Razer acquires iconic audio company THX

[midian182]

Razer, the firm best known for its range of gaming laptops and PC peripherals, has acquired THX, the audio company famed for the iconic Deep Note sound that plays before movies at certified theaters.

Founded by Star Wars creator George Lucas in 1983 to ensure Return of the Jedi had the best possible sound when it hit the cinemas, THX will now operate as an “independent startup,” with Razer as its parent company.

“Razer has a vision for innovation at every level of entertainment, a vision which THX has championed since its inception more than 30 years ago,” says Razer Co-Founder and CEO Min-Liang Tan. “This acquisition will allow us to reinforce Razer’s leadership in gaming and extend the brand into broader areas of entertainment, while at the same time empowering THX to develop into a global powerhouse, independently.”

The THX brand and its certification business, which covers everything from home theaters to HDMI cables, will continue as before. Only those products that have been tested and meet a set of criteria determined by THX can carry the company’s logo.

Following Razer’s purchase, the range of THX-certified products will extend to headphones, streaming video, augmented/virtual reality and “their enabling devices,” set-top boxes, Bluetooth speakers, and connected speakers. So expect to see some THX-approved Razer products appearing in the future.

Razer said it plans to retain all of THX’s 50 staff, and will even hire 10 to 15 more people to cope with the expansion of its certification arm, THX CEO Ty Ahmad-Taylor told CNET.

The move is an ambitious one by Razer, and shows the company has big plans beyond the PC gaming market. One thing we don’t know is how much the deal was worth - no financial details were revealed.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/66713-razer-acquires-iconic-audio-company-thx.html

 

[Theinsanegamer]

An "independent startup"? I dont think a company that is 33 years old can be a "startup" because it was bought.

Someone throw THX a dictionary.

 

[j05hh]

Perhaps an independent acquired acquisition with Razer as its parent company.

 

[Uncle Al]

So, it's all just a matter of money. No new technology or major breakthroughs, unless of course your the one that just sold it for some larger pile of money ........

 

[mbrowne5061]

THX had only 50 employees?
THX now counts as a "startup"?

"Startup" doe not mean "small". Startup means "a significant portion of the compensation is in company equity, I'm expected to be working all the time, and I never know if my actual paycheck will show up on time or even at all - but at least there is an office fridge with beer in it"

 

[Kibaruk]

I for one have not enjoyed the path that razr took, they used to be known for quality peripherals, now everything seems cheap and for the reviews read breaks quite easily.

Hope they don't screw THX over with the cheap wagon.

 

[Adhmuz]

Damn, THX is doomed... Razer will brand all their crap with the logo now in an attempt to sell more garbage headsets and any peripheral they can slap the bag on. THX once meant something, about 20 years ago, now the company has dropped nearly off the radar, good time to be acquired. Just too bad it was from Razer and not a company known for making good audio products...

 

[risc32]

Damn, THX is doomed... Razer will brand all their crap with the logo now in an attempt to sell more garbage headsets and any peripheral they can slap the bag on. THX once meant something, about 20 years ago, now the company has dropped nearly off the radar, good time to be acquired. Just too bad it was from Razer and not a company known for making good audio products...

when I used to be in that biz, thx did mean something. most people didn't really know what it meant, but it had meaning. personally, for me, they died when I started seeing thx logos on crappy little plastic pc speakers. really? the people at the ranch are good with this?