Company Announces Upcoming Launch of its Breakthrough
Directed Audio
Product Shown to Significantly Improve Sound
Clarity and Speech Intelligibility for
People Living with Hearing Loss for a
Better Home Entertainment Experience
For a Limited Time, Turtle Beach is
Offering Complimentary White Glove
Installation Service for Each HyperSound
Clear Unit Sold in the U.S.
San Diego, CA – October 15, 2015 – Turtle
Beach Corporation (NASDAQ: HEAR), the leading-edge audio technology company,
today announced it will begin fulfilling initial orders for its breakthrough
hearing healthcare device, HyperSound Clear™, in the next three weeks, and that the product will
be available to purchase through hearing healthcare providers for a MSRP of
$1,675.
HyperSound®
technology is a fundamentally
new approach to sound delivery that generates a highly directional, narrow
beam of audio in the air.
Similar to how a flashlight directs a beam of light, HyperSound Clear directs
a beam of audio to targeted listeners, which has been shown to significantly improve
sound clarity and speech intelligibility in individuals with hearing loss1. HyperSound Clear works in parallel
with the audio from the TV or home theater system, so a person with hearing loss will
experience immersive, 3D audio when sitting in the HyperSound beam, while everyone else in the room hears audio from
the TV speakers or home theater system at a normal volume level. This means
that people with hearing loss, along with family members and friends, can once
again return to the family room to enjoy the latest home entertainment
together.
Additionally, through their partnership with CaptionCall® Turtle Beach is offering complimentary white glove
installation for a limited time for each HyperSound Clear unit sold in the U.S.,
where the Company will ensure the first-of-its-kind directed audio solution for
people with hearing loss is installed and setup for the optimal home listening
experience.
“We’re extremely pleased to get this
truly amazing new product launched, as we believe it will improve the quality
of life for people living with hearing loss,” said Rodney Schutt, SVP and
General Manager for the HyperSound
business at Turtle Beach Corporation. “With nearly 50 million people in the
U.S. and 360 million people around the world with hearing loss, and approximately
80% of patients specifically telling their hearing healthcare providers they’re
having trouble hearing and understanding the TV, we know there’s a significant
audience of people who can benefit from adding HyperSound Clear into
their home entertainment setup.”
With strong initial pre-orders, Turtle
Beach will begin a staged roll-out of the first shipments of HyperSound
Clear units to its partners – some of the biggest companies in hearing
healthcare, including American Hearing Aid Associates, Audiology
Management Group, Inc., Amplified
Resource Group, LLC, AuDConnex, Battery Benelux
BV, Beltone New
England and Fuel Medical
Group, LLC. Consumers interested in purchasing HyperSound
Clear should speak with their hearing healthcare provider for
availability details. Additionally, HyperSound Clear is customizable for
up to two individuals, and will be programmed by a hearing healthcare professional
to a specific user’s hearing profile to deliver optimal results. Once
purchased, programmed and brought home, patients in the U.S. will be contacted by
a member from CaptionCall to schedule the complimentary in-home installation.
In a third-party/internal study2
conducted during HyperSound Clear’s development, 58 adults were provided an
opportunity to participate in a demonstration of the product, with intriguing
results. In a simulated at-home listening environment in the unaided condition,
a substantial majority of participants reported HyperSound Clear enhanced
both their overall listening experience and speech recognition ability for
television viewing. When asked how much they liked their overall experience
with HyperSound
Clear, nearly 70% of subjects in the study rated the overall listening
experience to be either a 4/5 or 5/5. When asked how much HyperSound Clear improved
their ability to hear and understand speech, the results were similar, this
time with nearly 80% of subjects in the study giving a rating of either 4/5 for
(“marked improvement”), or 5/5 for (“tremendous improvement”).
“One of the main joys of being a doctor
is knowing you’re helping people, and my favorite part of working with the team
at Turtle Beach on HyperSound Clear has been those moments shared with patients
when they experience the immediate results of hearing clearly,” said Dr. Mehta3,
Founder and Medical Director of the California Hearing & Balance Center. “Looking
beyond the scientific evidence, the human reaction is all I need to see to know
it works. I’ve witnessed the full range of patients’ emotions reacting to HyperSound
Clear. Whether they become instantly giddy and smile and laugh or are
overcome with emotion, no matter which way you slice it, you know they are
having a life-changing experience by being able to hear the television clearly
again.”
Dr. Mehta continued, “This is a significant
step not only for individuals with hearing loss, but for our industry as a
whole because one of the biggest obstacles we face is the approximate 10 year
gap between when someone first notices a problem with their hearing and when
they obtain hearing aids. Unfortunately, although difficulty hearing and
understanding the TV is an early sign of hearing loss, most people simply
choose to turn-up the volume as opposed to seeking help. When you add HyperSound
Clear as an all-new, gateway product that directly addresses the issue
of hearing and understanding the TV as an alternative option for those who
choose not to purchase hearing aids, it certainly has the potential to shorten
the aforementioned 10 year gap. This is because people will sooner realize the
significant improvement in speech intelligibility can also be achieved in
everyday listening environments by adopting hearing aids. That’s why HyperSound
Clear is such a refreshing, technological breakthrough for hearing
healthcare as a whole.”
