Samsung

UEI Earns Wide National News Coverage for All the Wrong Reasons

October 21, 2021 by Ted 2 Comments

Allegations of Conspiring With China’s Gov’t to Use Uyghurs in a Forced Labor Arrangement

In a rare show of bipartisanship, a group of U.S. Senators has sent a strongly worded letter to a leading consumer electronics industry remote control maker Universal Electronics, Inc. (UEI) launching a probe into the company’s hiring practices in China. Unique to UEI is that they own their own factories in China (most contract with existing China OEM factories) and a recent damning investigation by Reuters alleges the company is working with the Chinese government to utilize a widely persecuted Uyghur minority in a forced labor arrangement, a human rights violation. UEI has denied the accusation but so far has not provided data to back up their denial.

See more on the UEI labor situation in China

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CEDIA Expo 2021: Should You Risk Your Health to Attend a ‘20% Expo’?

August 26, 2021 by Ted 6 Comments

CEDIA18 Day 2 crowds — I saw more open aisles on Days 2 & 3

The Day After Losing 39 Exhibitors, Expo Loses Another 26

What a crazy couple of weeks it has been for exhibitors of CEDIA Expo 2021, and also for potential attendees who watched a slow-motion train wreck unfold right in front of their eyes. It was almost exactly two weeks ago – on August 10th – when Savant CEO Robert Madonna suddenly announced that Savant was pulling out of CEDIA, due to concerns over the surging infections from the Delta variant of COVID-19.

Little did we know then that this was the trickle before the flood…

See more on the saga of CEDIA Expo 2021

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Crestron, the Biggest Booth in the Show, Withdraws from CEDIA Expo 2021

August 18, 2021 by Ted Leave a Comment

BREAKING NEWS

Crestron Electronics announced this morning that it has made “the difficult decision to fully cancel our presence” at the rapidly approaching CEDIA Expo 2021, scheduled to start in just about two weeks in Indianapolis, IN. Crestron joins a long list of exhibitors who have also decided to pull out of the event, almost all due to health and safety concerns from the dramatic increase in infections and hospitalizations as a result of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 Delta variant.

See more on Crestron pulling out of CEDIA Expo 2021

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Sony Appears to Have Pulled Out of the CEDIA Expo 2021

August 15, 2021 by Ted 1 Comment

BREAKING NEWS

Photo from Sony press conference — *Sony press conference at CEDIA Expo 2018*

I have been covering the rapidly unfolding events as more announcements come every day of companies choosing to withdraw from CEDIA Expo 2021 in the wake of the surging infections from the COVID-19 Delta variant. While several large exhibitors have already announced their decision to pull out of the annual event, there are many more who are thought to be caught somewhere along the path of the decision process – a tough path to walk in an environment that is extremely fluid and changing daily.

One of the top brands rumored to be exiting the show, but has not yet officially announced anything, is Sony. But now, there is a strong reason to believe that Sony has already exited the Expo.

See the evidence that suggests that Sony is out of the Expo…

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Samsung Says ‘Recent Rise’ of COVID, is Cause for Withdrawal from CEDIA Expo

August 14, 2021 by Ted Leave a Comment

BREAKING NEWS

The announcements are coming faster than I can get them written up, as I learned late Friday that Samsung has notified their dealers that they too have pulled out of the CEDIA Expo 2021. Pressure is building on other exhibitors to take a stand. A tipping point may be approaching…

See more on Samsung exiting CEDIA Expo…

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Sputtering Supply Chain Hit Again – Surge of COVID in Vietnam Closes Factories

July 15, 2021 by Ted 1 Comment

COVID surge in Vietnam is causing global supply chain issues

Brands Like Apple, Samsung, Nike & Adidas Have Been Forced to Close

In a new hit to the supply chain, top brands report that they have been forced to close down factories in Vietnam as the country struggles with a COVID resurgence of surprising resiliency. Notable brand names like Samsung, Nike, Adidas, Apple, Coca-Cola have all at one time or another over the last 90-days been forced to close some or all of their factories as employees came down with the illness.

See more on this new supply chain disruption…

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Crestron Masters Keynote Has Us Roving Mars and the New World of Hybrid Work

April 29, 2021 by Ted Leave a Comment

In Touch of Irony Mother Nature, or Rather Mother Internet, Reminds Us Who’s in Charge

LWith great fanfare, Crestron kicked off their annual festival of all things Crestron – Crestron Masters 2021 – with a keynote address titled “Innovation Fuels Us.” And in a bit of irony, Mother Nature, or should I sway Mother Internet, reminded us all of who’s in charge by causing the program to suddenly stop at about five minutes in. About fifteen minutes or so later, the program started again and, save for a couple of stutters later, attendees were entertained with an impressively professional and compelling pre-recorded video presentation that celebrated Crestron’s history of innovation and set the tone for the week of education and conversation to come.

See more on the Crestron ‘Innovation Fuels Us‘ keynote

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Samsung Warns Chip Shortage Now Impacting Mobile Phone & Computer Biz

March 23, 2021 by Ted 1 Comment

samsung chip factory in Austin, TX — *Samsung’s Austin, TX chip factory remains idle with no announced restart date*

Supply Chain Problems are Expanding into More Products

More evidence is emerging of the possibility of an economically significant impact from a stressed supply chain that has hit the global supply of integrated circuits (chips) hard. First felt in the automotive segment, now Samsung is warning that the global chip shortage is impacting smartphones and personal computers.

See more on the Samsung warning…

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Let the Chips (Supply Chain) Fall Where They May

February 17, 2021 by Ted Leave a Comment

An earthquake in Fukushima, Japan will cause further supply chain problems — Boulders dislodged by the quake blocked a road in Soma, a city in the Japanese prefecture of Fukushima, on Sunday morning. Credit…NY Times via Hironori Asakawa/Kyodo News, via Associated Press [Click to enlarge]

Earthquakes & Snowstorms Hit an Already Stressed Supply Chain

Since Strata-gee began tracking the story of our stressed-to-the-brink supply chain last year, the situation has only become more dire. Not only has the pandemic caused a once-in-a-hundred-years impact on the supply chain, but adding to that whipsaw from the collapse of demand to then off-the-charts demand, we can now add fires, earthquakes, and snowstorms to the mix.

It all adds up to a concerning level of stress to our supply chain that will impact product availability in multiple product segments, including residential and commercial technology.

Mother Nature mauls the supply chain…

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Judge Sends Samsung CEO Back to Prison for 2½ Years

January 19, 2021 by Ted Leave a Comment

Samsung vice chairman Jay Y. Lee — [Photo: AP]

Who Will Run the Company with Lee Incarcerated?

On Monday, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong – also known as JY Lee, J. Y. Lee or Jay Y. Lee – was sentenced to 2½ years in prison for his role in a bribery and embezzlement scheme to influence the President of South Korea in order to increase his share and power in the company. This development is big news in Korea. Samsung Electronics, part of the Samsung family of companies that is the largest conglomerate in South Korea, by itself represents almost 20% of the entire value of all exports from Korea.

See this sensational Samsung…ah…stuff!

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Samsung

UEI Earns Wide National News Coverage for All the Wrong Reasons

Allegations of Conspiring With China’s Gov’t to Use Uyghurs in a Forced Labor Arrangement

See more on the UEI labor situation in China

CEDIA Expo 2021: Should You Risk Your Health to Attend a ‘20% Expo’?