A Lenbrook executive "could see 5G becoming more common in homes instead of Wi-Fi." That might require systems updates for customers, said Greg Stidsen, director-technology and product planning. Lenbrook's coming digital-to-analog converter/amplifier M33 supports 20 streaming services including high-res offerings from Amazon HD and Tidal, he noted in an interview and media Q&A last week. Production interruptions due to the coronavirus in its China-based supply chain could delay the product's arrival from March to perhaps May, Stidsen told us.

Universal Electronics, Inc. shares bounced 15.2% Friday to close at $51.80 after the company’s Thursday Q4 earnings report showing 68 percent growth in earnings per share. For full-year 2019, net sales grew to $751.7 million, the highest in company history, up 11% over 2018, said Chief Financial Officer Bryan Hackworth on an earnings call. A rebalancing of the remote control maker’s product line away from low-margin devices to advanced, differentiated high-margin solutions contributed to the company’s strongest year ever, said CEO Paul Arling. Q4 revenue of $174.7 million compared with $170.3 million in the 2018 quarter. Slower top-line growth reflects a “shift away from low margin business, a tradeoff we would gladly take and sets the company up for additional margin expansion,” Dougherty & Co. analyst Steven Frankel wrote investors Friday, issuing a “buy” rating on the stock. UEI’s three China factories have resumed operations after the extended Lunar New Year holiday, but with a reduced labor force, said Hackworth. There are no known cases of the virus among UEI workers, and the company expects to be fully online “within weeks.” UEI’s component suppliers are also coming back online, but with similar labor and logistics issues. Arling reviewed the company’s CES 2020 introductions including the fifth generation of its QuickSet Cloud platform that enables CE devices to discover and control devices and services in the home. He said Nevo Butler, UEI’s digital assistant, can be built into customers’ devices; they don’t have to buy the Nevo Butler hub from the company. UEI's hit from Section 301 tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on electronics imported from China narrowed in 2019 to $530,000 vs. $1.5 million in 2018. The company moved some production from China to its Monterrey, Mexico, facility last year to curb exposure to tariffs for goods sold in the U.S.

Recent design wins, a higher proportion of software content, opportunities in new markets and potential for recurring revenue are positives for Universal Electronics, Inc. (UEI) wrote Dougherty & Co. analyst Steven Frankel in a Tuesday investor note before the company’s Thursday earnings report. That’s despite a 15 percent retreat for the stock over the past few weeks, likely due to coronavirus worries, with 40 percent of the company’s manufacturing based in China, said Frankel. Universal is “still in the early innings of a powerful product cycle,” he said, maintaining a “buy” rating on the stock. Questions remain, though, including the impact of the “fluid” coronavirus situation on the supply chain. Dougherty sees opportunity in emerging subscription broadcast-provided platforms such as Comcast Flex, with MVPDs appearing to be readying over-the-top devices aimed at the growing base of internet-only subscribers, said Frankel, citing Flex’s use of a voice remote supplied by UEI. The analyst also referenced UEI’s new security offerings launched at CES aimed at the hospitality space.

Nvidia expects to take a $100 million revenue hit from the coronavirus in fiscal Q1 ending late April, though it's “still early and the ultimate effect is difficult to estimate,” said Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress on a Q4 call Thursday. This “reflects what may be supply challenges” or a reduction in “overall demand,” she said. Nvidia gets about 30 percent of gaming revenue from China, she said. Q1 gaming revenue likely will decline by "low-double" digits sequentially from Q4, which ended Jan. 26, she said. China also is "a very important market" for Nvidia's data center business, she said. Revenue in that sector "moves from quarter to quarter, just based on the overall end-customer mix as well as the system builders that they may choose," she said. "It's a little harder to determine" the impact of the coronavirus impact in that sector, she said. Q4 sales rose 41 percent from the year-ago quarter to about $3.1 billion. It expects Q1 revenue to be about flat. "Discussions with China’s regulatory agency, the State Administration for Market Regulation," on the takeover of Mellanox "are progressing," and the deal likely will be completed in the early part of this calendar year, Nvidia said. The stock closed 7 percent higher Friday at $289.79.

