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EVA Automation Escapes Forced Bankruptcy; But Shuts Down Anyway

November 25, 2020 by Ted 1 Comment

eva automation executives
EVA Automation in happier times

EVA Admits ‘Financial Distress’ & A Business ‘Wind Down’

EVA Automation, the now former owner of Bowers & Wilkins (B&W) dodged a bullet when late last month U.S. Bankruptcy Judge, the Honorable Hannah L. Blumenstiel, entered an order dismissing the involuntary petition for Chapter 7 bankruptcy brought against them by Top Victory Investments Limited (whose attorneys use the acronym TPV). With that decision, a forced bankruptcy was avoided. However, as court records clearly demonstrate, the company did feel some pain as a result of this filing, and according to their attorneys were in the process of conducting an orderly shut down of the business.

Not only that, but we learn much more about EVA Automation‘s relationship with Bowers & Wilkins – and their degraded circumstances based largely on the failure of their Formation wireless speaker line marketed under the B&W brand.

Learn more about EVA Automation’s situation…

[Read more…] about EVA Automation Escapes Forced Bankruptcy; But Shuts Down Anyway

Filed Under: Asian Connection, Financial, Integrators, Management, News, Strategy Tagged With: B&W, Bowers & Wilkins, Bowers and Wilkins, EVA, EVA Automation, Gideon Yu, Top Victory Investments Limited, TPV

Sonos is Getting Hooked on D2C Biz; Revenues & Profits Exceed Expectations

November 20, 2020 by Ted 2 Comments

But Is Everything Really as Good as It Looks?

Sonos, Inc. [NASDAQ: SONO] released their fourth quarter and full year financial results for fiscal 2020. Their performance pleasantly surprised Wall Street and their stock value exploded well over 20% in Thursday trading as the company exceeded analysts’ estimates for both revenue growth and profits. But is everything as it appears here?

See more on Sonos financial results…

[Read more…] about Sonos is Getting Hooked on D2C Biz; Revenues & Profits Exceed Expectations

Filed Under: Brands, Financial, Management, News, Strategy Tagged With: IKEA, Patrick Spence, Sonance, Sonos, Sonos Inc

2020 Audio Shows Were a COVID Bust; Here’s the Status of 2021 Shows

November 19, 2020 by Ted Leave a Comment

a photo from a past AXPONA audio show

Compiled by Bill Leebens

UPDATED – All Dates and Status Info Updated – For the most part, when it comes to audio shows, either trade or consumer, 2020 has been a bust. Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, with one exception – the Florida Audio Expo in Tampa, FL in February – all other events were cancelled. So what does that mean for 2021? Guest poster Bill Leebens has compiled a list of top audio shows for 2021 showing their current status…

See today’s status for 2021 shows…

[Read more…] about 2020 Audio Shows Were a COVID Bust; Here’s the Status of 2021 Shows

Filed Under: Associations, Dealers, Manufacturers, Marketing, News, Shows & Events Tagged With: Bill Leebens, guest post

Theme Song for 2021 Audio Shows? Maybe ‘The Sound of Silence’

November 19, 2020 by Ted 1 Comment

photo from a previous AXPONA

A Bill Leebens Guest Post

We may have been aware of every agonizing second of Plague Year 2020 as they slowly ticked by, but as far as audio shows go—2020 was literally a no-show. In the US, February’s Florida Audio Expo in Tampa was the first and last audio-only show of the year. Since then, show after show has been delayed or cancelled—in several instances, delayed, and THEN cancelled.

What does 2021 Hold for Audio Shows?…

[Read more…] about Theme Song for 2021 Audio Shows? Maybe ‘The Sound of Silence’

Filed Under: Associations, Industry Trends, Manufacturers, Marketing, News, Shows & Events Tagged With: Audio Expo of North America, AXPONA, Bill Leebens, Florida Audio Expo, Munich High End Show, RMAF, Rocky Mountain Audio Fest

Onkyo Corp. is Insolvent; Now It’s in a Struggle to Survive

November 18, 2020 by Ted 28 Comments

image from Onkyo report on Fiscal 2020 results
Image from Onkyo report on fiscal 2020 results, heading section on new plans [Click to enlarge]

Onkyo Corporation had a really tough fiscal 2020 – the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2020. How tough was it? So tough that the company was forced to announce that a massive drop in revenues and record losses had pushed the company into insolvency – calling into question its ability to continue as a going concern. It doesn’t get much tougher than that. And this announcement triggered a Tokyo Stock Exchange action – invoking a rule that starts a clock on a limited grace period for the company to cure the situation – their insolvency – before a forced delisting from the JASDAQ stock exchange is implemented.

So what happens now with Onkyo?

[Read more…] about Onkyo Corp. is Insolvent; Now It’s in a Struggle to Survive

Filed Under: Asian Connection, Financial, Management, Manufacturers, News, Strategy Tagged With: Gibson Brands, Gibson Guitar, Onkyo, Onkyo USA, Sound United, TCL, TCL Multimedia

Josh.ai Offers Glitzy Launch of Interesting New Products

November 13, 2020 by Ted Leave a Comment

Josh.ai Founder & CEO Alex Capecelatro talking about Nano voice control microphone
CEO Alex Capecelatro in a spectacular L.A. home with a Josh.ai installation. The Nano is in this picture. Can you find it? [Click to enlarge]

On Tuesday, specialty voice control supplier Josh.ai held an event they called their “keynote” which turned out to be a very professionally produced video presentation of a significant product launch for the company. In this presentation, the company Founder and CEO Alex Capecelatro shared his thoughts on smart home technologies, including the thought that smaller is better when it comes to smart home devices.

