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New, Larger SnapAV: The One-Stop Shop of Smart Home

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Strata-gee Interviews SnapAV’s John Heyman & Charlie Kindel

The industry is still adjusting to the new normal of SnapAV combining with Control4…even as it continues to gobble up more local distributors and talk about their e-commerce prowess. It can get a little confusing. Is SnapAV a manufacturer? An e-commerce play? A local distributor? Or are they attempting to be all of the above?

I spoke with SnapAV’s John Heyman and Charlie Kindel to try and help our readers sort this all out. It’s certainly a new world out there…but just what planet are we on?

See what I learned from these top SnapAV execs…

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Sex and the CES Attendee

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CES logo

Only six months to go and word has emerged that the Consumer Technology Association – the trade group behind the annual Consumer Electronics show – has proactively taken steps to avoid repeating the mistakes that caused them to endure a plethora of embarrassing headlines last year. The controversy, a self-inflicted wound, surrounded the Association’s awarding – then rescinding – of a CES 2019 Innovation Award…and retroactive cancellation of booth space for that company. The news dominated the early headlines during the January 2019 event…mostly because the matter involved sex.

See how CTA got in trouble & hopes to avoid it this year…

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Ex-Nortek Exec Speaks With Strata-gee, See What’s On His Mind

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Photo of Joe Roberts from 2017 CEDIA Show
Joe Roberts, EVP of Products and Marketing, at 2017 CEDIA Show

The last ninety days or so have been somewhat turbulent at Nortek Security and Control (NSC), with two top executives departing under foggy circumstances. First, in May we learned that President Mike O’Neal had left the company. Then, last week, news emerged that Joe Roberts, Executive VP of Products and Marketing had also departed.

I reached out to Joe Roberts to try to find out what was up with all of these changes at NSC.

See what Roberts had to say about Nortek…

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AudioControl CEO on Fox Biz Network Says Tariffs are Trouble

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AudioControl CEO Alex Camara on the Fox Business Network

Alex Camara, CEO of Seattle-based specialty electronics manufacturer AudioControl, was featured Friday on a segment on the Fox Business Network (FBN) talking the real impact of tariffs on American manufacturers. In the wake of the move by the Trump administration pushing a dramatically increased 25% tariff on a wide range of Chinese goods, Camara explained to FBN anchor Liz Claman the true impact these tariffs have on his business…and ultimately the American consumer.

See Camara explain how tariffs are trouble…

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Multi-Decade Member & Respected ‘CEDIA Fellow,’ Renounces His Membership

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Says Organization is On the Wrong Path;  Announces the Launch of a New Venture

Fred Ampel in Fox sound truck

Fred Ampel, a long time, multi-decade member of CEDIA, a regular trainer at multiple CEDIA Expos, and a “CEDIA Fellow” has renounced his membership in the organization. In a Skype interview with Strata-gee, he shared his view that the organization has changed in ways that are counter to his view of the type of education that they should be providing to the membership. As a result, he feels forced to develop a new alternative program outside of the trade association.

See why Ampel left CEDIA & what he’s planning…

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CEDIA Hires Senior Director of Sales, Sponsorships & Partnerships

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Photo of Robert Keeler, now at CEDIA

CEDIA announced on Wednesday that it has hired Robert Keeler to join the organization as its new Senior Director of Sales, Sponsorships, and Partnerships. Keeler is ex- a lot of well-known companies in this industry and he takes on a primary sales responsibility at the trade association.

Learn more about Keeler at CEDIA…

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Luxman Announces Rep Awards at AXPONA 2019

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photo of Luxman amplifier

Luxman America took advantage of the recent high-end AXPONA 2019 show to announce awards to two top manufacturer sales representatives for outstanding sales achievements. Luxman Corp. president Terry Kawakami, presented both John Pravel and Rick Tydings with special gifts from Japan to honor their over-and-above efforts.

See more on these Luxman rep awards…

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James Loudspeaker Launches New Mavericks Division

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James Loudspeaker logo

Innovative architectural loudspeaker designer/manufacturer James Loudspeaker announced this week that it will split off its Mavericks theater products into their own division, the Mavericks Architectural Cinema (MAC) division. This new division will offer the company’s dramatic Mavericks theater speakers for both the high-end residential and commercial cinema installation markets.

See more on James’ new Mavericks division…

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The Ticket is $3,000 to See a Cinema at This Most Exclusive Theater

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Red Carpet Home Cinema logo

Are you a one percenter who loves movies, but doesn’t love sharing a theater experience of dirty seats and sticky floors with the unwashed masses? Then Red Carpet Home Cinema is for you! You can see first-run, genuine (non-bootleg) blockbuster Hollywood movies in the comfort of your very own plush home theater for the positively pedestrian sum of a mere $3,000! And you can absolutely see them on the same date & time they are in commercial theaters! Hurrah!

See more on Red Carpet Home Cinema…

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Sonos Intros New CFO and Stock Drops Again

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Sonos logo

Last week Sonos (Nasdaq: SONO) announced a new CFO to replace current CFO Mike Giannetto, whose retirement was unexpectedly announced almost as an afterthought in a February report of Q1 fiscal results. Late in the text associated with those results, CEO Patrick Spence, in an almost casual fashion, thanked Ginnetto for his service and told investors the CFO was retiring…a total surprise to the market. Sonos stock dropped double digits…and dropped even though the company had reported a record first quarter. (Read my report to see troubling signs within the ‘record’ Sonos quarterly report…)

New CFO intro & Sonos stock drops again…

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