. "Not only are we maintaining our support for the H1 and H2 cameras, but we'll also continue to release new lenses and other accessories that can be used with these products. The new products we release will, of course, represent the most cutting edge technological developments on the market today and will, we hope, satisfy the aspirations of the owners of previous generations of H System products, who are keen to have access to the latest available technology."

"For this reason we have set up the Hasselblad Customer Care Program, which will provide a foundation for upgrades, trade-in and refurbishment programs, to ensure that all Hasselblad users have access to the most recent and most advanced products."

Christian Poulsen concludes, "Our message to photographers is clear - whether you choose to stick with your current H System gear or trade up to the newer, more advanced models, you can rest assured that you will always receive the best support and customer care that Hasselblad can provide, both today and tomorrow."

For more information, log on to www.hasselblad.com/hcare.