Monster is already well-known in consumer electronics circles for throwing some of the most over-the-top CES press conferences to be seen at the show, but the star-studded event it put on today was a mighty spectacle, even by Monster standards, and seemed to serve as proof that the company isn’t mourning its breakup with Beats audio and Dr. Dre.
After glossing over some new HDMI cable products (yes, Monster still makes a cable or two), Monster CEO, Noel Lee, went on to announce a swarm of new headphone products, each punctuated by one celebrity endorser after another. Although there are a few new models to mention, the real news from Monster today has to do with fashion, customization and market penetration. Here’s what we can expect to see from Monster’s booth on the CES show floor this week:
Headphones for the fashionista
Imagine a color – any color will do – and slap it on a headphone. That’s one of the fashion-based tactics Monster has adopted for this year. The company’s female-oriented Diamond Tears headphones – which Lee noted was its number one seller last year – are now available in three new colors, and have musician, Sheila E. backing them up, to boot. The company is also pushing its partnership with fashion label, Diesel forward, bringing three new colors of its Vektr headphones to market.
Nick Cannon was on hand to promote his NCredible line, which now includes new versions of the NTune on-ear, NErgy in-ear and NPulse over-ear headphones, while supermodel Tyson Beckford was on hand to lend his name and chiseled features to Monster’s Inspiration headphone series.
If flashy colors aren’t haute couture enough for you, consider that Monster showed off some of the most outlandish custom headbands we’ve ever seen. It would seem Monster thinks headphones will soon replace hats as the hot new fashion accessory this year. We’ll see.
Muscling into the market
To increase its market penetration, Monster has partnered up with retail-giant Walmart and media-titan Viacomm. Thanks to Viacomm, Monster’s DNA headphone line is going to creep its way in to all manner of award shows, reality shows, and just about every other MTV-bubble-gum program you can think of. And to make sure those impressionable youths can get their hands on its colorful headgear, Monster has signed a big distribution deal with Walmart, which will put its wares in heavy rotation on store shelves all across the US.
EA Sports climbs aboard the Monster train
As big as EA Sports is in the gaming industry, it is a small wonder that the company hasn’t already produced a gaming headphone. Perhaps it was just looking for the right partnernship, or maybe it just needed some convincing. Whatever the case, Monster closed the deal, and now it will produce its first gaming headphone for EA, dubbed the MVP Carbon. On hand to promote the new partnership was hip-hop star, Xzibit, and boxing legend, Sugar Ray Leonard.
