Strategy in TECH...
Tidal Music AS (Tidal) has announced that users “will no longer be able to access music in the MQA or 360 Reality Audio formats via any TIDAL application or integration.” So that’s that…MQA is done and gone…as of July 24, 2024. The company says it will replace all MQA tracks with “the highest quality FLAC version” available.
Resideo Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: REZI), a manufacturer and distributor of security and related products for business and home – and soon to be the new owner of Snap One and Control4 – announced its fiscal 2024, first quarter financial results. Considering the looming event that will make Resideo an important partner to many in the custom integration business – the closing of its acquisition of Snap One/Control4 on Friday, June 14, 2024 – I am launching a more detailed coverage of the company.
So…given that Resideo is about to spend $1.4 billion, or 20% of their gross revenues – to acquire Snap One, you’d think that things must be going really, really well for Resideo. But are they???
High-performance, affordable speaker manufacturer ELAC announced this week that it is launching its Debut 3.0 line of loudspeakers. The Debut 3.0, the company says, is the perfect blend of legendary ELAC sound performance in a style that is upgraded over some of its previous designs.
SEE STORY UPDATE NEAR END – It is total pandemonium in Masimo land as the company and Politan are engaged in a massive and really, really ugly proxy war ahead of the company’s annual meeting scheduled for July 25, 2024, at the Masimo headquarters in Irvine, CA. Details in dueling proxy filings so far have revealed many things we didn’t know up to now. And almost none of what has been revealed…is good.
Company CEO Kiani is in a fight for his professional life…Sound United is dangling in the wind of an uncertain future – and, frankly, even the entire company’s path forward is a question mark.
Atlantic Home Entertainment and Stereo, a Southern California-based integrator, will be demonstrating some of its top-performing audio/visual brands in installations appearing in multiple lounges at the upcoming T.H.E. Show SoCal taking place this year from June 7-9 at the Hilton Orange County/Costa Mesa. Now in its 28th year, T.H.E. Show draws some of the top brands in high-end specialty electronics, speakers, and headphones. Last year the event drew around 6,600 attendees.
For many generations, Panasonic Holdings has been a leading global technology innovator and while its business model has shifted in the last few years, it still holds much respect around the world. Now we’ve learned that the company has decided to sell off its high-end projector unit in order to refocus its resources on digital supply chain systems.
Savant Systems, Inc. announced today that it has expanded its popular line of Inception motorized shades designed by J. Geiger, and in so doing says it created more opportunities for custom integration specialists everywhere – including for integrators using other brands of system control solutions. Inception features a unique, elegant, minimalist roller shade design that was very much popularized by J. Geiger – which is now owned by, and exclusively available from, Savant.
Cambridge Audio announced today that it is adding the ability to bring VU meters and a clock display to another company model, the CXN100 Network Player, via an over-the-air (OTA) software update. And why are they doing this? The company says that the decision to expand the number of models to gain this feature was made “due to popular demand.”
Parasound has appointed Final Link Audio of Melbourne, Australia as its distributor for all of Australia and New Zealand. Final Link will offer all Parasound models, including their famous John Curl-engineered models.
At the recent 2024 Oasys Summit, I had the opportunity to meet with top Nationwide Marketing Group executives who were all directly involved in the birth of the Oasys Residential Technology Group, as well as the greater strategy of the Nationwide Drive to 1,000 initiative. I spoke with Dean Sottile, Andy Orozco, and Hank Alexander, each of whom offered interesting insights and perspectives on the progress of this grand adventure they have collectively embarked upon.
