| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Consumer electronics |
| Founded | 1964 |
| Headquarters | Framingham, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Key people | Amar Bose, Founder and Chairman Bob Maresca, President |
| Products | Loudspeakers, headphones, audio equipment, car audio |
| Revenue | US$2 billion[1] |
| Website | bose.com |
The Bose Corporation ( /ˈboʊz/) is an American privately held organization, based in Framingham, Massachusetts, that specializes in audio equipment.[2] Founded in 1964 by Amar G. Bose, the company operates 5 plants, 151 retail stores (as of October 20, 2006) and an automotive subsidiary at Stow, Massachusetts. With respect to sales in the U.S. for home audio retail and portable audio retail sales, Bose was ranked third for the period of November 2008 to April 2009.[3]
Bose is best known for its loudspeaker products (beginning with the Bose 901 Speaker System), its noise-cancelling headsets, and its automotive sound systems. Opinions vary regarding the quality of Bose products. Bose has an aggressive stance in protecting its patents and trademarks; the company is known for initiating lawsuits.
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Bose Corporation develops and manufactures audio devices (including speakers, amplifiers, headphones, automotive sound systems[4] for cars,[5][6] automotive suspension systems, and performs some general research (such as debunking cold fusion.)[7][8][9] The company was founded in 1964 by Amar G. Bose, a professor of electrical engineering (who retired in 2005) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Bose has contracts with the U.S. military (Navy,[10] Air Force[11] and Army)[12]) and NASA.[13] Professor Bose is still the chairman and was the primary stockholder until he donated the majority of the firm's share to Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2011. [14][15]
The company dedicates a 6,500 square meter (70,000 square feet) building in Framingham for research, development, and engineering (RD&E) purposes with a minimum annual RD&E budget of $100 million.[17] In 2004 Bose purchased an additional site from HP in Stow, Massachusetts, to house growing automotive and marketing divisions.[18]
In 1956, while a graduate student at MIT, Amar Bose purchased a high-end stereo system and was disappointed when it failed to meet his expectations.[19] He later began extensive research aimed at clarifying factors that he saw as fundamental weaknesses plaguing high-end audio systems. The principal weaknesses, in Bose's view, were that the overall design of the electronics and speaker failed to account for the spatial properties of the radiated sound in typical listening spaces (homes and apartments) and the implications of spatiality for psychoacoustics, i.e. the listener's head as a sonic diffraction object as part of the system. Eight years later, he started the company, charging it with a mission to achieve "Better Sound Through Research", now the company slogan.
During the company's first year in business, Bose Corporation engaged in sponsored research. Its first loudspeaker product, the model 2201,[16] dispersed 22 small mid-range speakers over an eighth of a sphere. It was designed to fit in the corner of a room, reflecting the speaker's sound as a mirror would for light in a corner cube and giving rise to an acoustical image of a sphere in a vastly larger room. Amar Bose used an electronic equalizer to adjust the acoustical output for flat total radiated power.
Although these speaker systems accurately emulated the characteristics of a simulated, massless, ideal, spherical membrane, the results of listening tests were disappointing[16] (some of the reasons for this are detailed in a later publication[20] from Bose's research department). This led Bose to conduct further research into psychoacoustics that eventually clarified the importance of a dominance of reflected sound arriving at the head of the listener, a listening condition that is characteristic of live performances. This finding led to a revised speaker design in which eight of nine identical small mid-range drivers (with electronic equalization) were aimed at the wall behind the speaker while one driver was aimed forward, thus ensuring a dominance of reflected over direct sound in home listening spaces, replicating the dominant reflected sound fields listeners experience in live performances.
Before hearing his new design for the first time, although confident that his new design would produce a dominance of reflected sound arriving at the ear of the listener, faithfully replicating that aspect of a "live" listening experience, Amar Bose was unsure as to whether his new "direct/reflected" design would be a small audible improvement or a large one over his earlier design and the best commercially available loudspeakers. The new pentagonal design, named the Model 901, was a very unconventional design for speakers at the time (which were generally either full-size floorstanding units or bookshelf type speakers). The Model 901 premiered in 1968 and was an immediate commercial success, and the Bose Corporation grew rapidly during the 1970s.
Amar Bose believes that imperfect knowledge of psychoacoustics limits the ability to adequately characterize quantitatively any two arbitrary sounds that are perceived differently, and to adequately characterize and quantify all aspects of perceived quality. He believes, for example, that distortion is much over-rated as a factor in perceived quality in the complex sounds that comprise music, noting that a sine wave and a square wave (a hugely distorted sine wave) are audibly indistinguishable above 7 kHz. Similarly, he does not find measurable relevance to perceived quality in other easily measured parameters of loudspeakers and electronics, and therefore does not publish those specifications for Bose products. The ultimate test, Bose insists, is the listener's perception of audible quality (or lack of it) and his or her own preferences.[21]
Unlike other audio product manufacturers, Bose does not publish specifications relating to the measured electrical and objective acoustic performance of its products.[22][23] This reluctance to publish information links back to the classic Amar Bose paper presented in 1968 to the Audio Engineering Society: "On the Design, Measurement and Evaluation of Loudspeakers". In the paper, Bose rejects these measurements in favor of "more meaningful measurement and evaluation procedures",[21] and defines himself as a subjectivist, not an objectivist, in terms of audiophile beliefs; he considers the human experience the best measure of performance.[21]
Following the logic in this paper, Bose Corporation has endeavored to strike an economic balance between cost and performance to provide high quality as judged by the average listener whose criteria of quality include faithful reproduction of the listener's experience in a live performance, which according to Bose requires a dominance of the reverberant sound field in the listening space (a typical home environment).
