Although Samsung is mainly associated with smartphones, the Korean chaebol also operates in other areas. It designs and creates chips, washing machines, televisions, and now it is boldly starting to push itself into the audio industry, where it has led to another acquisition.
The Koreans' latest target was the audio division of Masimo, and thanks to it the Bowers & Wilkins brand, a British luxury manufacturer known primarily for its cars – Volvo and BMW, as well as the well-recognizable Denon and the less popular Polk Audio and Marantz.
All this for $350 million , which seems like a bargain considering the fact that Masimo bought the “package” for over a billion dollars years ago.
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The “audio” portfolio in Samsung’s hands has been enriched by more brands, and now numbers nine. The first ones fell into the hands of the Koreans when they acquired Harman for a mere $8 billion, and with it the rights to such legends in the audio industry as Harman Kardon, JBL, AKG, Mark Levinson and Revel.
What's the point of having more and more audio companies? For technology
It's about the race for customers and technology. All the companies that are in Samsung's portfolio today are brands with tradition and customer trust, and two – or maybe even one – companies that have been developing technology in the audio industry for years. Samsung needs them to pin the logo to its soundbars, TVs, phones, tablets, computers, and above all headphones, but also so that the “power/designed by Denon/Harman/JBL/AKG/B&W” note is followed by quality. And here, the technology acquired with Bowers & Wilkins may actually prove useful, which will undoubtedly help Samsung improve its “buds”, which are supposed to compete with Apple's AirPods.
Samsung will drown luxury and premium?
These are undoubtedly concerns of audiophiles. Samsung will undoubtedly affect the independence of manufacturers, and potentially may also affect their quality or even existence. It is worth paying attention to what happened to Harman Kardon itself, which today – after deciding to enter “under the roofs” – has lost its quality and elitism.
An example could be Samsung's main competitor, Apple, which by entering the market with its own headphones, de facto outshone, or at least clipped the wings of Beats, which it had bought a few years earlier from the bankrupt HTC.
AO.
