Strategy in TECH...
You knew they were big, but you didn’t know just how big streaming innovator (and leader) Netflix really was…until now. In a bid to prove to investors they have what it takes to stave off a whole new class of streaming competitors, Netflix released some detailed numbers on their global subscription base that has Wall Street really buzzing.
For a few weeks now, I’ve been chasing a rumor that both sides of the failed Sound United acquisition of Onkyo’s branded A/V business were in the throes of a major reorganization. The rumors, it seems, were true – starting with Onkyo’s announced reorganization last week…and now word that Sound United is also implementing changes to its management structure.
AudioControl and Josh.ai announced last week that they were partnering with an integration that will allow integrators to offer their clients a better voice-enabled home entertainment control experience. A perfect blend of the high-quality electronics from AudioControl, coupled with the natural language and privacy protecting voice automation technology of Josh.ai, means clients can simply say their commands to their system and have their system respond in new powerful ways.
Tech Data, one of the largest technology distributors in the U.S. and globally, has been acquired by Apollo Global Management, a private equity powerhouse, in a deal valued at $5.4 billion. The deal announced today, is expected to close by mid-2020.
Origin Acoustics announced this week that it has promoted current Sales VP Marc Fisher to the unusual title of President of Sales. The company also the appointment of John Marchionda as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO).
Control4 announced today the launch of the Neeo Remote for Control4, the first product from their acquisition of the Swiss company Neeo back in February 2019. This new Neeo remote control is optimized to work seamlessly with Control4’s OS 3 operating system, offering another elegant system control interface.
It was January 2018 when I reported that Sound United had completed its acquisition of Classé, an acquisition which had been first announced in December of 2017. In the weeks leading up to that December, former owner Bowers & Wilkins was considering getting out of the electronics business…maybe. After months of confusion, where on any day executives at Classé teetered back-and-forth between survival and demise – it now seemed that Sound United had thrown them a lifeline…a chance to live to fight another day.
And then they dropped out of sight for the last two years…
LG Electronics Inc. is on a roll, as evidenced by their fiscal third quarter results. The company says it has set an all-time record for third quarter revenues while at the same time booking their best quarterly profit in a decade.
Korean media is reporting that Sharp, the former Japanese powerhouse brand now owned by Taiwan’s Foxconn, is late on approximately tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars worth of payments to Korean factory gear makers. Not only are they late, but they are said to be demanding even more discounts on the outstanding debt owed to multiple South Korean suppliers of factory equipment destined for use in LCD production factories. All of this is being done in violation of covenants in their purchase contracts with these suppliers.
This dispute may raise to level of government intervention.
After receiving a stipulation allowing them more time to respond, Lenbrook Industries Ltd, and Lenbrook America, last week filed their response to the Sonos patent litigation they were hit with in June. It was a robust and smart response that clearly communicated that Lenbrook planned to give no ground in this dispute.
While perhaps not quite as audacious as the D&M response when they were first dealt the blow of litigation…Lenbrook offered a smart and savvy response that not only pushed back but seemingly undercuts many of Sonos’ core allegations..and patents.
