Inavate + Sennheiser: Building partnerships and alliances

• Features

• 16/04/2024

As technology permeates every aspect of our lives, end users are looking for comprehensive solutions that can work together to address broader challenges or goals. Sennheiser is leading the shift in user demand from ‘products’ towards ‘solutions’ within ‘ecosystems’ with a measured and effective approach. Recognising that standalone products often fall short in meeting the diverse needs of users, Sennheiser is actively staying ahead of the curve by introducing holistic and integrated solutions to its portfolio.

Petteri Murto, vice president of sales, business communications at Sennheiser APAC, shares: “Understanding the market and the needs of customers is crucial. With this in mind, we have developed products that work seamlessly together, creating more value for users. Building a cohesive ecosystem provides a plethora of options and flexibility to our end users.”

The Sennheiser TeamConnect Family is a clear testament to this ethos, with its recent expansion underscoring the brand’s commitment to building a strong network of partners and alliances. The brand has paid special focus to ensuring that the TeamConnect Family of products can seamlessly fit into a wider technology ecosystem and with products from third-party partners so that AV professionals can meet the briefs of their clients.

Sennheiser's commitment to seamless integration does not stop there. Sennheiser has a strong network of global partners and alliances that was established to spearhead collaborations with technology-driven vendors to enhance the overall user experience. Murto expands: "Focusing on interoperability between systems and products from different manufacturers allows end users to benefit from their preferred technologies without worrying about compatibility issues.”

The cornerstone of Sennheiser’s approach to interoperability lies in its manufacturer-agnostic philosophy. At their core, interoperable solutions empower end users with unrivalled flexibility and the freedom to choose solutions that fit well within their existing tech infrastructure. All of Sennheiser’s network-enabled devices come with accessible APIs. This enables Sennheiser products to be included into tailor-made solutions with ease. Without the hassle of proprietary technology or closed ecosystem, AV professionals can rest assured that Sennheiser devices will integrate into whatever design or vision they want to implement.

In today’s world, end users also prioritise certification when selecting products as certification is synonymous with a guarantee of quality. To align with this trend, Sennheiser solutions come with platform certifications which serve as a hallmark of reliability and credibility — allowing end users to enjoy peace of mind that certified products have been optimised to work seamlessly with corresponding platforms. A case in point would be the TeamConnect Ceiling 2, which is certified for use across leading video collaboration platforms such as Tencent Meeting, DingTalk, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams.

Murto elaborates: “In essence, certifications safeguard users from potential integration issues or compatibility problems. Being certified by renowned platforms shows that our products have undergone thorough testing and validation, guaranteeing smooth integration while delivering high-quality audio and reliable performance within the ecosystem.”

The continuous expansion of the TeamConnect Family reflects Sennheiser's ultimate goal of creating a comprehensive ecosystem of UC&C solutions for all spaces, with a key addition to its portfolio being the TeamConnect Ceiling Medium (TCC M) in service of achieving this goal.

The TCC M brings Sennheiser’s renowned quality in a form factor suitable for mid-sized conference rooms and educational spaces, allowing Sennheiser to reach a new segment of the market. With a coverage area of up to 40 sq m, the TCC M delivers all the innovation and features of the award-winning TeamConnect Ceiling 2 with a sleek design and at an attractive price-point.

Acknowledging the need to provide end users with holistic solutions that enhance and complete the collaboration experience in aspects beyond audio capabilities alone, Sennheiser introduced the TeamConnect Bar — its latest addition to the TeamConnect Family, and the brand’s first venture into the realm of video technology. As an all-in-one videoconferencing device, the TC Bar comes in two sizes: the TC Bar S for smaller spaces and the TC Bar for larger, mid-sized rooms. Despite the crowded market for video bars, Sennheiser has made a strong mark in this burgeoning field.

Murto comments: “The TC Bar addresses the growing demand for video bars from the market taking into account the fact that the ideal video bar product did not exist. We knew that it was important to strike a balance between flexibility, performance, and convenience with the TC Bar and we believe we have achieved this.”

Remote collaboration has become the norm, and hybrid workflows have shaped an era where meeting equity and engagement holds prominent weight as well. End users are increasingly invested in inclusivity within the workplace, and the TC Bar checks all the boxes when it comes to bridging the gap between in-person and remote attendees. Equipped with numerous features such as a 4K Ultra HD camera and the leveraging of AI features like automatic framing — the TC Bar enables remote participants to see everyone in the room. Murto adds: “After speaking with customers, we also recognised an opportunity to make our products Dante-enabled which provides end users with the option to add extension mics or a second external USB camera. This feature allows the device to be even more flexible and scalable to fit the unique needs of each meeting space and experience.”

Beyond functional hardware and products, it is apparent that end users are looking for solutions that can be managed with ease and convenience. As Sennheiser continues to expand its portfolio, it also adeptly responds to this shift in consumer behaviour. Enter the Sennheiser Control Cockpit, a software platform that seeks to simplify the lives of end users and system integrators when it comes to the management of hardware.

Murto says: “At the heart of it all, the Sennheiser Control Cockpit serves as the central software that makes the setup, control, and maintenance of our products. The control software provides a comprehensive overview of all our network-enabled devices including the whole TeamConnect family of solutions as well as the SpeechLine Digital Wireless and EW-DX array of products. Through this platform, adjustments can be made quickly and efficiently. What we aim to do is to allow AV professionals to achieve more results in less time.”

Looking ahead, Sennheiser remains steadfast in its ambitions for the TeamConnect Family. Murto shares the brand’s goals for its business communication portfolio: “Our primary aim is to become the first choice for advanced audio technology that makes collaboration and learning easier. This principle guides our actions and strategic decisions. With the TeamConnect Family, we want to create a growing unified communications portfolio that facilitates and enhances learning, collaboration and business activities around the world.”

The successful development of the TeamConnect Family serves as compelling evidence that Sennheiser is steadily progressing towards realising its ambitions. Underscoring Sennheiser’s commitment to ensuring that the solutions they create are intuitive for its end users, Murto concludes: “As we remain manufacturer agnostic, our focus is always on being audibly superior and offering real-world, problemsolving capabilities. Our technologies, complemented by their appealing designs, aim to exceed expectations in the unified communications, hybrid learning, and business collaboration experiences globally.”