Systems Integration Asia – April-May 2018

(Wang) #1
That's a big change that is iniated by the
new management.

For a company that is known for its
conservave approach to business,
parcularly when it comes to markeng and
promoonal strategies, this is certainly a
remarkable deviaon. Refreshing though, it
is a sizeable surprise at least for those who
followed and known the company closely.

The Story

“It is a well-thought out corporate decision-
to speak to the market in a language that
people who use our products speak, and
want to idenfy with,” came the explanaon
from Anita. “We have long been talking
about technology and all that jargon, which
perhaps not fully taken by the users who are
not always technical. So, this is an iniave
to connect the products with the users in a
way they can idenfy themselves with, in an
emoonal binding.” That's the new
beyerdynamic approach to market.

“What we are seeing now is in part what we
spoke last me (in Orlando),” recalled
beyerdynamic's CEO Edgar van Velzen.

“It is part of our vision for expansion in the
conferencing domain, Pro Audio and
prosumer markets, as well as consumer
domain,” Edgar explained. “Like I said in our
previous discussion, the borders between
pure B2B and B2C segments are fading away
rather fast and a whole new and sizable
interesng market is growing; both sides
need to act swily now, understand what
their respecve user wants, and make
products that suit their target buyers,” he
detailed. “At the end, they all are buyers
looking for ease of use, ease of install,
appealing to their emoons and their user
experiences, and best all of this
simultaneously working. This is what we are
working on.”

One important measure towards this vision
is to bring new technologies to the market
and name the products with a specific name
that is easy for the users to connect,
remember, idenfy with, and ask for it.
That's how the FOX, PHONUM, and UNITE
have come to beckon the beyerdynamic
product lovers. All of this, without denying
the manufacturer's original DNA;
professionals in audio, for many years.

PHONUM:Meet the modern meeng
intelligence

“Take
PHONUM, as
a case in a
point here,”
says Edgar. “It
combines the
both
prosumer and
consumer. If you look at it from the
consumer side, it is a Bluetooth speaker with
great sound and a great working
microphone; if you see from professional
side, it is a conferencing system with a
fantasc system of three microphones
including 360-degree beam-forming and
beam-steering,” he explains. “The system
suits the needs of diverse fields of acvity
involving individuals and groups from both
consumer and professional segments. It is
one best answer/soluon for both the
segments.”

More, each of this new genre of products
seek to connect with the users in a nice
story-telling mode, with an emoon of its
own. If the USB-stac FOX microphone can
excite anyone with a musical mind but not
necessarily tech professional, the PHONUM
is taken to excite the conference geeks due to
its ability to break free from cable/power
connecons and more. “It can facilitate
conferencing anywhere, even from
a garden,” explains Anita detailing the rich
features of the modern day
meeng device.

The UNITE, on
the other hand,
apparently
takes the tour
guide
experience to
an altogether
new level of
sophiscaon
with
precision. According to the marcom exec, it
can be a fascinang leading light for
segments like museums, educaonal
exhibion venues or campuses etc. “It would
be hard to resist the emoonal connect with
UNITE, once the users experience the
benefits of mul-way communicaon it
brings to them.”

Says Edgar: “The Tour Guide is just the start;
this technology is the base for a lot of
addional product possibilies in the months
and years to come.”

Edgar Van Velzen: the


Iniator of Change


If there are a few business houses
that have a rich history of over 90
years with many 'firsts' in
technologies, and connued to
flourish with their innovaon on a
global scale, and yet maintained a
very tradional identy, German
audio major beyerdynamic takes a
pole posion among equals.


Founded in 1924, the Heilbronn-
based beyerdynamic made its name
on two basic tenets: sheer
engineering brilliance in product
development yet promoted by
family-driven, conservave
methodologies. While the company
grew from strength to strength in
terms of its product innovaon,
market size and geographical
spread, it's been quite conservave
in its markeng and promoonal
strategies all through its decades of
growth. Straight, so and sober
even as it grew in sophiscaon on
the global stage of compeon.


While the products and soluons
are liked, loved and owned by
millions world over, beyerdynamic
has been a quite hidden enterprise
all through, ll recently- unl the
new addional Managing Director
Edgar van Velzen took over the
company reigns in June 2017. The
new MD – charismac as the 51-
year-old Dutch entrepreneur with
large consumer electronics experse
is – who took over recently as the
full-fledged CEO, following the
rerement of the company's long
standing MD Wolfgang Luckhardt, is
now breathing new winds of change
into the company.


It's not just nomenclature and
product presentaon that are in for
change; there are more fascinang
aspects than one would imagine.
Stay tuned for the weeks and
months to come!


That's a big change.


INTERVIEW

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