Strategy in TECH...
Last Friday, Snap One held a Virtual Partner Summit in which they unveiled a whole roster of new products to dealers participating in the online event. It was an impressive launch in key product areas for the company including OvrC, audio, new controllers, new soundbar and wireless sub, new architectural speakers, a major new operating system upgrade called OS 3.3.0, and more.
Chicago-based Vanco International has recently been releasing new products, especially audio products, at a furious pace. Once again, after barely stopping to catch their breath, the company is introducing five new audio products into their PulseAudio line of affordable, easy-to-integrate products for the residential and commercial markets.
The Florida Audio Expo announced this week that they are cancelling their February 2021 high-end audio exposition due to “the extraordinary times and continued uncertainty.” Although their announcement does not explicitly name COVID-19 or SARS-CoV2, comments by show founders make it clear, noting that they “put our customers well being first.”
Don’t let those smiling faces fool you…these guys are deadly serious about taking more than their fair share of the audio market. And the vehicle they’re using to drive that growth is Beale Street Audio, a brand that Vanco acquired about two years ago. From what they told me – and showed me – at this year’s 2019 CEDIA Expo in Denver, they are well on their way.
Vanco has always seemed to be that reliable supplier in the background providing a steady stream of solutions like cables, connectors, and other accessories – not particularly glitzy or exciting, but steady and there. Well all that is about to change I learned when I spoke with Mark Corbin, Vanco’s recently appointed President at CEDIA Expo18 earlier this month. The company has begun a big initiative to become a major player in a category near and dear to my heart…audio.
Vanco International LLC, a provider of AV and accessories products, announced this week that Randy Blanchard has joined the company as its new Director of Audio Products. Among other things, Blanchard will oversee the company’s Pulse Audio and Beale Street Audio brands. Blanchard joins the company after a 13½-year career with ADI.
We live in a time rich in options for ways to connect with and consume content. If I asked you to pick which source was the number one method that adults aged 18 and older use to consume content today, which would you choose: Smartphone? Tablet? PC? TV connected device? TV? AM/FM radio?
If you picked that last option, AM/FM radio, you would be correct! Fully 93% of all adults use an AM/FM radio to consume content on a weekly basis. Surprised? Hold on to your hat…that’s just one of the many surprising results in new research study from The Nielsen Company that says we are now in an audio resurgence.
This past Tuesday, Samsung Electronics began launching Harman audio brands in South Korea through their company owned locations. According to the Korean press, Samsung is “looking for business synergy” by combining its strength in distribution network, marketing, and world-class service, with Harman’s strength in manufacturing competitive audio products. It is an initiative, the local media says, that is expected to “have significant impact on South Korean audio markets.”
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) maintains a semi-annually updated forecast for all major categories of consumer electronics and has announced the results of their latest update for July saying the industry will hit another new high watermark in industry-wide sales. In a minor revision of their initial January 2014 forecast, the CEA now says total industry shipments in dollars will total $211.3 billion.
