Logitech, one of the most popular and prolific computer peripheral producers in the world, is set to shift its focus away from mouse production, citing a sharp decline in demand. The manufacturer announced on Thursday that its operating profit fell by 34% for the first quarter of 2015 – an operating profit of approximately $14.5 million, compared to the $21.8 million of last year – with net sales down 4.7% to $467.2 million.
Its shift in strategy will see Logitech refocus on producing wireless speakers, videoconferencing peripherals, and video game controllers in order to offset the market’s sacrifice to the emergence of smartphones and tablets, as well as the growing popularity of laptops and netbooks with built-in mousepads.
The company has been struggling with slow sales growth for six of the past seven years, so a strategy revision to focus on other wireless technologies is long overdue, but in the meantime, Logitech Chief Executive Bracken Darrell warns that prices of its accessories will going up to offset the decline. “We are raising prices around the world [outside the US],” Darrell told Reuters. “The price increases will take effect in this quarter.” The prices of Logitech peripherals in Europe is set to increase by between 11% and 13% in the coming weeks.
Thank you Reuters for providing us with this information.
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UPDATE!! UPDATE: Logitech has told MCV that it is only its third-party manufacturing that is affected by the change,
“To clarify, Logitech will continue its commitment to designing the world’s best mice,” a spokesperson said. “However, we will no longer be manufacturing mice for third-party PC vendors.”