Industry

  I promise something more substantive in a different post ( <– that's just a writing flourish. No actual promise is intended or implied), but I wanted to pass this along. I get press releases every day about companies introducing new products, changing management, or using technology. Many of them are incomprehensible – it's as if PR people speak a different language. Here's the headline from one that crossed my inbox this morning: Leading Architectural Audio and Video Supplier Builds on FST GUI Technology for New Streaming Media Product Line   Who? What? After reading the press release a couple of times …

NHT (aka Now Hear This) has been a respected mid-tier speaker manufacturer based in the U.S. since 1986, but as the recession hit earlier this year, they chose to shut down product development and manufacturing, take some time off, and approach the market fresh. They weren't bankrupt – at least not yet – they just saw their distribution channel erode as independent dealers and custom installers went out of business, and their price points crept up to the point where they were out of line with economic realities. Some of this was driven by rising commodity prices, some by a …