CES 2009: Monster Announces Strategic Partnerships

By John Laposky -- TWICE, January 8, 2009

Las Vegas — Monster used its “30^th anniversary” press conference at International CES to announce strategic partnerships with Digeo, Gennum and Hewlett-Packard, as well as line extensions to its cable, power and headphone lines.

Head monster Noel Lee was joined by Carlos Montalvo, HP’s product experience marketing VP, to announce a line of co-branded computer and power cables. The HP Monster line will be sold through consumer and PC retail channels, such as office superstores, that Monster has not traditionally targeted.

Monster has also inked a deal with semiconductor solutions supplier Gennum to solve the problem of signal denigration over long HDMI cable runs. The new Monster cables with Gennum technology will support signal integrity up to 21Gbps  at a distance of up to 75 feet, according to Gennum senior VP/GM Martin Rofheart, who joined Lee onstage.

Also joining Lee was Digeo CEO Greg Gudorf, who announced future availability of Monster’s iTV PowerCenter, which will integrate Digeo’s Moxie interface to “turn any TV into an IP network TV.” Gudorf called it “the first cable TV integrated interface for digital media.” No product details were revealed besides a target launch date in the April to June range.

Among product debuts, Lee announced a new entry-level line of Monster HDMI cables called HDMI Basic, packaged in a plain cardboard box at a price point starting at $39.

In the company’s Digital Life line, Monster is extending the speed-rating system used on its HDMI cable packaging to include Ethernet and USB cables as well as the company’s first foray into DisplayPort cables.

Also new for Monster is a line of uninterruptable powers supplies for home-theater systems featuring a modular design that allows the addition of battery modules when additional components are added to the system. Dubbed Countdown UPS, the units count down the battery life left.

Monster also announced a new an in-ear version of Monster’s Beats by Dr. Dre headphones. Featuring a flat tangle-free cord, the in-ear Beats will debut in February at a suggested retail of $149.

As is becoming a tradition, Lee injected a little celebrity factor into the press event, this time by bringing hip-hop star Ludacris to the stage to announce that Monster Music will release a 7.1-channel high-definition surround Blu-ray Disc version of the artist’s forthcoming album, “Theater Of The Mind.”

Ludacris joins head Monster Noel Lee onstage to announce a 7.1-channel Blu-ray version of his upcoming album “Theater Of The Mind” on the Monster Music label.