ResiWeek, a podcast from AVNation.tv focused on the residential audio/visual market, once again invited Strata-gee editor Ted Green to participate on this week’s episode, recorded on Monday, January 9 and hosted this week by AVNation founder Tim Albright. The show, which has a strong bias towards the integration community, is known for its at-times vigorous and at-times humorous conversations with a rotating series of guests commenting on the topics of the day.
Brands
Sharp Hit With Pushback; Hisense Refuses to Rescind Licensing Deal
Hisense is Said to be ‘Defiant’
News sources in Japan are reporting that Hisense has fired back at newly aggressive Sharp negotiating tactics, saying firmly it will not relinquish the licensing rights to the Sharp brand name in North & South America, as the company has recently requested. Hisense paid heavily to obtain those rights, and despite the fact that Sharp has asked to terminate the deal, the company has no intention of doing so no matter the offer – or more recently – no matter the threat from Sharp.
See more on this developing Sharp soap opera… [Read more…] about Sharp Hit With Pushback; Hisense Refuses to Rescind Licensing Deal
Thiel Launches Multiple New Products at CES
Thiel Audio, in a series of press releases on their website, announced multiple new products to be launched at this week’s CES in Las Vegas. Some of these new products are being launched under the Thiel brand name, while others are being offered under the Aurora brand – a brand that was originally created for a 4K music venue at the company’s headquarters in Nashville, TN.
This launch represents what the company hopes will be the next chapter in the troubled brand’s long-running saga.
See more on Thiel’s new models… [Read more…] about Thiel Launches Multiple New Products at CES
LG Display Signs Deal to Supply Sony with OLED Panels
This Could Mean War with Samsung’s Quantum Dot Tech
Korea’s ETNews network is reporting this week that, after weeks of negotiation, LG Display and Sony have signed a comprehensive deal for the supply of OLED panels to be used in new Sony OLED TVs. The deal has been rumored for several weeks now, but ETNews has confirmed that a supply contract has been signed between the parties.
This could mean good things for OLED TV market share… [Read more…] about LG Display Signs Deal to Supply Sony with OLED Panels
Technology Integrator Prints Its Last Magazine
Calling 2016 “a year of transition,” NAPCO Media announced yesterday that it has printed its last Technology Integrator (TI) magazine – deciding to withdraw from print media and reinvent itself into an online-only property. The move has been rumored for weeks, and in an online post yesterday attributed to the “TI Staff”, the company made the news official.
See more on what’s going to happen with Technology Integrator… [Read more…] about Technology Integrator Prints Its Last Magazine
iRule & OnControls Acquired by Kramer Electronics
iRule’s CEO Ben-Gal Talks to Strata-gee About Acquisition
Kramer Electronics, a maker of hardware-centric control solutions for the commercial audio/visual market, has acquired Detroit, MI-based iRule, a fast rising provider of software-based home control and automation solutions – including their OnControls residential line – in a private transaction that closed last Friday, December 23rd. The terms of the deal, including valuation, were not disclosed, but iRule co-founder and CEO Itai Ben-Gal told us this deal was the logical conclusion to a now multi-year relationship between the companies.
See more on this iRule acquisition by Kramer… [Read more…] about iRule & OnControls Acquired by Kramer Electronics
Want an Amazon Echo? Sorry…All Sold Out for Christmas
We’ve been reporting lately on the growing popularity of voice control. Driven largely by the introduction of Amazon’s Echo in 2014, which featured a dramatic improvement in performance over previous hands free systems like Siri, voice control has been picking up momentum with consumers and attracting new competitors like Google with its Home model, and soon Microsoft with Cortana.
But news services are reporting that Amazon has sold out of the Echo right in the heart of the holidays. Not good…
Amazon running out of Echo shows the difficulty in predicting inventory needs… [Read more…] about Want an Amazon Echo? Sorry…All Sold Out for Christmas
Power Move: Sharp to Terminate LCD Panel Supply to Samsung
‘Samsung Scrambling to Find New Sources’ – Looks to LG
The media in Japan positively exploded this week with the shocking news that Sharp has notified Samsung it will no longer supply the world’s top seller of LCD TVs with the panels they need for their sets. Samsung was Sharp’s largest customer, but in a shocking power move, after negotiations broke down – Sharp said no deal.
Could this be a sign of a new Sharp, now that it’s part of Foxconn? [Read more…] about Power Move: Sharp to Terminate LCD Panel Supply to Samsung
Core Brands Moved Under Control of Nortek’s SCS Group
In a reorganization at Nortek, Core Brands, previously a freestanding, underperforming segment of the company, has been moved under the control of Nortek’s Security and Control Solutions Group, it was announced internally this week. With this change, Core Brands President Joe Roberts will now report to SCS Group’s President Michael O’Neal.
See more on this change with Core Brands inside of Nortek… [Read more…] about Core Brands Moved Under Control of Nortek’s SCS Group
SnapAV Continues Buying Spree, Acquires Autonomic
‘If You Can Solve a Problem, You Can Sell Some Stuff’
SnapAV announced Wednesday that it has acquired Autonomic, a leading music server solutions provider. This is SnapAV’s latest in a string of acquisitions, as the company continues to seek solutions that will fulfill the needs of their extensive national network of custom integrators.