In an announcement considered a surprise by most in the industry – Core Brands announced that it has named Joe Roberts as VP of products and marketing. Roberts will replace Paul Starkey, the former President of Core Brands’ Elan division and, most recently, Senior VP of Marketing for the company.
Industry Trends
Homebuilders Report the Next Great Home Add-On is Solar Panels Built-In – To the Roof & the Mortgage
Granite countertops – at one time considered an amenity – are now considered a standard option for most folks building new homes. Now, Bloomberg is reporting that the next granite countertops – is solar panels.
How hot are solar panels? According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, demand for systems that generate electricity at home will jump 56 percent nationwide this year. In fact, two communities in California have passed legislation mandating solar panels in all new construction.
See more on this rapidly growing green energy trend… [Read more…] about Homebuilders Report the Next Great Home Add-On is Solar Panels Built-In – To the Roof & the Mortgage
Tech Commercial Parody is Funny, But Leaves a Sour – and Painful – After-Taste
Being in tech, we’re supposedly in the innovation business. The fact is when it comes to marketing, we’re not very innovative. Our advertising follows predictable patterns which are NOT innovative – and leaves us open to ridicule. Well, one website is calling us on the carpet – CollegeHumor.com who has launched a video parody of tech advertising.
I found this parody courtesy of David Pogue, the New York Times tech reporter, who says he can’t stop “cackling.” I, too, laughed heartily as I recognized all those formulaic tactics advertisers use to sell generic tech products. But the more you think about it…a sour – and painful – after-taste sets in.
See the CollegeHumor parody titled “Every Tech Commercial” below… [Read more…] about Tech Commercial Parody is Funny, But Leaves a Sour – and Painful – After-Taste
EXCLUSIVE: CEDIA Gives Strata-gee.com A Deeper Look at Its Latest Benchmarking Survey
STRATA-GEE.COM EXCLUSIVE
Last month, we reported that CEDIA released its 2013 Benchmarking Survey with certain select data highlighted. Now CEDIA has offered Strata-gee.com an exclusive look at the full report (the summary version provided to all CEDIA members) with the opportunity for us to highlight any results we found particularly enlightening. And in the process of reviewing their results – we discovered a much more comprehensive read on the “typical” CEDIA member than we had originally expected.
See more on some of the more interesting results from CEDIA’s 2013 Benchmarking Survey… [Read more…] about EXCLUSIVE: CEDIA Gives Strata-gee.com A Deeper Look at Its Latest Benchmarking Survey
Tell Us What YOU Think – Take Our 2013 CEDIA Expo Survey
September is just days away and those of us in the custom integration channel knows what this fact means: it’s time for the Custom Electronics Design and Installation Association’s (CEDIA) Expo – this year being held in Denver, Colorado from September 26-28. As this annual trade show is such a key event – and given the fact that it provides a barometer on the overall health of the custom integration industry – for several years now, we’ve been conducting a survey to learn your thoughts about the event itself.
See what’s new this year… [Read more…] about Tell Us What YOU Think – Take Our 2013 CEDIA Expo Survey
URC Wants You to Add a Little ESP To Your Installations
URC, the former remote control king that has morphed into a home automation company, announced on Tuesday the MRX-4SEN Sensor Extender and six new sensors that tie into their well-regarded Total Control System. A clever system add-on, the sensors allow a range of system inputs that can trigger actions or Macros.
Learn more about this clever new product from URC… [Read more…] about URC Wants You to Add a Little ESP To Your Installations
Joe Knows (High Performance) Video
One of the highlights of Audio Associates Dealer Expo in New Jersey last week was a key seminar on video screens given by none other than Joe Kane, one of this industry’s best known and most respected video technology experts. Kane’s presentation was supposed to cover how to select the best screen for the installation – but the enigmatic Kane couldn’t help himself and covered – rapid-fire – several topical industry subjects for an engaging presentation that went well past its scheduled 60-minute time slot.
See more on the at-times irreverent Kane’s presentation of a variety of video subjects… [Read more…] about Joe Knows (High Performance) Video
NY Dealer Expo Surprise: Pervasive & Palpable Positivity
New York manufacturers representative company Audio Associates wrapped up their 2013 Dealer Expo on Tuesday and company executives said they were thrilled with the results this year – its largest dealer event ever. Audio Associates “upped the ante” by investing in a major upgrade in facilities for the Expo this year – far exceeding an upgrade the previous year by holding the event at New Jersey’s exclusive Seaview Hotel and Golf Club.
One surprise: even bad weather failed to dampen the palpable positivity of the dealer attendees…even though most were from New York’s ravaged retail market… [Read more…] about NY Dealer Expo Surprise: Pervasive & Palpable Positivity
Uh-Oh, Consumer Adoption of Tablets Slows in Q2 CEA Says
In new data released today by the Consumer Electronics Association, consumer adoption of one of the hottest technologies in tech today – tablet computers – actually (and unusually) slowed in the second quarter of 2013. This unexpected downturn comes after several consecutive quarters of growth for a product category that the CEA itself identifies as one of the two major drivers (along with smartphones) for the entire electronics industry.
What does this unexpected downturn mean?… [Read more…] about Uh-Oh, Consumer Adoption of Tablets Slows in Q2 CEA Says
Further Industry Consolidation as ‘Home Theater’ and ‘Sound & Vision’ Magazines Merge
Finding themselves at the crossroads of two struggling industries – consumer electronics and traditional publishing – Source Interlink Media, the owners of both Home Theater and Sound & Vision magazines, has decided to merge the two properties into one entity. The combined entity will be known as Sound & Vision – apparently leaving the Home Theater name plate to the annals of history.
