Harman To Acquire B&W, Denon, Polk And Marantz From Masimo In $350 Million Deal
just saw the above announcement--of particular note is that masimo paid over a billion for the same brands just a few years ago. not sure whether harman will add any value--they've neither hurt nor helped revel or arcam--or what this move indicates about the consumer audio market generally, but this doesn't bode well for the future.
@fertguy Focal is good because of their portable devices like the Wired Headphones and Wireless Headphones. Not because of their two channel stuff.
If they didn’t have those divisions, they’re be struggling too. As for PS Audio, most of their money is from their music production/label end. Just pray they don’t end up being unprofitable. It has gone bankrupt before |
Very large corporations owning small audio brands isnt a great plan. I worked at one of the bradns mentioned during the early 90s and while it was wonderul staff and wonderful internal people, the management above seemed very motivated by stock values and getting the stock performance up. The goal of such companies can shift in such a dynamic from great product to profitable product. Theoretically great product should be profitable, but not always. The challenge is product development cycles are long and the investment cycle is short, which forces some manufacturers to pass on longer product development when it cannot contribute to a positive cash flow within the quarter. I’ve seen this at work in smaller brands that get absorbed into larger ones. Brad |
What Harmon/Samsung bring to the table are financial and marketing resources, and that is precisely what the small, innovative companies lack. It's a tough slog for the small entrepreneur, with cash flow always threatening to end the dream. A roll-up like Harmon is doing is a way for the creative guy to cash out and go try something else. It's pointless to be romantic about business. The large acquiring company will be unlikely to hold onto the creative types or foster innovation - not impossible but not likely either. I, for one, do not lament the roll-up, but rather look forward to what the innovators will bring next. |
