Acquisition of Altec Lansing Allows Plantronics to Offer Complete Audio Solutions
Jul 19, 2005 8:00 AM
Plantronics has announced it has signed an agreement to acquire Altec Lansing, a provider of portable and powered audio systems. Under the terms of the agreement, Plantronics will acquire all of the capital stock of Altec Lansing for a cash purchase price of approximately $166 million. Following the close of the transaction, the resulting wholly owned subsidiary of Plantronics will be called Altec Lansing Technologies.
“The combination of our expertise in voice communication and Altec Lansing’s in music entertainment enables us to meet the full audio needs of the consumer, in their personal and professional lives,” says Ken Kannappan, president and CEO of Plantronics. “We’ve been exploring audio entertainment possibilities for some time. The acquisition of Altec Lansing, with its product portfolio strength and brand reputation, dramatically accelerates those plans at a time when the technology and momentum in convergence is there for us to leverage.”
Altec Lansing will remain in Milford, Penn., functioning as a division of Plantronics. Gary Savadove, former GE Consumer Electronics executive and CEO of Labtec, joined Plantronics six months ago and is president and CEO of the Plantronics Audio Entertainment Business Group, which will now incorporate Altec Lansing. Bob Garthwaite, who served as senior vice president of marketing and sales for Altec Lansing, will become president and CEO of Altec Lansing after closing of the agreement.
Altec Lansing, with more than $100 million in revenue in calendar year 2004, brings to Plantronics a comprehensive range of products and an established market presence in portable and powered audio. Its award-winning inMotion line of portable speaker systems has become one of the biggest successes of the iPod economy. Just last month, CNET said the following about the new inMotion iM7 iPod speaker system: “Altec Lansing has emerged as a heavyweight in [the iPod speaker] department, anchored by its inMotion series of portable speakers, and its latest innovation, the inMotion iM7, takes the iPod to new heights. It should set the bar for future truly portable speakers. Sound quality is powerful and rich, the device is portable and flexible, and it just looks good.”
In addition, Altec Lansing offers a wide range of computer and home entertainment sound systems and a line of headphones and headsets, allowing Plantronics to provide a more complete product portfolio to its combined retail and OEM channels worldwide.
“From the beginning, we recognized that we complemented Plantronics extremely well, from both corporate and product perspectives,” says Garthwaite. “Both companies go back 40 years or more in their focus on audio quality. Between us, we understand the technical needs of the professional market and the lifestyle demands of the consumer market. And when you look at the growth potential for devices like music-enabled handsets and cellular music decks, the synergies and opportunities become crystal clear.”
“Ultimately it was evident that we shared a common vision with Altec Lansing,” Kannappan concludes. “Both companies were moving toward the immense opportunity for long-cycle growth and innovation created by the unison of digital voice and music technology. Together we’re much stronger and better positioned to achieve that vision.”
For more information on the acquisition, visit www.plantronics.com or www.altec-lansing.com.
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