Strategy in TECH...
CEDIA and the Powerhouse Alliance announced a partnership today that is designed to bring CEDIA’s professional skills training program out of their headquarters building and into a location near you. Combining the quality education of CEDIA with the 55 geographically dispersed Powerhouse Alliance member locations across the U.S., this deal dramatically expands integration techs ability to easily gain access to professional education.
Oh-oh! I thought today I would be confirming that the VOXX/Sharp/Onkyo definitive agreement – which was supposed to be concluded today, May 20, 2021 – was in fact fully executed as directed in the original tentative agreement. But instead, I have learned that the definitive agreement for this sale was NOT in fact signed today, as dictated in the preliminary agreement. Now what?
The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has launched a massive investigation into a wide range of televisions, remote controls, and other components that is sure to rattle a few cages around the industry. The investigation is the result of a patent infringement action taken by Roku, Inc. (Roku) against Universal Electronics, Inc. (UEI) and a long list of UEI customers and associates back in April. At the same time that Roku filed their lawsuit in a California District Court, they also filed a complaint with the ITC alleging Section 337 violations (“unfair imports”) by the same long list of prominent players in electronics.
Bowers and Wilkins (B&W) and the famed Abbey Road Studios announced this week that they have formed a new collaboration to further advance the state-of-the-art for in-car entertainment. The two companies have worked together for years with Abbey Road studios using B&W speakers for monitors in their studios. Now the partners will extend their relationship in the furtherance of this new venture.
After the close of market on Wednesday, Sonos, Inc. (NASDAQ: SONO) reported their fiscal 2021, second quarter results which were very strong. On Wall Street they like to call that an “earnings surprise” and they really, really like it when it is a positive surprise. Sonos did not disappoint them.
In a move that has been widely anticipated for some time now, Wirepath Home Systems LLC, the corporate name for SnapAV, has filed paperwork with the SEC to preliminarily begin the process of registering their stock for sale to the public. We learn little in the rather terse announcement from the company, but many in the industry had expected this day would come for years now.
SnapAV announced today that it will acquire network service agency Access Networks in a deal expected to close later this month. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The company says this acquisition “will broaden SnapAV’s networking portfolio with newer products and managed services including system design, configuration, monitoring, and support.”
Emerald Holding Inc. (NYSE:EEX), formerly Emerald Expositions Events Inc., the national B2B exposition company that owns the CEDIA Expo show as well as certain industry publications such as CE Pro, announced last week financial results for their fiscal first quarter. The news was bleak with a massive decline in revenues and a large net loss as the company is still suffering from the impact of the COVID-19 lockdowns.
Emerald made several other announcements as well. The company says it has acquired an online photography education business, and – perhaps more ominously – it has filed a lawsuit against their event cancellation insurance providers.
I can’t say this news from Onkyo Home Entertainment comes as much of a surprise. And based on conversations I’ve had with many of you over the last week or so, my reference a couple of weeks back to the growing romance between Onkyo and Voxx was clearly a wink-nod signal that I saw this coming. Onkyo has signed a preliminary agreement to sell their largest, but not their only, remaining division – the home audio/video division – to a partnership consisting of Sharp Corp. and Voxx Intl. The deal includes the Onkyo, Integra, Pioneer, and Pioneer Elite brands.
But after the abject failure of three previous attempts to sell the troubled company, will this deal actually close? See my thoughts…
Moody’s Investors Service, one of the top credit rating agencies in the world, said this month that DEI Sales, Inc., dba Sound United, has been assigned a credit rating of B2 and a probability of default rating of B2-PD. In addition to this, they are assigning another B2 rating to Sound United’s proposed $380 million senior secured first lien term loan due in 2028. The forward looking “outlook” for Sound United and this rating is “stable.”
