Samsung buys Harman Audio for $8 billion

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Samsung's shock purchase (and purchase price) of Harmon Audio is not just about audio.

Well this is a surprise – not just to us but the employees of Samsung, too, we would imagine.

The Korean supergiant company is not wild about purchasing other companies, although fairly recently Samsung did buy YesCo, the Utah-based digital advertising sign manufacturer.

This purchase is in a different league. Harmon has some of the biggest brands in the audio business, including JBL and, of course, Harman Kardon.

With other brands including SoundCraft, Allen and Heath, AKG, etc, it's tempting to think of Harman as being primarily a Pro Audio company, but in the last decade, it has been building its expertise in the automotive market and, remarkably, this area now accounts for two-thirds of its revenue.

We knew this was a large business, but I don't think we're alone in being staggered that Samsung has paid eight billion dollars for it. It is this revelation that makes us think that Samsung sees Automotive as as huge area for growth.

One way or another, whether it's in-car media or artificial intelligence, it looks like the auto industry is going to be pushing boundaries more than most other industries.

Read more about this in Engadget

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