Logitech International has agreed to acquire privately held Ultimate Ears, based in Irvine, CA, for $34 million in cash. Ultimate Ears offers both universal and custom-fit earphones, having expanded from the music industry into the consumer electronics market throughout the last few years. The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close by the end of August.
The acquisition allows Logitech to expand its portfolio of digital audio products, providing more options for portable music listening. The company already offers a line of digital music speaker systems and is also a leading provider of speakers and headphones for PCs. The company recently introduced a portable wireless speaker product for listening to music stored on Bluetooth mobile phones.
Ultimate Ears was founded in 1995 to serve the sound monitoring needs of pro touring musicians and maintains a leading market share in the custom-fit market segment. Since 2005, Ultimate Ears has expanded into the consumer market of MP3 and audiophile listening with a line of universal-fit earphones for audiophiles as well as mainstream music enthusiasts. Ultimate Ears employs nearly 40 people.
For more information, visit www.logitech.com and www.ultimateears.com.