Strategy in TECH...
Creston, one of the industry’s largest and most respected brands of control and automation solutions for the residential and commercial channels, is holding their Crestron NEXT virtual event next week – and it looks extremely interesting. Taking place over two days – September 15 & 16 (yes, during CEDIA’s virtual show), there are two versions: residential and commercial.
According to a new report out of Japan last week, analysts say that Sony’s business is shifting towards more services and events – and away from the electronics business, the division that built the company. For decades, the brand Sony was practically synonymous with electronics…but that identity may be shifting as growth in other company divisions surpass electronics.
Of all the success stories of the ‘70s high end audio boom, none was more unlikely than that of Audio Research Corporation (ARC). Based in Minnesota’s Twin Cities, historically a fly-over region for hi-fi, led by a balding, bearlike founder, and offering electronics based around vacuum tubes – considered obsolete for a decade – ARC somehow survived and thrived.
In probably one of the most meaningful media presentations I’ve attended, executives at B&W presented the industry media with their forward-looking product roadmap for the remainder of 2020 – most of it under embargo. So while I can’t tell you much about the products they revealed, what I can say is that they made a strong case for the resurgence of B&W as a leading audio power.
Last week, several sharp-eyed Strata-gee readers forwarded the news that was initially erroneously reported that EVA Automation had filed for bankruptcy in Northern California. Actually, a search of court records revealed that a creditor of EVA Automation – Top Victory Investments Limited – has filed an action with the United States Bankruptcy Court in Northern California seeking to force EVA Automation into bankruptcy. EVA Automation, as most Strata-gee readers well know, is a former majority owner of Bowers & Wilkins (B&W).
Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) had what appeared to be a big win this week, generating financial results that handily beat its fiscal second quarter estimates, driven largely by a huge 242.2% increase in ecommerce sales. Their fiscal second quarter, the 13-week period that ended August 1, 2020 was big, coming in at $9.910 billion – even in a COVID-19 ravaged quarter – fully 4% higher than the $9.536 billion in the same quarter in 2019.
And yet, the company’s stock value DROPPED on the announcement of their quarterly results. And in after-hours trading, Best Buy stock lost as much as 5% of its value. Why did that happen?
Sonos, Inc. (NASDAQ: SONO) announced this week that they are adding a new member to their Board of Directors. In fact, they even increased the size of the Board to make room for this new addition. The news surprised – and impressed – many market observers, as the person they are adding is Panos Panay, a top Microsoft Corp. executive. You see, if you are not familiar with Panay, there is something special about his background that makes him an intriguing addition to the Sonos Board.
Last week, a letter was sent to all Onkyo dealers in the United States notifying them that their dealer agreements were being terminated. The reason for this termination? Onkyo USA Corporation no longer exists and therefore can no longer serve them. Don’t miss the significance of this historic moment – for the first time in 45-years there is no Onkyo subsidiary in the U.S., once the largest market for parent Onkyo Pioneer Corporation (OPC) of Osaka, Japan.
As part of an internal restructuring to accommodate their recent acquisition of the distribution rights to certain Onkyo brands, Voxx International Corporation announced this week that it has renamed the existing Klipsch Holding LLC to the rather generically named Premium Audio Company LLC. This is just the first change, as I’ve learned more announcements are just around the corner.
Although Sonos CEO Patrick Spence and CFO Brittany Bagley both proclaimed that the Sonos fiscal Q3 results were “better than expected,” the fact that they reported that revenues had declined and the company booked a much larger net loss seems to be rubbing investors the wrong way. As of this writing on August 6th, the value of Sonos shares have declined more than 18% in afternoon trading.
