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Music System Sales Sagging, Sonos Un-Leashes Lawyers to Raise Revenues

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BREAKING NEWS

Sonos system photo

Strata-gee reported just yesterday that Sonos, Inc. has sued Lenbrook Industries Ltd. & Lenbrook America – the maker & marketer of Bluesound – for patent infringement. Undoubtedly emboldened by their near-complete victory over Denon’s HEOS brand a little over a year ago, Sonos appears to have targeted Lenbrook to be next in line.

However, Strata-gee has learned that Lenbrook is not the only company targeted for such potential actions by Sonos. There are more – perhaps many more – in our industry lined up for this “hit” parade.

See what Strata-gee learned about Sono’s legal strategy…

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Against Stunning Backdrop, CE Week Comes to Town

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The entrance to the Jacob Javits center in midtown New York City, NY, site of CE Week

CE Week, a production of the folks from CT Labs (publishers of Dealerscope, Technology Integrator, Connected Design), launched their latest iteration of of the event last week again at the Jacob Javits Center in midtown Manhattan. The gods were smiling on the promoters…granting them stunningly beautiful weather that was brightly sunshiny, with deep blue skies, and insanely comfortable temps in the mid-70s. What a dramatic contrast from the normal mid-June heat, humidity, and rain that is much more typical.

The weather was dramatic, but was CE Week?

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A New Consumer First – Mobile Overtakes TV

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Photo of Steve Jobs with iPhone

For the first time ever in history. consumers in the US are spending more time on their mobile devices than they are with viewing programming on their televisions. For decades now, TV has dominated consumer’s time and attention… Now, those days are gone.

See more on consumers shifting to mobile…

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Savant Says Audio Can Be Smarter Too With SmartAmp

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Savant logo

Popular home automation systems provider Savant Systems has been extending and expanding their product line-up with ever newer, ever smarter solutions for years. And now Savant says audio too can be smarter thanks to its new SmartAmp smart audio amplifier, being launched now in conjunction with their participation in the Pacific Coast Builder Conference.

See Savant’s new SmartAmp audio amplifier

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Control4 Smart Home OS 3 – Making Complicated Installations as Simple as a Smartphone

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Control4 Smart Home OS 3

Control4 announced today an all-new and improved operating system for Control4 installations that they call Smart Home OS 3. OS 3 is designed to be an easy unifier of the many devices in consumers’ installations, offer a robust infrastructure, give consumers choice & simplicity, maintain privacy, and – critical for integrators – enables professional support. It is their most tested and intuitive user experience that is as simple to use as a smartphone.

See more on the experience upgrade that Control4’s OS 3 offers users…

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Formation – A Formidable Foray into Digital for B&W

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Formation Audio wireless hub

Ever since EVA Automation acquired Bowers & Wilkins (B&W) back in 2016, I have nervously watched to see the impact of this clash of cultures – new wave with old school. Strata-gee had already exhaustively reported on the painful slow-motion train wreck of Thiel Audio – another high-end audio brand purchased by private equity. In that case, its ultimate demise was in part due to the launch of affordably-priced, but common Bluetooth technology speakers relying on the power of the Thiel brand to justify the non-common selling price.

Would audiophile darling B&W suffer the same fate?

See more on B&W’s new Formation wireless line…

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B&W: Flying in ‘Formation’

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BREAKING NEWS

New Formation Duo

The day has finally arrived. A day long rumored…but never announced. A project shrouded in mystery…willfully maintained, with leaks locked as tight as a special counsel investigation. But now, at long last, all is revealed…for on this day Bowers and Wilkins (B&W) launches their all-new concept – the Formation line of products. And the mystery is finally unveiled. Best of all…Strata-gee recently got a sneak peek that we can reveal now.

See what B&W shared with me just days ago…

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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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Panasonic/Sony OLED Joint Venture JOLED Raises Money

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There’s been a lot of action this week on the OLED beat – in this case, news that holds promise for a new robust competitor in the OLED market. The company, known as JOLED (for Japan OLED), is a joint venture between two TV powerhouse brands and a major display manufacturer that has successfully raised money to complete a new OLED factory.

See more on just what Panasonic and Sony are up to…

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A Flying Car is Cool, A Flying Motorcycle is Cooler

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graphic of flying car

You may recall in January we told you about a flying car being shown at CES in Las Vegas (follow this link and scroll down on the page to see the flying car). But while the US is working on developing a flying car, a Japanese company is developing what many would feel is a cooler concept – a flying motorcycle.

See the flying motorcycle from Japan…

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