Additionally, the company researches portable audio within the fields of circumaural and supra-aural headphones, centering within the lines of acoustic noise cancellation (see Bose Headphone Family).
In 1991 Bose Corporation began research into cold fusion.[7][9] Company engineers built a precision calorimeter,[8] began replicating prior experiments, and concluded that there was no net energy gain.
In 1993 Bose opened its first store in Kittery, Maine. Since then Bose has opened 160 stores in the U.S. and numerous locations worldwide. In Britain there are eight Bose stores, including one on Regent Street. Bose stores feature a 15- to 25-seat theater which has a short film that demonstrates a Lifestyle Home Entertainment System.[24][25][26][27] Stores located in factory outlets discount prices on some products and sell both new and factory renewed (retested open-box) products.[27]
Bose produces a range of speakers and audio products for automotive use. Different Bose audio systems are available in vehicles with most GM labels (including Buick, Holden, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Hummer, Pontiac and Saab),[28] as well as in some European models from Alfa Romeo, Audi, Ferrari, Lancia, Maserati, Maybach, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Renault,[28] and also in some Japanese production cars, like Nissan, Infiniti and Mazda.[28] Bose currently does not offer its car audio products on an aftermarket basis in order to ensure proper integration and appropriate in-cabin acoustic adaptation.[28]
At the 2007 auto show in Geneva, Switzerland Bose launched a new media system—incorporating stereo, navigation, and hands free calling—with the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti.[29][30][31][32] In 2007 the Bose media system won the International Telematics Award for the "Best Storage Solution for In-Car Environment".[33]
Another area of research and development at Bose Corporation is two-state, non-linear power processing and conditioning. Several early patents were awarded to Amar Bose and other Bose engineers and this technology is one of the key elements in an innovative project that the company disclosed in 2004 after more than 20 years of research,[34] an automobile suspension system that uses electromagnetic principles instead of the hydraulics that are common today. This system uses electromagnetic linear motors to raise or lower the wheels of an automobile in response to uneven bumps or potholes on the road.[35] The wheels are raised when approaching a bump, or extended into a pothole, within milliseconds, thus keeping the vehicle steady. This technology is another application of Bose's active noise reduction technology for speakers and earphones. The unevenness of the road is sensed, and processed much like a sound wave. A canceling wave is generated, which is applied to the wheels through the linear motors.[15] Bose expected the system to be available commercially on high-end luxury cars by 2009.[36] In a French interview Bose even shows off the car jumping over an obstacle.[37] Bose says that the system is "high cost" and heavy, even after nearly three decades, and $100 million, of development.[38]
Bose makes noise-cancelling headphones that have been lauded for their performance,[39] though they have been criticized by Anthony Kershaw of Audiophilia as costing "at least 50% too much for the musical value of the experience ... however, if you're a frequent flyer, these are a no brainer".[40] Bose makes noise-canceling aviation headsets which have been used in the Space Shuttle, where the noise cancellation feature helps prevent astronaut hearing damage.[41] The headsets are also connected to a special communications system on the International Space Station so that astronauts can make phone calls to their families at home.[41][42]
Bose's Professional Systems Division designs and provides audio systems for use in commercial settings such as auditoriums, retail spaces, hotels, offices, restaurants, and stadiums.[43] Though Bose commercial audio equipment has not been approved for use in studios or movie theaters that carry THX certification,[44] the division accounts for about 60% of Bose's annual revenue.[45] In 1988, Bose became the first company to pay for the title of official Olympics sound system supplier, providing audio equipment for the Winter Olympics in Calgary, and again four years later in Albertville, France, the latter installed and maintained by company subsidiary Bose France.[46][47] Bose sound systems have also been installed at the Staples Center sports arena in Los Angeles (which has since been replaced by a JBL system[48]), the Sistine Chapel in Rome and the Masjid al-Haram mosque in Mecca. For each of these reverberant spaces, proposed sound designs were tested using the Bose Auditioner program to predict the results before installation.[41][49]
Sound amplification for performing musicians has been an area of research and product development at Bose Corporation since the early 1970s. The most recent Bose system for musicians is an individualized amplification product in the form of a vertical pole mounted atop a bass module.[50] This system, designated the L1, is a portable, inline speaker array with broad forward-dispersion of the sound.
On October 15, 2003, Bose Corporation began selling the L1 family of products through its internal sales division and selected dealers. Bose maintains an active Musicians Community Message Board for support, and there is an owner maintained Unofficial Wiki and FAQ.
