Bang & Olufsen CEO gets the boot for falling sales, profits

That Bang & Olufsen management team is sure a vindictive bunch. A teensy little 37% drop in profits this year, plummeting sales and a tanking stock price and CEO Torben Sorensen is out on the street. The firing of Sorensen leaves what some are calling "a managerial vacuum in the company," but Bang & Olufsen is trying to regroup as fast as possible after the hits it's received in the luxury tech industry. B&O is planning on regrouping to its "core business" of audio and video products, and we'll see if that can give them the kick in the pants they need to keep building ridiculously overpriced electronics for years to come. No word on who's going to be picked to replace Sorensen.

[aguiluz @ Jan 11th 2008 8:11PM]

So... Zero Tolerance policy eh? Let me see if you replace him with somebody worse.

[Motoken @ Jan 11th 2008 8:30PM]

hmmm....maybie...... just MAYBE...... it has something to do with the prices.

[tekdroid @ Jan 11th 2008 8:46PM]

ridiculously overpriced electronics? Art Lebedev, we welcome you to the Bang & Olufsen team...

http://www.artlebedev.com/everything/optimus/

[Casper @ Jan 11th 2008 9:59PM]

Ridiculously overpriced electronics? It's manufactured in Denmark, not by people who only need a bowl of rice a day. Also, it appears to me its the same market as Apple, design and functionality beyond the average... for that, you pay a premium.

[Jeebus @ Jan 11th 2008 10:57PM]

Well, maybe the new CEO can get it produced somewhere cheaper and actually make a reasonable profit.

[tekdemon @ Jan 12th 2008 2:17AM]

First off, not every overpriced piece of crap they sold was made in Denmark. In fact, the whole reason that they're "refocusing" on audio and video is because they attempted to convince people that their name brand and supposedly superior design was good enough to sell nearly unsusable (and not at all cool in design no matter what B&O thinks) phones like the Serene, which was not made in Denmark at all.

And secondly? I'd rather my money go to a hardworking factory worker in China, than give my money to some d-bag Danish "designer" who thinks he's a genius "artiste" for coming up with the design for a $250 wired telephone headset (which, btw isn't made in Denmark either).

And quite frankly, anybody who thinks the overpaid luxury designers at B&O are more deserving of their money than the women and men who put together their ipods and laptops is a douche-bag.

[Tomek @ Jan 11th 2008 9:05PM]

Hopefully their new contract(?) with Aston Martin will help a little... But yeah the pricing is incredible.

Anyone use B&O gear and know if it's THAT good? I was visiting my step brother at his school last year and in the nearby mall (King of Prussia anyone?) they had a B&O shop, they were charging like 900$ for a friggin home phone! its incredible, theyre like Vertu, it looks cool... sorta, but has older technology and is priced like incredibly, aparently their design is good cause i remember the shop like it was yesterday, nice looking stuff.

Bang & Olufsen prices= epicfail!

[marcus @ Jan 11th 2008 9:56PM]

Their prices certainly are steep, but a lot of their products are REALLY good and what's more is that they are of very high quality. For instance, we've been using B&O products at home that've held up beautifully with little or no maintenance for well over ten years. They've also been keen on backwards compatibility which makes it easy to incorporate new technology with old, such as a new sound system with an old tv, or vice versa.

If you have the cash to spend, I recommend B&O, especially for audio equipment. I can't say I'm a fan of their take on TV's since CRT's were abandoned however. Their telephones are top notch as well.

One obvious factor to deal with when considering the price is that a lot of their products have great second hand values. Sure, they drop in price like used cars as with all electronics, but the second hand price of a 3+ year old system is still pretty steep. Not to mention the fact that a lot of their products are cult products that after a while even becomes more expensive as units get's more scarse and replacement parts harder to find.

