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More on Crestron’s New Experience Center; CEO Discusses CEC & Business

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Brad Hintze and the Crestron management team in the Event Space
[Click to enlarge]

As I reported last week, I attended the October 15, 2024, Grand Opening of the latest Crestron Experience Center (CEC), located in the prestigious New York Design Center in Manhattan. This CEC is remarkable in its own right, but as I reflected further on the Grand Opening I realized that the event itself was noteworthy. Not only did a top Crestron executive sit down with me to offer some interesting perspectives on the new CEC and business in general, but what I observed at that event itself was impressive as well.

So I have decided to augment my previous report with additional observations…and more photos.

See more on the Crestron Experience Center in NYC & find out what the CEO shared with me…

[Read more…] about More on Crestron’s New Experience Center; CEO Discusses CEC & Business

Crestron Opens Impressive NYC Experience Center Showcasing Resi & Commercial Tech

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Crestron executives John Clancy, Dan Feldstein, and Brad Hintze toast the new Experience Center in NYC
John Clancy, Dan Feldstein, and Brad Hintze (who appears to be toasting Strata-gee readers) raise a glass of champagne to toast the launch of Crestron’s remarkable Flagship NYC Experience Center [Click to enlarge]

Crestron Electronics, a worldwide industry leader in both the commercial and residential smart technology space, has opened a dramatic and dynamic new Crestron Experience Center (CEC) in the heart of Manhattan at 200 Lexington Avenue in the renowned New York Design Center. A grand opening ceremony was held with the media, customers, integrators and other special guests on Tuesday, October 15th, previewing the space which offers visitors an expansive roster of “hands-on” experiences and even includes a “workshop” for true first-person experiences where visitors can – among other things – discover new possibilities they didn’t know existed.

See more on this all-new flagship Crestron Experience Center in Manhattan

[Read more…] about Crestron Opens Impressive NYC Experience Center Showcasing Resi & Commercial Tech

Voxx Drops Another 18.6% in Sales; Smaller Company Seeks More Profits & Less Debt

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Voxx reports Fiscal 2025 Q2 results

Onkyo, Integra, and Klipsch Owner Stops Bleeding in Profits But Not Sales

Voxx International Corporation (Nasdaq: VOXX) announced the financial results for its second quarter and first half of Fiscal 2025 on Thursday after the close of markets. The company, which is in the middle of a major transformation of its business, hailed the results in which it has dramatically cut the level of its total and net debt, and finished with a small net income after several quarters of net losses.

But these positive results were generated at the expense of net sales which continue to decline.

See more on the results of the second quarter for Voxx

[Read more…] about Voxx Drops Another 18.6% in Sales; Smaller Company Seeks More Profits & Less Debt

Emerald Expo Releases Registration Data for CEDIA Expo & CIX 2024

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The Crestron booth at CEDIA Expo 2023 which is put on by Emerald Expo
CEDIA Expo 2023

Emerald Will No Longer Report Event Attendance Numbers

Once again, the industry gathered to celebrate the world of custom integration last month at the CEDIA Expo 2024 in Denver, Colorado. An annual event that is part business conference, part education/training confab, and part social get-together & party, many in the industry look forward to this one-time seminal event in anticipation of finding the seeds of future business growth in the innovation shown there.

This week, Emerald Expositions released the registration numbers for CEDIA Expo & Commercial Integrator Expo 2024 (CIX), but did not disclose the verified attendance number. At first, I thought this was an oversight…

See more on data from CEDIA Expo 2024…

[Read more…] about Emerald Expo Releases Registration Data for CEDIA Expo & CIX 2024

Split Decision: A Masimo Win and an Apple Win in High Stakes Legal War

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An annotated illustration from a 2005 smartwatch patent discovered by Masimo containing technology like an Apple patent in 2021
An annotated copy of an illustration from a 2005 patent for a smartwatch (Kotanagi) containing the same or substantially similar technology that Apple was granted a patent for in 2021

While many things have changed in the wake of Joe Kiani’s exit from Masimo Corporation (Nasdaq: MASI) – and many more changes are likely still to come – one thing continues on, the many lawsuits existing between Masimo and Apple Inc (Nasdaq: AAPL). And in the last few days, we have learned of two significant developments in that regard. One is a significant win for Masimo…and the other a significant win for Apple.