And with that, Capecelatro introduced their new Nano and Core products.

Learn more about Josh.ai Nano and Core…

[Read more…] about Josh.ai Offers Glitzy Launch of Interesting New Products

Filed Under: Integrators, Manufacturers, News, People, Products, Technology Tagged With: Alex Capecelatro, Josh.ai, voice command, voice user interface

CEDIA Propel: Member Benefit? Or Quasi-Buying Group?

November 13, 2020 by Ted 1 Comment

Last week, CEDIA announced their CEDIA Propel initiative, said to be a new “Affinity Program” designed to offer members a new kind of benefit. The announcement caught my eye almost immediately because this program is unlike other other affinity program with which I’m familiar. Typically such programs offer members benefits such as special pricing on health insurance or discounts on UPS shipping and the like. In this case, CEDIA is recommending technology brands who offer discount programs to CEDIA members on their products.

To me, this sounded at least a little bit like the kind of service provided by a buying group.

Where is CEDIA heading with Propel?…

[Read more…] about CEDIA Propel: Member Benefit? Or Quasi-Buying Group?

Filed Under: Associations, Integrators, Marketing, News, Strategy Tagged With: CEDIA, Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association, Giles Sutton, Jamie Briesemeister, Propel

Let’s Get Ready to Ruummbbblllleee…Subwoofer Powerhouse Velodyne is Back

November 12, 2020 by Ted 5 Comments

Velodyne Acoustics' insane 1812 subwoofer
Velodyne Acoustics’ insane 1812 subwoofer with 18″ & 12″ drivers

When we last visited with Velodyne, it was all the way back in 2014 when the company quietly laid off audio staff, and suddenly – without warning – fired all of their manufacturer sales representatives and their dealers. Shortly after this, the company hired a high-powered retail executive (who would go on to eventually go to prison) to launch a direct-to-consumer business. Our coverage drew the attention of then Velodyne President Marta Thoma Hall, who is wife of company founder and chief engineer David Hall, leading to an interview with her on the many dramatic changes taking place at the company. Whew! That was a lot of action in a very short period of time.

Ultimately, it appears that David Hall got bored with audio and moved on with his new prized invention – an improved Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) sensor technology that is important to the autonomous vehicle market. According to a report by Audioholics, Ford and China’s Baidu partnered to invest $150 million in Velodyne’s Lidar technology and Elvis…er…Hall…has definitely left the audio building. Velodyne split into two companies (Velodyne Lidar is now a $100 million public company [NASDAQ:VLDR]) and for a time last year, it looked like curtains for the audio division.

But now Velodyne’s audio division is back…

[Read more…] about Let’s Get Ready to Ruummbbblllleee…Subwoofer Powerhouse Velodyne is Back

Filed Under: Brands, Financial, Management, Manufacturers, News, Products, Strategy Tagged With: Desmond Fretz, Scott DeLoache, subwoofers, Velodyne

Is the Thiel Audio Website Relaunch Real? Or Is It a Zombie?

November 6, 2020 by Ted 6 Comments

Photo of a zombie

A Real-Life Mystery

Strata-gee reader Jeff (see comments here…) asks, “What’s up with the revival of Thiel Audio’s website thielaudio.com?” That is a good question, as the company has been shut down, and all inventory, factory, and office goods were auctioned off just under three years ago. Shortly after the auction, Thiel Audio’s website went dark and has been that way ever since.

Ever since…that is…until recently…

[Read more…] about Is the Thiel Audio Website Relaunch Real? Or Is It a Zombie?

Filed Under: Manufacturers, Marketing, Media, News, Specialty, Strategy Tagged With: Thiel, Thiel Audio

AKM Fire: 2020 was Almost Over, Then Disaster Struck Again

November 4, 2020 by Ted 9 Comments

A photo of the burned out AKM factory after the fire was extinguished
AKM Factory Fire [Click to enlarge]

Massive AKM Factory Fire in Japan to Disrupt Global Supply of Critical Digital ICs

Just when you thought 2020 was almost over and the COVID calamity and its associated disasters were mostly behind us, a source tipped Strata-gee off to a major new disaster that will almost surely cause a significant disruption in the 2021 supply of those critical A/V products we all use/sell/and install every day. You may not be aware of this AKM fire story now, but we are all facing what will likely be another major supply chain headache in the near future.

Warning – your supply of key products is now threatened…

[Read more…] about AKM Fire: 2020 was Almost Over, Then Disaster Struck Again

Filed Under: Management, Manufacturers, News, Strategy, supply chain Tagged With: AKM, Asaki Kasei Microdevices, Sound United

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Ted Green Bio

A former dealer, manufacturer, distributor & more. Focusing on business strategy, my goal is to help you make better decisions for greater success.

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