[John P @ Jan 11th 2008 9:57PM]

They also have a new contract with Audi, which for their sake I hope ends up in more models than just the A8.
I'm also curious if anyone has ever used B&O gear. It's very expensive, obviously, but I want to know if it just looks sleek or if its really good stuff.

[FireWolf @ Jan 11th 2008 11:48PM]

I actually have a B & O audio receiver that hangs in my garage. It has no buttons except knobs for tuning the am/fm bands. Every function has some form of static touch in order to actuate them. The ironic thing is that this device was built in the 70's and is still running strong. It weighs a ton, but rock solid audio with great reception.

[Jeff Goldberg @ Jan 11th 2008 11:18PM]

Tomek, I live right near King of Prussia and yes, we have a B&O store.

[Tomek @ Jan 11th 2008 11:58PM]

Thanks for the clarification Marcus, but I still cant justify a stationary telephone costing 900 cause it looks nice and/or sounds a lot better than just about anything else.

Also, I had no idea about the whole Audi thing, but that will most likely get them out of the red quicker than just Aston Martin. This is because even if the systems are just in A8s, there are most likely more A8s sold alone in one year than the whole Aston Martin fleet, unfortunately. Audi was a good move, they will hopefully help B&O out.

[roole @ Jan 11th 2008 9:52PM]

Frankly, it's not just the prices. It is a combination of a recent spate of mediocrity in product offerings combined with high prices. And arrogance. And poor customer service. These basics always eventually always catch up with you.

I have been a long-time B&O fan, and own a few of their products. Their audio systems from the '80s were just amazing. The audio system I bought in 2004 was not bad, but not stellar. Their telephones are a bunch of embarrassingly poor-build-quality crap. And, they should not even be in the TV business -- quite subpar.

Basically, technological developments have passed them by. They are woefully behind in today's digital world. And, companies such as Apple have overtaken them in design.

[muyiwa @ Jan 11th 2008 10:04PM]

someone should get this across to Bill Gates...I heard he needs a new job. you never know..he might just be what they need to turn Bang & Olufsen into a competition chopping monster and up their profit....or they might just reduce the pricing on their ridiculously priced products priced in the name of 'art'...just a tought.

[Reneer @ Jan 12th 2008 12:25AM]

Having used Bang & Olufsen products for most of my life, I can highly recommend their speakers - though the price is somewhat steep, the build quality and sound quality is very high. Everything else they make, from the TVs to the telephones, is nowhere near the same quality. Their headphones suck, to be honest - they sound great, but after an hour of wearing them (the Form 2s) you just want to get them off your head.

[Bakert @ Jan 12th 2008 12:37AM]

I've had several B&O items including audio, telephones & answering machines. The quality has always been very high, and you pay a premium for that quality. The ubiquitous early iPod clicky scroll wheel? On B&O phones 10 years ago. My Beocom 6000 is still working and I use it every day, and I've never had a cordless phone that operated for more than 3 years, never mind a decade. They've made some poor decisions lately, primarily in the technology of some of their products. They have a tradition of innovating in materials and engineering, but I think they've lost their way. They have an "entry-level" phone, for example, that costs several hundred dollars and contains no charging indicator on the ill-fitting base, nor a lit keypad to see buttons in the dark. Their BeoSound 2 MP3 player costs nearly $500, has no screen, comes with no memory and does nothing to differentiate it in an ultra competitive market.

[abiade @ Jan 12th 2008 1:53AM]

B ull$hit B&O verpriced...nuff said!

[abiade @ Jan 12th 2008 1:59AM]

Nah...I like their "think out of the box" design approach but their products are still overpriced and technologically backwards. I remember at one time they came out with a six-cd changer when DVDs changers were hot...hello.
PS to B&O: Mass produce in Taiwan like Apple! to bring the price down several notches!!! and still make profits like Apple!...Hello? But a bad habit (greediness) is hard to break.

[fuzz @ Jan 12th 2008 2:16AM]

if you sell snake-oil like b&o products you have to keep the marketing created illusion going. nobody is going to buy designer label shite if it's no longer "cool".

the sooner b&o are dead the better imho.

