“Sound Matters” As DTS Completes Acquisition of SRS Labs

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Sound Matters! That was the central message offered by DTS CEO John Kirchner during a Press call on DTS completing the acquisition of SRS Labs. This deal paves the way to offer “best in class” audio solutions. As he put it,

We are very well positioned through a combination of the technologies in pre and post-processing to deliver the solutions that our customers want and need.

This positioning is especially true in the areas of mobile, connected TV and automotive audio as there are “significant opportunities to enhance audio in those areas”. It is difficult to get quality, convenience and portability all at the same level since, historically you had to give in on one or more of them. That is no longer the case and both DTS and SRS Labs are leading the way. The combination of DTS and SRS create a rich portfolio of audio technologies and accelerates advancement. The goal is to offer audio solutions that will “surprise and delight” customers.

The addition of SRS Labs speeds the process with which they can innovate, especially since SRS brings not only the intellectual property they have developed but also 400 people in 9 countries. They will accelerate development of “best in class” solutions that will let people enjoy their media and entertainment. Clearly the companies are complementary on many levels. For example, SRS has deep connections in the TV and PC space than does dTS. This is why “it makes a whole lot of sense to make this acquisition.”

"Sound Matters" As DTS Completes Acquisition of SRS Labs

Kirchner is pleased with the industry response to the deal. “Usually there are people who support any given deal as well as those who are detractors. In this case, really from the first announcement, the industry has been supportive of this deal. We share a similar commitment to the quality of the audio that is presented.” People recognize that and “This deal lets us combine our respective technology roadmaps.”

When asked about branding issues he noted that there are no immediate plans to change the branding of either company since both SRS Labs and DTS have respected and recognized brands. Over time, however there may be changes but for the time being there won’t be any noticeable changes.

As the Press Release notes,

We are excited to have completed this transaction within our expected timeline and are now focused on executing a seamless integration, ensuring that our customers receive unparalleled service,” said Jon Kirchner, DTS’ chairman and CEO. “This transaction combines two highly complementary product and technology portfolios, bringing together DTS’ high performance audio solutions and SRS Labs’ suite of audio processing technologies. In addition, this transaction further expands DTS’ already sizeable portfolio of audio-related intellectual property, creating one of the broadest in the industry. Ultimately, the addition of SRS to the DTS family will allow us to solve audio quality limitations caused by the trend toward thinner, smaller devices, which we believe will provide consumers with a high quality audio experience anytime, anyplace, and on any device.

His enthusiasm was clear as he noted on the call that, “We will have the best in 3D audio solutions. We believe there is an opportunity to offer a more ‘spatially compelling’ audio solution”.

Audio is “experiencing a bit of a renaissance.” After years where convenience and portability won out over quality people now realize they can have all three. “With the technology that exists today you really can have the best of all worlds.” Sound Matters and it changes the way to see and experience entertainment he noted and we are excited to see what the new powerhouse of audio technology offers in the coming years.

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About the Author

Dan Cohen
Having a father who was heavily involved in early laser and fiber-optical research, Dan grew up surrounded by technology and gadgets. Dan’s father brought home one of the very first video games when he was young and Dan remembers seeing a “pre-release” touchtone phone. (When he asked his father what the “#” and “*” buttons were his dad said, “Some day, far in the future, we’ll have some use for them.”) Technology seemed to be in Dan’s blood but at some point he took a different path and ended up in the clergy. His passion for technology and gadgets never left him. Dan is married to Raina Goldberg who is also an avid user of Apple products. They live in New Jersey with their golden doodle Nava.