However, the war between these combatants continues…

[Read more…] about Split Decision: A Masimo Win and an Apple Win in High Stakes Legal War

Sonos Announces ‘New Commitments’ to Consumers; Analyst Issues Double Downgrade

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Sonos Ace headphones
Is she winking at me? Or wincing in the pain of Sonos’ problems?

Sonos (Nasdaq: SONO) announced this week that it was issuing new quality and customer experience “commitments,” as it seeks to rebuild its deteriorating reputation in the wake of a disastrous app launch earlier this year that has caused many, if not most, Sonos systems to stop operating properly – if they operate at all. There has been tremendous upheaval among Sonos customers who have reacted angrily and negatively on Sonos-related message boards and other social media sites.

And now, just last week, Morgan Stanley analysts issued a rare “double downgrade” on Sonos shares – a significant ratings drop indicating that it expects the value of Sonos stock to underperform the market in the near- and mid-term future. Morgan Stanley’s analysis of why this double downgrade was necessary is pretty devastating.

See more on the Sonos slide and its attempts to turn things around

[Read more…] about Sonos Announces ‘New Commitments’ to Consumers; Analyst Issues Double Downgrade

Savant Announcements, Taken in Whole, Offer a Picture of a Smarter Smart Home

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A Savant smart home

Savant released several announcements at CEDIA Expo 2024, each of which was interesting on its own. Seeing these announcements reminded me of some of its past announcements – such as the acquisition of GE Lighting and J Geiger Shading – that were also interesting in their own right.

But only when you start putting these and other company developments together, like individual pieces of a mosaic, does a picture emerge of just where Savant is headed. And that picture…is truly compelling one of a smarter Smart Home.

See the Savant picture that emerges from multiple announcements

[Read more…] about Savant Announcements, Taken in Whole, Offer a Picture of a Smarter Smart Home

Masimo: Elvis Has Left the Building; New Management Gets to Work

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Masimo headquarters in California

In a public press release and a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Masimo Corporation (Nasdaq: MASI) revealed that CEO, Chairman and Founder Joe Kiani resigned his position as CEO on September 19, 2024, in the wake of learning that William Jellison and Darlene Solomon, both Politan nominees, had been elected to the Board of Directors by a decisive margin. The Board has appointed an interim CEO and launched a search for a new permanent CEO.

See all the latest Masimo news as a new day dawns at the company

[Read more…] about Masimo: Elvis Has Left the Building; New Management Gets to Work

The Vote is In, Politan Wins the Proxy War; Both Its Nominees are Elected to the Masimo Board

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Politan Board nominees who won their seats

As Politan Prevails, Board Chairman Joe Kiani Loses His Board Seat & Maybe More

It was a long bloody battle and the outcome was less predictable this time around, due to allegations of vote manipulation and a high intensity – if often misguided – vigorous defense put on by Masimo CEO Joe Kiani and his management team. But now we know the result – Masimo shareholders voted in both of the Politan-backed candidates for nomination to the Board in a sweeping win for activist investor Quentin Koffey and Politan Capital Management. Chairman Joe Kiani, on the other hand, lost his Board seat.

See more about the big changes coming to Masimo thanks to the win by Koffey and Politan

[Read more…] about The Vote is In, Politan Wins the Proxy War; Both Its Nominees are Elected to the Masimo Board

On Eve of Big Vote, Masimo & Politan Make One Last Pitch; Politan Sues Over Vote Manipulation

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Politan lawsuit against Masimo and RTW

Despite explosions going off everywhere all around the combatants, Masimo Corporation’s 2024 Annual Stockholders Meeting will in fact take place as rescheduled tomorrow, September 19, 2024. It has been a long and bloody battle to get to this point and it is not entirely clear who will prevail. But both sides took a last shot at reaching out to investors to try and gain their votes.

Politan’s swing was a little more powerful as it announced it would expand its lawsuit in the Delaware Court of the Chancery – with a new party to be sued, based on evidence it uncovered as part of Masimo’s lawsuit against it in California District Court.

See more on this last blast in the proxy war between Politan and Masimo

[Read more…] about On Eve of Big Vote, Masimo & Politan Make One Last Pitch; Politan Sues Over Vote Manipulation