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Logitech Is Acquiring Blue Microphones For $117 Million In Cash (theverge.com)
Logitech announced late Monday night that it is acquiring Blue Microphones for $117 million. The company known for USB condenser microphones, such as the Snowball and Yeti, will join Logitech's existing portfolio of brands. The Verge reports: Founded in 1995, Blue sells microphones that range in price from $60 to over $4,000 (for studio-grade hardware), and they're used by podcasters, musicians, and any other consumers who need higher-fidelity audio than what they get from the built-in microphones on their devices. Now, after dropping a heap of cash on the company, Logitech will do its best to make sure Blue's devices become just as essential as its own wireless keyboards and mice. "For Logitech, this is a new space," the company wrote in a blog post. "But, at the same time, it's not at all. Gamers are already using our Logitech G webcams to stream. People are video calling with friends and family thanks to Logitech every day. And in business, our audio and video know-how is apparent every time a video meeting takes place at the office. Joining up with Blue and their microphone lines is a logical adjacent opportunity with great synergies."
- and it's all about convenience! combination sink/toilet and pruno chiller, always within arms reach! rack folds up against the wall for easy stowage! and all bathed in luxurious ivory and slate paint! It's the property of a lifetime! Literally.
What a load of rubbish. It will be a electronics funds transfer.... more bs from /.
Never heard of them.
I hope it's worth $117 million.
"Joining up with Blue and their microphone lines is a logical adjacent opportunity with great synergies."
So, doomed to failure, then... ;-)
Garry Knight
They are known for the Blue Yeti, one of the best value for money microphones out there for streamers. Also have other quality ones.
Blue is kind of like Beats: stylish, easy to use, popular, but never the top quality in its price range.
"First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
Only gangsters and criminals use cash.
If anything, Blue mics were nice because they didn't look like they came out of a 13 year old's "cool robots" art book.
More than the customer base.
Logitech is a consumer brand, driven by volume. Higher quality items don’t bring the same revenue, it’s N units X $P. 50 units / mo at $2000 doesn’t excite Logitech, but a few such products are a nice stable way to fund a meaningful part of the burn rate of an SME.
10kpcs/mo of a $79 product is more like what they are interested in.
Everything seemed okay/meh till the end, when:
"synergies"
Uh oh. This is the digital canary for: "Y'all about to get so fucked."
The synergy is the parent takes everything, and as the acquired you give it all to them. There will be no reciprocity. Heads will roll due to "consolation" and new idiotic quarterly projections which some executive fucker promised without even consulting how much time said promise would take.
They are crap mics. Blue is the Beats of the microphone world. The only reason they got where they are is because they got their product in front of a few youtube/podcast "influencers". Go into any REAL professional recording environment and Blue is not what you will find.
We use Blue mics. They are just tools, not saviors. We know what we are doing, that's why we are booked for the next three years. Not because of what we have, but because of what we do.
Go back to blogging from your moms basement, son, and leave the real work to the professionals.
Unlike TV, you need a big microphone if you are going to make a YouTube video, everybody knows that. And it should be placed directly in the middle of FOV.
Of course that is after you have placed your musical instruments and apple products casually in the background.
L'Idiot
Its unfortunate that the medium market for video streaming is owned by this low end company.
Complete nonsense. You don't need a "pretty damned good" microphone, but when the majority of value you provide to your viewers is your appearance and voice, you want a "good" microphone.
Blue happens to make "good" microphones at reasonable prices. Not whatsoever "small steps upward from budget headset".
On the other hand, pretty much any USB interface these days is "reliable", in that it doesn't cut out mid-stream. "Reliable USB interface" is an irrelevant concern unless you are paying less than $10.
People here sure seem clueless. Is Blue the absolute top-of-the-range recording studio quality? Far from it. But they are far above "budget".
Blue has been making very decent studio-quality mics for over 20 years. No, they are not up there with Neumann, but the large-diaphragm condensers have a very acceptable sound and that's a good alternative to other studio mics for those who want that sound. I like AKG in that price range and have always liked Shure and Audio Technica in the lower price ranges. I have not used their USB mics and don't have a need. For those who really like the studio mics, this could end up being like CBS purchasing Fender in 1965. It will take a while, but commoditization will drive out the things that made the products what they are.
If it picked up everything, you probably had it in omni. Rookie mistake.
Got a bunch of rabid fans that want the Marble FX Trackball brought back Logitech! Please bring it back newer and better (well just add USB connectivity, it was pretty much perfect the way it was): https://www.facebook.com/Bring...
Maybe they'll do what they did with the Logitech MX 518... figure out which microphone everyone loves the most and then quit making it.
Jake: You traded the Bluesmobile for this?
Elwood: No, for a microphone.
Jake: A microphone? Okay, I can see that.