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Sonos vs. D&M Holdings: Both Sides Ratchet Up the Pressure

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Judge Makes Two Key Decisions

D&M LogoIn revisting the long-running saga of Sonos, Inc. vs. D&M Holdings, Inc. et. al., we find that after a series of skirmishes over scheduling issues – such as deadlines for filings and responses, and new claims and counterclaims filed – there appears to be a concerted effort by both parties to ratchet up the pressure. So far, it appears to our non-legally educated eyes that Sonos has a slight edge in this game, winning the scheduling skirmish and winning the right to expand the number of patents at issue.

But D&M has had some success as well. See where this case is at now… [Read more…] about Sonos vs. D&M Holdings: Both Sides Ratchet Up the Pressure

Sorry Siri: Research Shows Consumers Aren’t Using Voice-Controlled Assistants

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eMarketer logoThere is a lot of buzz surrounding Amazon’s Echo product, a tabletop computer featuring a voice-controlled digital assistant named Alexa. Alexa will play your favorite music, get your morning news update, find out today’s weather for you, and more. All you have to do is ask Alexa.

But before Alexa, we had Siri and other voice-controlled assistants, mostly associated with our favorite smartphone. But are consumers enamored with using voice-controlled assistants? A new study from marketing company 451 Research suggests that we don’t.

See more on smartphone users embrace of voice-controlled assistants… [Read more…] about Sorry Siri: Research Shows Consumers Aren’t Using Voice-Controlled Assistants

Moody’s Downgrades Gibson Brands Credit to Junk

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Gibson Brands CEO Responds to Moody’s Downgrade

Photo of Gibson busThe music industry is positively buzzing about the announcement late last week by Moody’s Investors Service that, for the second time in three months, it has downgraded the credit rating of Nashville, Tennessee-based Gibson Brands. Gibson (formerly Gibson Guitars) is a tightly held private company that launched an aggressive diversification strategy a few years ago, focusing on acquiring several consumer electronics brands such as Onkyo Corp. and Teac, Corp. and recently Philips.

Now Moody’s suggests the debt used to acquire these brands is dragging the company down… [Read more…] about Moody’s Downgrades Gibson Brands Credit to Junk

Yet Another High-End Brand Turns to Internet Sales, But This Time’s Different

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This Time Brand Takes Local Dealers With Them

Cary Audio logoRaleigh, NC-based Cary Audio announced this week that they will allow their high-end specialty electronics line to be sold online. At first blush, this looks like yet another specialty brand disrupting their bricks-and-mortar dealer base in favor of powerful online dealers – much like our recent story on McIntosh Labs doing just that. But this time, Cary took a completely different approach – one that takes their local dealers along with them.

See how Cary built an entirely different program in going online… [Read more…] about Yet Another High-End Brand Turns to Internet Sales, But This Time’s Different

Nortek Fiscal 2015 Q4 & Full Year Results are Mixed; AVC is Still Sliding

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Nortek LogoNortek, Inc., a diversified manufacturer that through its Core Brands division markets several brands in the custom integration channel, released this week its fiscal 2015 fourth quarter and full year results. Overall, the results were mixed, as the company continues to struggle through a huge consolidation and experience shifts in its sales mix.

But one thing that remains clear is that their AVC segment, the segment that contains the Core Brands businesses, is continuing to struggle with a dramatic sales decline (27.1% decline in the quarter – 20.5% sales decline for the year) and increased losses ($20.8 million loss for the year as compared to a $19.2 million loss for 2014, ).

See more on the continuing struggles at Nortek… [Read more…] about Nortek Fiscal 2015 Q4 & Full Year Results are Mixed; AVC is Still Sliding

In Wake of Strata-gee Article, McIntosh Sends Letter to Dealers

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Cropped image from WOM Last week, we broke the news on Strata-gee.com that McIntosh Laboratories, historically a strong supporter of specialty A/V dealers, had decided to open up sales through the Internet. This decision hit the existing, largely offline, McIntosh specialty dealers hard…many reaching out to us to express their frustration.

The same day our story was posted, McIntosh electronically distributed a letter to dealers from Dan Wakefield, VP of North American Sales for McIntosh, explaining the company’s decision.

See what McIntosh said to dealers about their decision… [Read more…] about In Wake of Strata-gee Article, McIntosh Sends Letter to Dealers

Only Days Away From Official Launch, Toshiba Scraps Wearvue Smart Glasses

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Toshiba Wearvue

Toshiba Corp. has pulled the plug on a highly-touted smart glasses project – a product similar in concept to the recently cancelled consumer version of Google Glass. What’s most interesting about this decision by Toshiba is that they made it just days before the originally scheduled – and loudly promoted – launch date.

See more on this puzzling last-minute cancellation of an almost-launched product… [Read more…] about Only Days Away From Official Launch, Toshiba Scraps Wearvue Smart Glasses

Crestron Pulls Out of CEDIA Expo 2016

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BREAKING NEWS

Crestron logoAfter receiving several urgent communications from multiple sources, Strata-gee.com has confirmed that Crestron Electronics – for years the single largest exhibitor at CEDIA’s Expo – has informed the trade association that it will not participate in the upcoming 2016 event. Crestron, a long supporter of both CEDIA and the Expo, has always maintained a huge presence, with an upfront positioning right at the entry, thanks to the many priority points it has earned over the years. Now, CEDIA is fast at work finding a replacement.

See more on this surprising turn of events… [Read more…] about Crestron Pulls Out of CEDIA Expo 2016

This is the End, My Friend; Google Glass Social Media Accounts Go Dark

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An Augmented Reality FailGoogle Augmented Reality Glasses on Female Model

Reuters reported that all Google Glass social media pages went dark last week…with no explanation given. It was an ignominious end to one of the most anticipated tech products with one of the greatest buzz building campaigns of all time. Alas, in the end all we got was a costly beta test…

Is this the end? See more below… [Read more…] about This is the End, My Friend; Google Glass Social Media Accounts Go Dark

Apple Bruised by Worst iPhone Sales Growth Ever

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AppleApple, Inc. is starting to look brown, bruised, and past its prime in wake of the surprising quarterly results that showed growth in sales of their bellwether iPhone product to be the slowest since the company launched the product category in 2007. Not only that, but the company forecast an overall sales decline for the first quarter of 2016 – their first sales decline since 2003. Reaction from Wall Street was swift with the price of Apple stock down more than 6% in mid-afternoon trading.

What’s going on at Apple?… [Read more…] about Apple Bruised by Worst iPhone Sales Growth Ever