“The moment we first experienced HyperSound, we instantly recognized its
potential and jumped at the opportunity to acquire the technology, knowing
full-well we could leverage our 40 years of audio commercialization expertise
to bring this groundbreaking, new type of audio product to multiple markets,” said
Juergen Stark, CEO, Turtle Beach Corporation. “Since January 2014, we’ve
focused on bringing HyperSound Clear to the hearing healthcare market as a first
major consumer opportunity for the technology, with the goal of recreating that
home entertainment environment that everyone with and without hearing loss can
enjoy together again.”
Hearing loss is a growing, widespread issue that impacts
people of all ages and often carries with it serious implications for one’s
health, relationships, and overall well-being. As
people initially begin to lose their hearing, they inevitably rely on
increasing the TV volume to compensate. Unfortunately, this has the potential
to create a divide in the household, as most people don’t want to be in the
same room watching TV with somebody with hearing loss when the volume is
cranked-up. A nationwide survey4 of nearly 4,000 adults and
their significant others shows a considerably higher rate of depression,
anxiety, and other psychosocial disorders in adults with untreated hearing loss.
Researchers estimate that one in five Americans, and one
in three people over age 65, suffer from hearing loss. Impacting over 48
million Americans, hearing loss is the third most common chronic physical
condition in the United States. An estimated 360 million people worldwide
suffer from some form of hearing loss, and HyperSound Clear is on the verge of
offering a new way for people with hearing loss to once again enjoy home
entertainment.
To learn more
about HyperSound technology and HyperSound
Clear, please visit the official website at http://hypersoundhearing.com.
About Turtle
Beach Corporation
Turtle Beach Corporation (www.turtlebeachcorp.com) designs leading-edge audio products for the
consumer, commercial and healthcare markets. Under the Turtle Beach brand (www.turtlebeach.com), the Company markets a wide selection of
quality gaming headsets catering to a variety of gamers’ needs and budgets, for
use with video game consoles, including officially-licensed headsets for the
Xbox One and PlayStation®4, as well as for personal computers and
mobile/tablet devices. Under the HyperSound
brand (www.hypersound.com), the Company
markets pioneering directed audio solutions that have applications in digital
signage and kiosks, consumer electronics and healthcare. The company’s shares
are traded on the NASDAQ Exchange under the symbol: HEAR.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes
forward-looking information and statements within the meaning of the federal
securities laws. Except for historical information contained in this release,
statements in this release may constitute forward-looking statements regarding
assumptions, projections, expectations, targets, intentions or beliefs about
future events. Forward looking statements are based on management’s statements
containing the words “may”, “could”, “would”, “should”, “believe”, “expect”,
“anticipate”, “plan”, “estimate”, “target”, “project”, “intend” and similar
expressions constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements
involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual
results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking
statement. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s current belief,
as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to,
management.
While the Company
believes that its expectations are based upon reasonable assumptions, there can
be no assurances that its goals and strategy will be realized. Numerous
factors, including risks and uncertainties, may affect actual results and may
cause results to differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking
statements made by the Company or on its behalf. Some of these factors include,
but are not limited to, the substantial uncertainties inherent in acceptance of
existing and future products, the difficulty of commercializing and protecting
new technology, the impact of competitive products and pricing, general
business and economic conditions, risks associated with the expansion of our
business including the implementation of any businesses we acquire, our
indebtedness, and other factors discussed in our public filings, including the
risk factors included in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K
and the Company’s other periodic reports. Except as required by applicable law,
including the securities laws of the United States and the rules and
regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Company any is under
no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement after
the date of this release whether as a result of new information, future
developments or otherwise.
1 Mehta, R., Mattson,
S., & Seitzman, R., Kappas, B. (2015, August). Speech recognition in the
sound field: directed audio vs. conventional speakers. Audiology Online,
Article 14901. Retrieved from http://www.audiologyonline.com.
2 Dr. Mehta is a
consultant for Turtle Beach Corporation and has received stock options as
compensation for his work related to the HyperSound
Clear product.
3 Taylor B., Hartenstein
R., Gruttadauria S. (Sept/Oct. 2015). Patient Preferences
for a Directed Audio Solution. Hearing Review.
4 Untreated Hearing Loss
in Adults- A Growing National Epidemic. American Speech-Language Hearing Association.
###
For Media Information,
Contact: For Investor Information,
Contact:
MacLean Marshall Cody Slach
PR/Communications Director Investor
Relations
Turtle Beach Corp. Liolios
858.914.5093 949.574.3860
maclean.marshall@turtlebeach.com hear@liolios.com