Strategy in TECH...
For the first time since the category has been independently tracked, new data from market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC) shows that global shipments of smart home devices actually declined in 2022. Not only that but while the market researcher predicts that 2023 will see a bit of a rebound overall, its largest segment – Smart TVs – will likely decline again this year.
Just one day after I posted the story Tech Takes a Turn…Downwards, we learned of more layoffs hitting tech, including Google parent Alphabet, Spotify, Vox Media, and more. These additional reports of even more tech layoffs only help to affirm the reality of a slowdown hitting big tech and other areas that are adjacent to tech, such as media focused on tech.
After several years of dizzying growth, the technology sector is now experiencing a notable downturn, as the post-COVID era has brought a combination of higher prices (inflation) and lower demand. In response, 2022 saw significant job cuts at major Big Tech brands that have continued on into 2023. That includes this Wednesday when Microsoft announced it was cutting 10,000 jobs – after a 1,000 job cut in October 2022 – another big blow to Tech.
But what about the more specific segments like consumer electronics and custom integration?
Savant Systems, Inc. (Savant) announced on Monday it’s Savant Power division has partnered with heavyweight energy solutions and services provider Sunnova Energy International, Inc. (Sunnova) (NYSE: NOVA). This is the kind of deal that can turbocharge Savant’s growth in the energy monitoring and control segment – a segment in which they are already a leader in the custom integration space.
On Monday, WiSA Technologies, Inc., a “developer of spatial, wireless sound technology for smart devices and next-generation home entertainment systems,” announced that it has hired an advisor to aid them in moving forward with an “exploration of strategic alternatives” for the company.
In other words, it is putting itself up for sale.
Savant Systems Inc., a leading brand of smart home automation and control solutions, announced today that it is adding even more features to its software subscription model, further increasing its value to both end users and integrators. In 2021, the company converted its operating system to a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) subscription model, offering homeowners more value, as well as offering new opportunity for their dealers. Now, this SaaS subscription program is set to receive several new and upgraded features, bringing even more value to the program.
Lithe Audio, a London, U.K.-based designer and manufacturer of unique, all-in-one, wireless streaming music solutions announced on Wednesday that it is entering the U.S. market for the first time at CEDIA Expo 2022. The company is experienced in supplying products to European commercial and residential channels since its founding in 2014 and is now expanding its distribution here in America. With a unique line of products, such as all-in-one powered in-ceiling/in-wall, surface mount, and outdoor speaker solutions, the company offers a new approach to system configurations.
In the latest research on the smart audio market, analysts see clear progress in the expansion of voice technology both in terms of the growing number of devices containing it, and the expanding uses to which voice control is being used. While much of the results of this latest survey are specific to smart speakers, this version goes well beyond that to looking at voice in all sorts of devices.
RoseWater Energy Group, a manufacturer of residential energy solutions, announced on Wednesday that it has expanded its salesforce footprint, adding four new manufacturer sales representative groups to its network. Not only does this increase the company’s sales touch points, but it expands its presence into four key regions of the country.
Asahi Kasei Microdevices (AKM), part of the Asahi Kasei Corporation, and one of the world’s most significant providers of integrated circuits, particularly digital-to-analog converters (DACs) and analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), launched a new flagship stereo DAC at the IPS/High End 2022 Show last week in Munich, Germany. It is yet another notable milestone in the company’s long journey to recovery after the horrific impact of the signal event of the pandemic supply chain disaster in 2020 – a massive factory fire that destroyed a key production fab, first reported in our industry by Strata-gee.
But…can the company recover quickly enough to make a difference?
