Company Announcement No 2009-02 10 March 2009
Wide range of notable new products to be presented at AAA
Establishment of Oticon Medical as new business activity
Today, William Demant Holding announced that in connection with the upcoming US
hearing aid convention AudiologyNOW! (AAA) the Group will launch a wide range of
product novelties which are expected to contribute to the Group's continued
capture of market shares in 2009 and beyond. This year, AAA will take place in
Dallas, Texas, from 1 through 4 April.
At the AAA convention, Oticon will launch a number of significant new products,
which will result in a considerable strengthening of the Company's product
portfolio. All the new products are based on the RISE platform known from
successful products like Oticon Epoq, Oticon Dual and Oticon Vigo. The product
portfolio will be strengthened through the following introductions:
Two new complete product families, Oticon Hit and Oticon Hit Pro, will be
introduced at the lower end of the mid-priced segment where our high-volume
products Go Pro and Tego are currently marketed.
A new, compact and cosmetically attractive Power BTE with a classic hook will be
introduced for Oticon Epoq, Oticon Vigo and Oticon Hit, or in a total of seven
price points. People with severe hearing losses of up to 110 dB HL can be fitted
with these products.
A new, compact, cosmetically attractive and moderate BTE with a 13-size battery.
As is the case with the Power BTE, this product will also be introduced in all
versions of Hit, Vigo and Epoq, i.e. in seven price points in total.
Apart from the existing possibilities of using hearing aids together with mobile
phones and MP3 players, the new ConnectLine will add two new significant
applications that expand the possibilities of "streaming" sound from TV and
landline telephones directly to the user's hearing aids. The TV solution has
been developed to allow the user to receive sound not only through the
microphones of the hearing aids, but also through Oticon Streamer - this can
even be achieved without the annoying echo that typically develops when using
the solutions already on the market. The Group therefore expects to see
considerable growth in the number of users who will choose Oticon Epoq and
Oticon Dual. Also, we expect Epoq sales to increase as a consequence of the new
powerful BTE instruments.
Particularly the introductions of the new Power BTE and the moderate BTE with a
13-size battery will represent a significant strengthening of our portfolio of
RISE products, which will from now on be the most complete product programme on
the market with considerable potential for high user satisfaction with a very
broad range of users. All products will be available on the market in connection
with AAA.
At AAA, Bernafon will present Vérité, a new wireless RITE hearing aid based on
the company's award-winning design. With Vérité, Bernafon will have one of the
most attractive hearing aids on the market in terms of cosmetics, audiology and
other user benefits, including binaural co-ordination enabled by wireless
ear-to-ear communication. When using Soundgate, it is also possible to establish
Bluetooth connection to other electronic sound sources like for instance mobile
phones, landline phones, TV, MP3 players etc. Furthermore, Vérité users will
benefit from Bernafon's proprietary ChannelFree signal processing, which has
over time obtained much recognition among hearing care professionals. Vérité
will be available on the market immediately after AAA.
Also at AAA, Diagnostic Instruments will present Interacoustics' new portable
analyzer, Titan, that measures the middle ear function, including any build-up
of liquid. Titan, whose target group is ear, nose and throat doctors and hearing
care professionals, can either be used separately or together with a PC,
provided that matching software is used. Titan is expected to become one of the
best and most sought-after analyzers on the market and will be released for sale
in connection with AAA.
"We are convinced that with these product introductions we can capture market
shares in 2009 and in the years to come. The launches clearly demonstrate that
we have the ability and the will to continuously develop innovative solutions
that will significantly increase the quality of life of the end-users," says
Niels Jacobsen, President & CEO of William Demant Holding.
The Group is moving into an entirely new market
Today, William Demant Holding also announced that the Group's Oticon business
has established Oticon Medical, whose main activities are the development and
sale of bone-anchored hearing solutions. The products belong to a special market
segment characterised by high growth and considerable unexploited sales
potential.
The target group for bone-anchored hearing solutions are people whose hearing
losses cannot be remedied by means of ordinary hearing aids, for instance people
whose hearing losses are due to the malfunctioning of either the ear canal or
the middle ear (so-called conductive or mixed hearing losses). Also single-sided
deafness can be remedied by means of this technology.
Bone-anchored hearing solutions consist of two parts: the implant and the actual
sound processor. Made of titanium, the implant is anchored in the skull behind
the ear. The hearing solution is based on the transmission of sound through the
bone, which thus functions as a conductor of sound directly to the inner ear
(Direct Bone Conduction). This way, the sound bypasses both the ear canal and
the middle ear. An important part of the bone-anchored hearing solution is the
sound processor, which handles the actual sound processing and is based on the
most advanced technological platform on the market.
Fitting bone-anchored hearing solutions requires the patient to go through a
surgical procedure, where the implant is placed in the bone behind the ear.
Therefore, Oticon Medical's direct customers will be hospitals and clinics
specialising in these types of surgical procedures.
Prior to the establishment of Oticon Medical, Oticon's development organisation
has for a number of years worked with the development of a complete product
programme consisting of sound processors, implants, fitting software, patient
accessories and the special tools to be used by surgeons for the purpose of
implanting the bone-anchored hearing solution.
It is estimated that the global market for bone-anchored hearing solutions has
an overall value of USD 60-70 million calculated at wholesale prices and that
the market has historically grown by more than 20% annually. The high market
growth is expected to be maintained in the years to come. The wholesale price
for a complete solution is between USD 4,000 and USD 6,000, excluding
considerable costs for implanting, fitting and training.
Up until now, the market for bone-anchored hearing solutions has consisted of a
few main markets, including Scandinavia, the UK, the Netherlands and the USA,
where public reimbursement schemes have been established for these kinds of
products. Continued growth will therefore be driven by further penetration of
the main markets as well as the building of new markets. Oticon Medical's entry
into the market is expected to very much support this continued market
expansion.
Oticon Medical is expected to present its first products at the US hearing aid
convention AAA. The first products are scheduled to be released for sale in the
second half-year.
An Oticon employee since 1986 and most recently the Company's head of
development, Jes Olsen (aged 48) will as General Manager of Oticon Medical head
the Group's venture as regards bone-anchored hearing solutions. In his new role,
Jes Olsen will be able to draw on his strong audiological profile, his
substantial development experience within all competence areas as well as his
long-standing business experience from the hearing aid industry.
"Our dedicated focus on development implies that on a continuous basis we
allocate considerable resources to the development of entirely new business
areas, as clearly illustrated by the establishment of Oticon Medical. The market
for bone-anchored hearing solutions is a high-growth market with considerable
unexploited growth potential, but also a market on which only few manufacturers
have the technical skill to act," says Niels Jacobsen, President & CEO of
William Demant Holding.
Further information:
Phone +45 39 17 71 00
www.demant.com
Contact:
Niels Jacobsen, President & CEO
Other contacts:
Stefan Ingildsen, Vice President, Finance & IR
Søren B. Andersson, IR Officer
