Sound and Communications - July 2008 Issue

NEWSLETTERRATIONAL ACOUSTICS ENTERS PROFESSIONAL AUDIO INDUSTRYRational Acoustics LLC (Putnam CT; www.rationalacoustics.com), founded by industry veterans JamieAnderson, Karen Anderson, Calvert Dayton and Adam Black, has entered the professional audio industry,focusing on providing training classes and product sales in the field of acoustic test and measurement andsystem alignment. The company is also developing a system alignment software and hardware products.Classes offered by Rational Acoustics address both general system alignment theory/practice and specificproduct training, currently Smaart-specific, because “that is where the majority of us have recentlycome from,” noted Jamie Anderson. “But as we continue to grow, we’ll include other measurementplatforms. We’re not promoting a single product or solution; rather, we’re here to provide the bestrange of technologies, techniques, tools and practices to help people get their jobs done.”TOA ELECTRONICS DELVES INTO DIGITAL SIGNAGETOA Electronics, Inc. (South San Francisco CA; www.toaelectronics.com), has added digital signage solutionsto its product line. In partnership with Orion Images Corp. (Cypress CA; www.orionimages.com),TOA offers kiosks, multi-panel displays and public view monitors to the United States AV market. Orionis a global manufacturer of LCD video monitors, and now TOA’s dealer channel has access to Orion’slineup of LCD-based digital signage products.CLEARONE GRANTED TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDEROn June 26, the United States District Court entered an order granting a request from ClearOne (SaltLake City UT; www.clearone.com) for a temporary restraining order (TRO) against any sale or transferof ownership of certain assets of WideBand Solutions, Inc., a Massachusetts corporation, to WideBandSolutions, Inc., a Georgia corporation. It is related to ClearOne’s lawsuit (ClearOne Communications,Inc. v. Andrew Chiang, et. al. Civil No. 2:07-co-37 TC), in which ClearOne alleges, among other things,theft of intellectual property and copyright infringement.The TRO provides that “ClearOne has met the elements necessary for issuance of a TRO to preserve thestatus quo,” and imposes certain prohibitions against any sale or transfer of ownership of certain of thedefendants’ assets, consisting of certain computer code and algorithms. The TRO also states that none ofthe defendants’ profits from the Disputed Code may be transferred or conveyed to the Georgia entity.BARCO ACQUIRES HIGH END SYSTEMS, FORTIFYING EVENTS MARKET PRESENCEBarco (Kortrijk, Belgium; www.barco.com) has acquired High End Systems, Inc. (HES, Austin TX; www.highend.com), a global technology provider of automated luminaires, digital lighting and lighting controlsthat employs 156 people and is profitable, with $44 million in sales (2007). The total value of the transactionis $55 million. About 80% of HES’ sales are in rental and staging/events, complementary for Barco,which is heavily involved with LED video displays, large venue projectors, creative LED products and imageprocessing products. HES will be fully integrated into Barco’s Media and Entertainment division.The acquisition provides Barco with an additional patent portfolio in digital lighting, along with increaseddistribution channels and product offerings worldwide.CADAC ELECTRONICS GOES INTO ADMINISTRATIONAfter 40 years of operation, the directors of Cadac Electronics plc (Bedfordshire UK; www.cadac-sound.com)have placed the company into administration following a sudden, unexpected falloff in anticipated sales of thecompany’s analog products. Having recovered from its financial difficulties of the last three years, Cadac wasclose to putting its new digital console into production to fulfill an anticipated order book of about $3.9 million.According to managing director Bob Thomas, “It is heartbreaking to see this great company go under….Althoughadditional bank financing had been put in place to complete the S-Digital developmentand to get its production underway, the sudden slump in forecast analog sales...meant that Cadacwould be unable to maintain the underlying cash flow necessary for its survival.”COMPILED BY DAN FERRISI AND DAVID A. SILVERMAN10Sound & Communicationswww.soundandcommunications.com