Consumers are turning to multi-room music systems in droves with Sonos reporting record growth this year off a 100% growth last year. Sold exclusively through the specialist channel, the Sonos music system which is seen as the best of a new breed of entertainment technology systems is benefiting from the popularity of the iPod and consumers turning to digital music.
Also contributing to their success say Niv Novak of Playback Systems is the fact that more Australians are now investing in the distribution of music in a home from one central source. He also said that consumers are by majority not only buying an initial system but an additional zone worth $699 within 60 days.
Independent research reveals that 99.1% of consumers who purchase a Sonos system rate the product as good to excellent. Novak said “It appears that consumers are falling in love with multi room audio and after buying an initial set up they are then coming back and buying additional zones. The average has now risen to 3 and I anticipate this rising even further”.
Sold only via specialist resellers Novak said that he has no plans to expand the product into mass retailers. “Despite the product being easy to set up 70% of buyers are choosing to have the product professionally installed. We believe this is important and the mass retailers are not interested in taking the time out to do a proper installation of this product” Novak said. Rumours are circulating that over the next few months Sonos are set to roll out a major technology upgrade to their system with the launch of the ZP120 which is expected to be a big seller. The new amplified zone player is physically much smaller box than the original ZP100 that it will replace.