In 2004 Bose acquired company assets related to the development, manufacture and sales of materials testing equipment, founding the ElectroForce Systems Group,[51] which provides materials testing and durability simulation instruments to research institutions, universities, medical device companies and engineering organizations worldwide.
Discussion of the quality of Bose products can sometimes elicit strong and polarized opinions. There are two major camps: those who see Bose as a maker of high-end equipment, and others who see Bose as a company that uses marketing to make extravagant claims for otherwise ordinary products.
In some non-audio related publications, Bose has been cited as a producer of "high-end audio" products.[30][31][32][52][2][53][54][55][56][57] Commenting on Bose's "high-end" market positioning among audiophiles (people concerned with the best possible sound), a PC Magazine product reviewer stated "not only is Bose equipment's sound quality not up to audiophile standards, but one could buy something that does meet these stringent requirements for the same price or, often, for less." [58] Bose has not been certified by THX for its home entertainment products.[59]
A market study published in March 2006 by the independent market research firm Forrester Research reported that Bose's brand name was among the three computer and electronics brands most trusted by US consumers.[60]
Bose's flagship 901 speaker system was criticized by Stereophile magazine in 1979.[61] In a review of the 901 system, stating that in the magazine's opinion, the system was unexceptional and unlikely to appeal to perfectionists with a developed taste in precise imaging, detail, and timbre; and that these shortcomings were an excessive price to pay for the improvement in impact and ambiance generated by the large proportion of reflected sound [to on-axis sound]. However, the author also stated that the system produced a more realistic resemblance of natural ambiance than any other speaker system.
A more recent 2007 review in Audioholics online magazine reiterated that Bose was very expensive for its performance. Of the Bose Lifestyle V20 Home Theater System the reviewer wrote, "The Bose system is very expensive at nearly $2,000 and the sound quality isn't really any better than many other surround systems costing a third of the price." The review includes an interview with a Best Buy sales manager who suggests from his experience some customers still insist on Bose irrespective of the sound quality. [62]
Bose is recognized by audio industry professionals as a litigious company.[63][64] In 1981 Bose unsuccessfully sued the magazine Consumer Reports for libel. Consumer Reports reported in a review that the sound from the system that they reviewed "tended to wander about the room." Initially, the Federal District Court found that Consumer Reports "had published the false statement with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of its truth or falsity" when it changed what the original reviewer wrote about the speakers in his pre-publication draft, that the sound tended to wander "along the wall." The Court of Appeals then reversed the trial court's ruling on liability, and the United States Supreme Court affirmed in a 6–3 vote in the case Bose Corp. v. Consumers Union of United States, Inc., finding that the statement was made without actual malice, and therefore there was no libel.[65][66][67]
Bose sued Thiel Audio in the early 1990s to stop the audiophile loudspeaker maker from using ".2" (point two) at the end of its product model "CS2.2". To comply with Bose's trademark of ".2" associated with the Bose Model 2.2 product,[68] Thiel changed their model name to "CS2 2", substituting a space for the decimal point.[69] Bose did not trademark ".3" so in 1997 when Thiel introduced the next model in the series, they named it the "Thiel 2.3", advertising "the return of the decimal point."[70]
In 1996, Bose sued two subsidiaries of Harman International Industries—JBL and Infinity Systems—for violating a Bose patent on elliptical tuning ports on some loudspeaker products.[64] In 2000, the court determined that Harman was to cease using elliptical ports in its products, and Harman was to pay Bose $5.7 million in court costs.[64] Harman stopped using the disputed port design but appealed the financial decision. At the end of 2002 the earlier judgment was upheld but by this time Bose's court expenses had risen to $8 million, all to be paid by Harman.[68]
Bose was successful in blocking QSC Audio Products from trademarking the term "PowerWave" in connection with a certain QSC amplifier technology. In 2002, a court decided that the "Wave" trademark was worthy of greater protection because it was well-known on its own, even beyond its association with Bose.[71]
In 2003, Bose sued the non-profit electronics trade organization CEDIA for use of the "Electronic Lifestyles" trademark[63] which CEDIA had been using since 1997. Bose argued that the trademark interfered with its own "Lifestyle" trademark.[72] Bose had previously sued to protect its "Lifestyle" trademark beginning in 1996 with a success against Motorola and continuing with settlements against New England Stereo, Lifestyle Technologies, Optoma and AMX.[73] In May 2007, CEDIA won the lawsuit after the court determined Bose to be guilty of laches (unreasonable delays), and that Bose's assertions of fraud and likelihood of confusion were without merit.[74] CEDIA was criticized for spending nearly $1 million of its member's money on the lawsuit, and Bose was criticized for "unsportsmanlike action against its own trade assocation", according to Julie Jacobson of CE Pro magazine.[73]
In 2008, Bose sued Eforcity Corp regarding patent and trade dress infringement against the SoundDock product line.[75] In 2010, Bose sued 51 people in the U.S. and Canada who sold counterfeit Bose headphones on eBay. Bose sought $2 million in damages per trademark infringement, and Bose asked for the recall and destruction of the counterfeits.[76]
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