Broadcom announced what it's calling the industry's first Wi-Fi 6E client device ahead of FCC-expected allocation of some of the 6 GHz band for Wi-Fi. The BCM4389, targeted at flagship smartphones, will deliver over 2 Gbps of real-world speeds and up to five times better battery life, said the company Thursday. The chipset is said to improve audio performance and range for connected Bluetooth accessories. The BCM4389 uses a tri-band simultaneous connectivity architecture, adding to Wi-Fi and MIMO Bluetooth radios a third ultra-low-power independent radio to optimize Wi-Fi and Bluetooth performance. Broadcom expects phones with the chipset to communicate with home routers, residential gateways, enterprise access points, and augmented- and virtual-reality devices.

The FCC asked the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to transfer a lawsuit against its December RF safety order to the D.C. Circuit. Children’s Health Defense sued Feb. 3 at the 9th Circuit, three days after Environmental Health Trust and others petitioned the D.C. Circuit, the FCC said in a Wednesday motion (in Pacer) in case 20-70297. A Montgomery County, Maryland, suit against the FCC, which was consolidated with other local challenges against two older FCC infrastructure orders, also raised RF safety issues. Possible consolidation of RF cases came up at oral argument Monday in that case (see 2002100054).

Altice unveiled a mesh residential Wi-Fi system, which it said Wednesday allows simultaneous connectivity of more devices to the strongest signal. It said SmartWiFi simplifies network connections with one network name, obviating the need for selecting between 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz points, with mesh network technology to eliminate dead zones and better band and access point steering. It said SmartWiFi is rolling out to new and existing Altice One customers in its Optimum footprint in the New York City region and will be available soon in Suddenlink regions.

Ericsson followed LG, pulling out of MWC 2020 on coronavirus concerns Friday, citing its responsibility for the health and safety of employees, customers and other stakeholders. Demo and content created for the Barcelona event “will be showcased close to customers at local events, called ‘Ericsson Unboxed,'" it said. LG will hold separate events “in the near future” to announce its 2020 mobile products, said the company Wednesday. LG cited safety of its employees, partners and customers. Despite social media reports to the contrary, ZTE reaffirmed its commitment to attend the mobile industry’s Feb. 24-27 global event, saying employee and customer health is a priority. ZTE adopted prevention and control measures and safeguards in accordance with guidelines from China's health department and the World Health Organization, it said. ZTE will ensure all employees from mainland China, including non-Chinese nationals, have no symptoms two weeks before departure and arrival at the trade show, it said. All ZTE employees are required to undergo two weeks of “self-isolation” to ensure the health and safety of employees, it said. ZTE’s senior executives participating in high-level meetings in Barcelona will isolate themselves in Europe for at least two weeks before MWC, said the company, which will also ensure exhibit equipment is “disinfected daily.” Booth staff will be “all from countries outside China, and mainly from Europe,” it said.

The International Trade Commission voted to open a Tariff Act Section 337 investigation into Sonos allegations that Google smart speakers and other devices infringe its multiroom audio patents (see 2001230001), said an investigation notice Thursday (login required) in docket 337-TA-1191. Sonos seeks a limited exclusion order and cease and desist orders against the allegedly infringing products. Google has 20 days to respond. The vote Wednesday was 4-0 to open the investigation, with Commissioner Rhonda Schmidtlein, a Democrat, recusing herself. “Sonos has made misleading statements about our history of working together," emailed Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda Thursday. "Our technology and devices were designed independently. We deny their claims vigorously, and will be defending against them.” Sonos didn't comment.

The Alliance for IP Media Solutions ProAV Working Group will launch a set of open standards and specifications designed to enable carriage of compressed and uncompressed video, audio and data over IP networks, at Integrated Systems Europe next week. Internet Protocol Media Experience addresses the pro AV industry’s need for a single set of common, ubiquitous standards-based protocols that ensure interoperability for AV over IP, said the group.