[andyo @ Jan 12th 2008 8:07AM]

Y'know, thinking about it again, I have more respect for B&O than I do for Bose. B&O at least put effort and money (as many pointed out, in their older designs) to be cool. Those glass doors that opened automatically, and their older designs were cool AND I am guessing costly to produce.

True, they are not respected among audio enthusiasts and I agree about that, the audio from all I've heard is hugely over its price range, but Bose doesn't even bother to come up with expensive gimmicks to justify at least some of the high price, even if it's not nearly as high as B&O. They (Bose) are all marketing BS, like the "port" design and such, which doesn't cost crap.

[Kasper Laresn @ Jan 12th 2008 3:38AM]

actually B&O has been pronounced dead many times but their sales keep growing.

I dont have B&O - but a lot of their things are actually very nice.

But until they get 1080p BeoLink :-) i wont buy B&O. But after / then maybee.

[Matt @ Jan 12th 2008 4:08AM]

Maybe if all their products didn't sound like shit, they would actually sell.

B&O is worse than Apple when it comes to design vs. functionality.

Sure, their products look good, but more often than not they don't preform all that well for the price.

[Henrik J @ Jan 12th 2008 5:04AM]

The only thing B&O have going for them is their design and the fact that there is a certain status in owning their products. If you dont like the design then B&O are basicly a company that sells very expensive, outdated products that are ugly as hell. B&O are a good example that if your product costs a lot of money people will be fooled into thinking it's good

[DaveGP @ Jan 12th 2008 6:37AM]

B&O audio products (the only ones I'm familiar with) are "good quality" compared to cheap Chinese rubbish, but they're not audiophile quality by any means. I think the Apple comparison is valid - you pay a massive premium for the recognisably high-end name brand and some neat design aesthetics, but in terms of audio quality you can do a lot better for a lot less money.

Someone mentioned having a B&O unit for 10 years? My main amp is a NAD amp from 1979. It works perfectly, sounds better than a B&O unit (I guarantee it) and was almost certainly cheaper.

[dff @ Jan 12th 2008 2:21PM]

Funny how provoking products you can´t afford can be... Some many people with no experience with B&O announcing that it is shit.. Exciting:D

[Oli @ Jan 12th 2008 2:29PM]

Only last week he was interviewed in the times business section under 'movers and shakers'..

“We were a bit hesitant to go into flat-screen TVs because the quality wasn’t good enough, but the world moves quickly, so we built our prestigious, aluminium-framed screen. Maybe I shouldn’t say that, but we got back the pride in B&O.”

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/movers_and_shakers/article3136566.ece

[Generic @ Jan 13th 2008 1:51PM]

seriously, that stuff is not good design anyway

[Johnny @ May 30th 2008 11:55AM]

It sounds to me that all the negative comments on here are coming from folk that have no 'real' experience of B&O, just jumping on the band wagon cos they can't afford it. If you are comparing just the cost between maybe B&O and Sony than yes there is a difference but on the same token compare the cost between a Ford and a BMW. Both cars but with considerably different standards. This can be said for B&O against other brands, same techonolgy ie speakers but considerably different in terms of quality.

I am a big fan of B&O ever since I first purchased 6 years ago. Do you know of any other TV that turns to face you, automatically adjusts the picture depending on the room environment and has amazing sound?? Also the acoustic lens technology that is on maybe 40% of their speakers creates near perfect sound. £10,000 for their top of the range speaker that creates sound reproduction of £25,000 or more expensive speakers from other brands.

Maybe the fact that there are the longest running audio/video brand since 1925 says something about the brand and it has been in the top 5 coolest brands in the UK for the past 4 years?? Most hollywood film directors add B&O into their sets, do you see them jumping to have BOSE or SONY in their films? It is also interesting to hear that Audi have dropped their association with BOSE in favour of B&O.