The canceled support/integration of Spotify in BS5/BM5 was very disappointing. I hoped some other streaming service should have shown up but no. Today I have Music via Horizon instead.
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B&O - First quarter 2019/2020 - Results
46 replies
Unfortunately, they might get to profitability, but it will be hard to get to revenue growth. There is certainly a lot of opportunities to streamline their offerings:
1. Headphones that compete directly with Bose in price and range. B&O = Bose with better design, build and sound quality
2. BeoPlay line that is directly aimed at a more premium level of Sonos (soundbar seems a good move). In the US they should have a section in Best Buy where the headphones and BeoPlay lines are displayed in a Store inside a store model - similar to what Bose and Sonos do...
3. Kill the BeoSound line just add them to BeoPlay and make BeoPlay the upscale-Sonos line.
4. Premium audio line - BeoLab (Subwoofer, Beolab 18, BeoLab 17 and Beolab 50). The BeoLab 18 needs to be $4,999 for a pair, BeoLab 17 for $2,999 a pair the BeoLab 19 should be $1,999 and the Beolab 50 should be $19,999. Compete with B&W and Dynaudio.
5. Makes no sense for B&O to be in the TV business
6. makes no sense to invest in B&O proprietary interfaces and connections.
Their prices are too high currently relative to what they offer compared to alternatives. My 2 cents worth....
Most TV and Audio now seems to be too software dependent. No one is going to spend big money on something that can be made redundant by the software or by a streaming method. Look at the BBC. They stopped mp3 streaming and made a lot of hardware redundant (for BBC broadcasts). Now they've just switched to BBC 'Sounds' and say they can't afford to support older Apple platforms or related systems. B&O have little chance in keeping pace with the changes unless they produce upgradeable plug in modules so that buyers can protect their purchases from becoming out of date prematurely. Exceptional quality universal speakers is their last hope.
Graham
At the end the companies with the better ideas, strategy and products will survive.
Bang & Olufsen still did not manage to get from the analog to the digital century.
Look at the B&O app, look at the outdated stores concept, look for a multichannel distribution concept, look at the internet presence without social community or technical content, look at the helpless / low educated online customer service, look at the not perfect working products, look at the very slow speed things are changing.
Additionally Bang & Olufsen lost its former technology leadership perception in multiroom integration (to Sonos, Apple AP2, Google CC), intuitive operating concepts for TV (not anymore controlled by B&O) music (to Apple, Sonos, Bose, Roon - the B&O app is bad copy of the Deezer app and all additional features follow the goal to be maximum complex and confusing) and active loudspeaker concept (to Sonos, Bose, Bluesound, Apple, etc.).
So the only left unique selling point is the design of loudspeakers ?!?
In my eyes this is not enough to survive. Hopefully I am wrong!
Exactly correct.Those were the obvious advantages. Now they are far less obvious, and largely confined to their speaker design.So yes, it’s death by a thousand cuts from now onBang & Olufsen still did not manage to get from the analog to the digital century. Look at the B&O app, look at the outdated stores concept, look for a multichannel distribution concept, look at the internet presence without social community or technical content, look at the helpless / low educated online customer service, look at the not perfect working products, look at the very slow speed things are changing. Additionally Bang & Olufsen lost its former technology leadership perception in multiroom integration (to Sonos, Apple AP2, Google CC), intuitive operating concepts for TV (not anymore controlled by B&O) music (to Apple, Sonos, Bose, Roon - the B&O app is bad copy of the Deezer app and all additional features follow the goal to be maximum complex and confusing) and active loudspeaker concept (to Sonos, Bose, Bluesound, Apple, etc.). So the only left unique selling point is the design of loudspeakers ?!? In my eyes this is not enough to survive. Hopefully I am wrong!
Hi there @Sheffield. Hope the (semi) retirement is going well. I’m sure you are pleased to be out of it. But I do miss not having you and the chaps down there on Eccy Road.Hi Duels, all I can say is now we are entering the busy period...the next 6 months will be crucial - pleased I’m out of it🙂
B&O has fired CEO Login to view image
Here is the official document from B&O:
Location: Flensborg————Danmark
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