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Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

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Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#41

Post by lenerdenator »

awnird wrote: post #11

Patrick destroyed a successful company, and will be receiving millions of dollars on exit. His current replacement was an executive at the failed Quibi service. Nothing in tech will improve until there are actual consequences for people like this. Serial failures just hop from job to job. ruining products and lives along the way.

We don't really structure business law to allow for the appropriate amount of risk. The whole point of incorporation is to limit liability and shift what remains off of individuals at the company.

If you try to change this, you'll hear screeching about how there's just too much risk and the "job creators" will just take their capital and ideas to more business-friendly legal climes.

Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#42

Post by Zigurd »

Bhilai wrote: post #22

I’m not an audiophile, but after hearing Sonos at a friend’s house and being impressed, I decided to purchase a speaker for my kitchen, where I often listen to music while cooking. I opted for the Sonos Five, assuming that Bluetooth connectivity would be a standard feature on a standalone speaker, especially at this price point. To my surprise, a speaker costing nearly $600 doesn’t support Bluetooth—it only works via…

as an Android user I can tell you that Sonos better fix this quickly because casting is going to work reliably any day now. And then they'll be in trouble!

Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#43

Post by paxys »

Gonna say it's more than just a single bad app launch. The company's stock price is down 70% from its peak a few years ago. Their revenues have been falling quarter after quarter. Products are getting worse and yet the prices just keep going up. If any company needs an intervention it's this one.

Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#44

Post by Maxion »

wnolens wrote: post #24

I also started investing in Sonos recently and damn the software is terrible. While I wish I could get 100% of my money back, I'm not sure there any turnkey alternative that is better. Every time I research I come back with "Sonos sucks but it's still the best".

You really wouldn't think that the tech in this segment would be so hard to get right.

Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#45

Post by doctorpangloss »

sofixa wrote: post #31
Bhilai wrote: post #22

I’m not an audiophile, but after hearing Sonos at a friend’s house and being impressed, I decided to purchase a speaker for my kitchen, where I often listen to music while cooking. I opted for the Sonos Five, assuming that Bluetooth connectivity would be a standard feature on a standalone speaker, especially at this price point. To my surprise, a speaker costing nearly $600 doesn’t support Bluetooth—it only works via…

> If you’re an Android user, the limitations are even more frustrating. Playing music directly from YouTube isn’t possible without jumping through hoops Unfortunately that's due to Google's bullshit. There's a lack of appropri APIs, that's why you'll notice that any "smart" audio device (by smart I mean, integrates directly with music streaming services/locally stored music) doesn't support YouTube nor YouTube Music.…

Google Assistant also stopped working abruptly on many devices, Sonos included for months. This guy did exactly what some Google exec wanted, which was to exact revenge on Sonos over a patent loss.

Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#46

Post by davidu »

awnird wrote: post #11

Patrick destroyed a successful company, and will be receiving millions of dollars on exit. His current replacement was an executive at the failed Quibi service. Nothing in tech will improve until there are actual consequences for people like this. Serial failures just hop from job to job. ruining products and lives along the way.

Tom who is stepping in is an awesome executive. He was OG Pandora and Snap before Quibi and was on the Sonos board. He's a true product person. I'm sure he was enjoying semi-retirement and see him dropping in as CEO is a huge upgrade. :-)

Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#47

Post by Maxion »

DudeOpotomus wrote: post #36
davidu wrote: post #16

So what are people using instead of Sonos AMP for home sound control?

Apple airplay works flawlessly. Or you can buy an old Amazon fire and connect them to your own hardware. Both of these solutions allow you to use any speaker/amp setup you choose. And if you truly care about sound quality, this is the only path.

AirPlay and multiroom is still a struggle though

Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#48

Post by Aaronmacaron »

I see a lot of negative comments in this thread about Sonos in general, which is interesting to me because I'm currently thinking about buying Sonos speakers. What exactly don't you like about it? Is there a good alternative to Sonos that ticks all the following boxes?

  - Connect two or more speakers wirelessly to get stereo sound (I hate cables)
  - Good support for different audio sources (bluetooth, Spotify, AirPlay, aux, etc..)
  - Ability to connect speakers of different models (which means you can upgrade your setup later as you see fit, for example add a subwoofer)

Re: Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch

#50

Post by amelius »

ubermonkey wrote: post #25
coreyh14444 wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Patrick was at Sonos for 12 years, and 14 years at RIM before that, so he doesn't really fit the MO of a "bouncer.

Well, with that resume he should get a new gig in no time!

Not if they do a quick internet search and find this thread.
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