Rebecca Day

Spotify fell short of its monthly average user guidance for Q2 on “ongoing COVID-19 headwinds” and a “temporary issue” with sign-ups on a third-party platform, said CEO Daniel Ek on a Wednesday earnings call. MAUs grew 22% year on year, 3% sequentially, to 365 million.

Logitech shares fell more than 10% Tuesday morning after the company’s fiscal Q1 report reflecting a cautious revenue outlook and weaker gross margins. The company maintained a fiscal year outlook of flat sales growth in constant currency, “plus or minus five percent.” Shares closed 10.3% lower Tuesday at $108.45.

TCL, which announced a 6-Series 75-inch 8K Roku TV at CES 2019, is finally delivering it, said the company Monday (see 1901070058). TCL was the first TV brand to confirm it was joining the 8K Association, which had its inaugural news conference at the same CES. TCL was due to begin taking preorders for the 75-inch 75R648 ($2,999) and 65-inch 65R648 ($2,199) mini-LED TVs at Amazon and Best Buy Monday. Amazon gave a shipping date for the 75-inch model with the ability to order, but it didn't show the 65-inch model. Best Buy showed pricing above TCL’s announced prices at $3,999 for the 75-inch 8K TCL TV and $2,599 for the 65-incher but wasn’t taking orders. A notice said, “Coming soon.” The models are the first 8K TVs to be stamped with THX’s Certified Game Mode, TCL said. Low latency combined with variable refresh rate and auto game mode are said to provide smoother, optimized game play. Both have Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision. TCL didn’t respond to questions.

Interactivity is key to the future of videoconferencing and enterprise video events, Namita Dhallan, Brightcove vice president-marketplace and technology, told us. It's integrated into Microsoft Teams, Zoom and Cisco's Webex, and its video platform powers virtual global product launches and events. The platform has chat functionality, within the video and interactivity with polls, along with the ability to put placements on the video. “It can be much more engaging than just watching a bunch of blocks on a screen,” said the executive. Brightcove powered a Dropkick Murphy event from Fenway Park in Boston in May 2020, reaching an audience of over 9 million. “If you were having an on-site conference, and you thought you might get 2,000 people to attend, now that it was virtual, people were seeing that their events were going to the tens of thousands, if not more,” she said. The company’s platform is designed for broadcast-quality and can scale from hundreds to “millions” of users, she said. That helped companies deliver their message when people couldn’t travel or gather. As conferences start to return, Dhallan said, indications from customers and the market are that “hybrid events are here to stay.” Customers can reuse event content and put it on a website that lives on beyond a physical event or as an over-the-top application, she said. South by Southwest had an OTT application “so it would be this omnichannel experience that lived on,” she noted: Video will play a vital role for the future of work, events, marketing and internal communications.

After a 2020 back-to-school season disrupted by many closed classrooms due to COVID-19, 2021 isn’t shaping up to be any more normal, Nikki Baird, vice president-retail innovation at retail technology provider Aptos told us Friday. The National Retail Federation predicts an average rise in BTS spending of $59 to $848.90, and a $1,200 average spend for college, up $141 from last year, with $80 pegged for electronics (see 2107190027).

Dolby.io is a “game changer” that expands Dolby's addressable market and creates a recurring revenue-based business, Colliers analyst Steven Frankel wrote investors Thursday to preview the company’s July 29 quarterly earnings report. The platform also expands Dolby’s reach to applications, moving beyond the traditional focus on devices. Dolby's virtuous cycle is driving broader adoption of Vision and Atmos, “leading to more content supporting these formats which, in turn, drives more device adoption,” Frankel said. The analyst cited “significant advancements” for Dolby with Apple’s May announcement that it was rolling out Atmos Music for no additional charge to Apple Music subscribers and said, “We expect Spotify to follow suit” in the fall. Spotify didn’t comment. Wider deployment of Atmos Music will spur further adoption of Atmos in smart speakers and headphones, he said. Dolby got another shot in the arm from Comcast’s announcement (see 210714003) that X1 customers can experience the Tokyo Olympics in 4K Vision and Atmos, the first North American delivery of live sports in the two formats: “We suspect the number of live sporting events available in Vision/Atmos is likely to grow.” Colliers’ model calls for Q3 FY 2021 revenue of $286.9 million vs. management’s $260 million-$290 million.

Summit Wireless shares reached a 52-week high Thursday at $7.06 as the company continues to raise awareness for the WiSA-certified category and a WiSA-branded store on Amazon. The stock closed 13% higher at $4.60. Summit’s Wireless Speaker and Audio Association officially announced the Amazon storefront Thursday, after CEO Brett Moyer teased the news on an investor webcast last week (see 2107160043). WiSA expects its Wave marketing program to drive 2 million visitors to its website this year. At Amazon, consumers will be able to buy WiSA-certified TVs, transmitters and speakers. In addition to home cinema solutions from WiSA member brands LG, Hisense, Klipsch, Harman, Enclave and Platin, the Amazon store will show WiSA speakers and TV bundles from retailer partners including Electronic Express and Walts TV, WiSA said. The store is designed to present customers with options for system configuration, performance level and budget. A search for WiSA at Amazon Thursday brought up a Samsung 65-inch UN65TU8000 bundled with a WiSA SoundSend transmitter and WiSA-certified Monaco 5.1-channel speaker system for $1,795. Also shown were non-WiSA-certified Edifier Bluetooth speakers; Samsung, Onkyo and Vizio multichannel speaker systems; a WeMax laser projector; and a Retekess FM transmitter for houses of worship and schools. A Google search Thursday listed Bestbuy.com third behind the WiSA Association website.

TrendForce scaled back its annual smartphone production forecast for 2021 by 5 million units to 1.35 billion, citing the “intensifying COVID-19 pandemic in India and Vietnam in April and May.” Samsung, with manufacturing in Vietnam and India, had a 23.5% production decline sequentially in Q2 to 58.5 million units, the report said.

Savant Systems bought Racepoint Energy, said the buyer Tuesday. Terms weren’t disclosed. Savant CEO Bob Madonna founded Racepoint in 2015 when he was Savant chairman and former Barnes & Noble head William Lynch was CEO. Madonna had installed solar panels at home and found the interface “clunky,” he told us. Savant Power is a scalable software platform that manages distributed energy resources such as solar, storage and flexible load management. By adding automated power, which has been renamed Savant Power, the home control company “now addresses every pillar of the connected home" including climate, lighting, entertainment, security and energy, said the company. Savant Power is helping to “transform the grid” with its automation capabilities, boosting the effectiveness of alternative power sources such as solar, batteries or generators “without compromising comfort and convenience,” said Madonna. The two companies have worked closely together, with Racepoint exhibiting in the Savant booth at recent CEDIA Expos; they also collaborated on the Vegas Modern 001 showcase home in Henderson, Nevada, unveiled last week (see 2107140054). “We are seeing an enormous investment in renewable energy, said Madonna, citing events including the Texas grid hack and rolling blackouts in California that are placing energy “top of mind” with consumers. Madonna noted Savant also acquired GE Lighting last year, bringing access to distribution at retail, electrical supply distribution and the CEDIA channel. “All of the pieces fit together to make this timing work now for Savant to acquire Racepoint Energy,” he said, allowing Savant to deliver a comprehensive smart home solution controllable by one app.

Roku partnered with NBCUniversal on a home screen experience designed to give customers “easy access” to the media company’s 5,500 hours of streaming coverage of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics via the Roku platform, the companies said Tuesday.