Sennheiser's Consumer Business Just Found An Unexpected Buyer

Back in February, Sennheiser announced that it was looking for a partner to take over its consumer products arm so it could shift its focus entirely to its Pro business. Today, the company announced that it has found a partner in the Stäfa, Switzerland-based Sonova Holding AG. Sonovoa has agreed to acquire Sennheiser's consumer business and continue to develop, produce, and sell headphones and soundbars under the Sennheiser brand.

This is a bit of a strange acquisition, because at first blush, you wouldn't necessarily assume that Sennheiser would be a good fit for Sonova's core business. Sonova is a company centered around hearing care, which means that it makes hearing aids and cochlear implants – not exactly the audio equipment Sennheiser is known for.

Still, this could be a match made in heaven, so to speak. In its announcement today, Sonova said that it will "leverage the complementary competencies of both companies to strengthen and further expand its business areas in the future. Sonova also suggests that its "extensive technological and audiological expertise" could be used to improve Sennheiser's products in the future.

While the price Sonova is paying for Sennheiser's consumer electronics arm wasn't revealed today, it isn't hard to imagine that Sonova paid a pretty penny. Sonova will fully absorb Sennheiser's consumer arm, which means that it will be taking over development and production of Sennheiser's consumer-focused products. Sonova will also license the Sennheiser brand and operate under that, it seems. Sonova expects the deal to be complete by the end of 2021, pending regulatory approval.

As for Sennheiser, co-CEOs Andreas and Daniel Sennheiser announced today that the company will shift focus to its Pro Audio, Business Communications, and Neumann business arms. That means regular consumers probably won't see too much from Sennheiser proper in the future, though Sonova will still be making Sennheiser-branded audio hardware. This is a pretty big change for Sennheiser, so we'll sit tight and see what Sonova can do with the brand in the future.