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Posted March 14, 2008 at 15:21 GMT
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Bang & Olufsen Cuts Profit Outlook
35 replies
I tend to agree with Lee on this one and I am not sure that cutting prices is the answer. I can only help the conversation by mentioning again some of the things that I have mentioned before. The introduction of flat screens has tested their design capabilities (except at the very top of the range). However if they did what they do do a little bit better then I might still be a purchaser. Why weren't digital tuners possible from the start of the new range of televisions. Its been hanging around in this country for years before I bought my BV6-26 so the technology was well established. Why are they still not available in the DVD2 and HDR range?
I know the arguments about B&O not taking on new technology too quickly but all that happens is that those customers who are loyal (and I no longer count myself as one of them) have to either pay twice or give up on B&O. Not a choice you should be offering loyal customers.
Another problem arrived when the flatpanels came is that from every other manufacturer in the world, the LCD and Plasma televisions became bigger, cheaper and better every year. B&O alsmost never gave something back of that to the costumer and became the big stranger in the AV-branche. A lof of people don't understand that (like me!!) and waved goodbye to B&O. I am in the catergory of people who have no message about luxery, etc.. I just want an outstanding television, with a good sound.
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the simple answer is reduce prices,introduce special offers,see how the market react,cause i see the nearly new market not shifting either for 2/3 of price list
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I don't think B&O need to be competitive with mainstream brands Flappo, i think they have just let the whole pricing structure go a bit rhombus shaped!!
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My opinion to this:
- Bang & Olufsen HAS to be competitve with other brands! Why should I pay 4 times the price for a TV that has a worse(!) picture that another brand.
- Bang & Olufsen HAS to go back to the old HIGH QUALITY of their products.
That's what they now paid for! The customers aren't dumb and nobody want's the made in china or made in poland crap.
I demand very high quality from B&O and then their products are good for the price.
But at the moment they're on the way like Bose etc.: Design, High price, cheap quality.
They HAVE to go back to their roots as there are too many companies with "design" products and often more easy and intuitive operation!
Put a Beosound 3 out of the box and try to set up the time and the alarm WITHOUT the manual and no experience with B&O: VERY complicated!!!
Flappo The Grate:
bno have more to lose than most brands , certainly in the av world
how on earth are they going to become competitive when everyone else's prices go down and there's go up ?? ?
i'd hate to be in their shoes right now !!
I don't think B&O need to be competitive with mainstream brands Flappo, i think they have just let the whole pricing structure go a bit rhombus shaped!!
Back in the late 90's, an Avant was twice the price of it's nearest rival. Wow.. TWICE the price - that's brave in any market. However, the Avant was twice the television, with twice the image quality, twice the design, twice the sound quality (at least) - and discerning buyers were happy to pay twice the price of the nearest rival.
Zoom forward to present day.. the BV7. Around 4-5 times the price of it's nearest rival.. Problem - it's not 4-5 times better.
Bang & Olufsen are between a rock and a hard place, as slashing prices would really hack off the people who had recently paid top dollar. Aiming at the ultra-high end may be a quick fix, as these people rarely care as long as the label is there. However, if you are trying to elevate the brand to high-fashion amongst the worlds million and billionaires you need to remember fashion has a habit of casting you aside when people get bored!
Only my ramblings...
Lee
Two issues here I think.
B&O should not reduce the prices- lets face it the percentage drop would need to be very siginificant to make a difference .
Aiming at the ultra high end wont work because they are miles behind better placed brands in that arena- and if they do that at least 70% of dealers will shut.
There are however many positive things they can do to improve matters by some margin and I wrote to the Chiarman of B&O some months ago but needless to say- never had a reply- and that says it all about present company ethos at Band & Olufsen.
Some companies need a corporate collapse to bring about a sea change .
No pricereduction and no high-end?
Well, you really believe you still can sell enough 20.000 euro 50 inch plasma's nowadays???
Lee is a absolutely right in his analyse
Lee and many others B&O fan is willing to pay for the B&O brand, but we are not all idiots.
My next next flatscreen ( or AV) will therefore be another brand, that I can or will effort to pay ( proberly double as normal)
(notice that I have stocks in B&O 😂
I think there are reasons for the price increase for B&O products throughout the years and that is to provide the same level of exclusivity and service they had before. It is the same thing for many luxury brands, their prices have not stopped increasing during recent years. The biggest problem I think for B&O is that they have not been making enough changes to their brand image, a shift to a more luxury brand as oppose to remaining as just another lifestyle brand. B&O just seems like a better alternative to brands like Bose and Loewe that's all. Adding to that, design wise they are awfully similar too, with all that plastic and aluminum. If B&O is raising prices then its quality should rise as well. B&O has just been acting too corporate, it's like Apple versus Macintosh. One brand is based on creative passion and the other on pure calculative approach.
PS. B&O can totally compete with the high end brands, all they need is better quality components and more R&D. B&O can benefit from economies of scale many times more than many of the high end brands plus because B&O is all about integration, in some ways it can offer better performance than its competitors for the same money, just look at BeoLab 5.
Dear All:
Do not forget that part of price increases are also due to the weaker dollar, at least in the US.
Notice how everyone mentions the superb value of the BL 5. Perhaps, B&O needs to duplicate that level of success both commercially and media with its other products. The audiophile community for the most have enjoyed the BL 5 which, I think, is a testament to its quality of sound reproduction.
I enjoy B&O speakers because they are active and I do not have to deal with preamp, amplifier, etc. They do, however, need to improve the components of their other speakers as well. At least for now, I am enjoying the sound out of BL 9 but it could be improved for its cost.
Dario
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