At one time and it doesn’t seem that long ago, streaming represented a true entertainment value over cable and satellite TV. That was then however and today consumers are now, once again questioning whether the streaming services have gone too far with their rate increases.
News just broke that Netflix has announced rate increases for its services and for a growing number of subscribers, this new announcement may be the last straw given the current economic climate.
The KMB Comm Technology Week in Review will have more on this through a story that posted on LinkedIn.
KMB Comm Residential Technology News for the Week of March 23
Hitting lead off for this week’s roundup of home technologies is an item from CE Pro.
Perhaps fueled by current political tides, the story states the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has basically banned all network routers that are made overseas. The CE Pro story says the FCC has updated its Covered List to include those products to prevent these devices from gaining authorization for shipment into the U.S.
The story points out that in addition to network routers, smart home components are also vulnerable to cybersecurity attacks, and the technology integration industry needs to deal with these issues.
Circling back to the Netflix story of its latest rate increases, LinkedIn in its post notes a variety story in which the service has risen its rates twice in less than a two-year-period, and Variety suggests that Netflix may believe that it has “pricing power” when compared to competitive streaming services.
Summing up the increases, the ad-supported tier is now $8.99, which represents an increase of $1, while its standard and premium tiers have risen $2 to price out at $19.99 and $26.99 respectively.
Could a shake up in the popular headphone category be coming? The eCoustics website posted a story that the Sennheiser consumer audio business is for sale.
According to eCoustics, the current owner, Sonova, has confirmed that it plans to sell the consumer audio Sennheiser business, but the story emphasizes the company is just exiting the consumer audio market—but it is not shutting down.
eCoustics says Sonova’s core business is medical-grade hearing products, which is an industry that is less competitive than consumer audio. The story adds the only portion of Sennheiser that will be sold is the consumer audio division that offers products such as ear buds, headphones, and soundbars. The pro division will remain with the Sennheiser family.
Nintendo Switch 2 Not as Popular as Initially Thought
When it was first introduced to the gaming community, Nintendo looked to have another hit gaming console on its hands with its Switch 2.
LinkedIn citing a story from Bloomberg Reports, says the $450 gaming system’s declining sales has resulted in the company reducing the production of the product.
The story says the company is reducing production from 6 million units to 4 million units, and despite the production figures, Nintendo remains on track to meet market goals of 20 million sales over the course of the fiscal year.
In news not related to Netflix’s subscription rates and subscriber base, Deadline reports that Warner Music Group (WMG) has partnered with Netflix on a multiyear deal in which the streaming service will produce content related to WMG artists and songwriters.
Commenting on the alliance, Warner Music Group CEO Robert Kyncl says in the story, the partnership will enable the company to educate Netflix subscribers about the artists signed to the label.
“The combination of Warner Music Group’s IP with Netflix’s global reach is an incredible opportunity to introduce new fans to our artists and songwriters all around the world,” comments Kyncl in the story.
WMG artists include Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, Fleetwood Mack, Madonna, and Bruno Mars.
Closing this week’s KMB Comm Technology Week in Review is one more music item. It seems that despite Corporate America’s best attempts to push AI onto everyone in every possible way, humanity has struck back.
The French-Canadian band Angine de Poitrine has gone viral with fans emphasizing the band represents everything AI will never be. The band’s appearance on the KEXP YoutTube channel has more than 5.3 million views in a month, and if Angine de Poitrine could be described in any sort of way, they are a two-piece, microtonal prog band.
Listen, watch and enjoy.
Recently, Rob Stott sat down and spoke with KMB Communications’ Katye McGregor Bennett and Robert Archer about the relaunch of Connected Design magazine and the current state of the media market in the residential technology industry in a newly released AV Trade Talk Podcast.