Based on its recent analysis of the professional and commercial microphone
market, Frost & Sullivan recognizes Shure Incorporated with the 2016 North
America Company of the Year Award. Shure has blazed trails in the microphone
market with its visionary strategy and execution excellence, earning a North
American market share of more than 40 percent. It has established strong brand
equity by determinedly pursuing innovation for more than 90 years, addressing
previously unmet customer needs, and developing a diversified portfolio that
targets key trends.
A few of Shure’s many ground-breaking audio industry triumphs since 1925 include:
• The Unidyne® Model 55 microphone, which became the most recognized
microphone in the world
• A contract to supply the U.S. armed forces with microphones during World
War II; the T-17B became the most widely-used audio device by the U.S. Army and
Navy
• The 55S, a variant of the original Unidyne model that became known as the
Elvis mic, due to Elvis Presley’s preference for it
• The M3D, the world’s first stereo phonograph cartridge
• The Vagabond System, one of the first wireless microphone systems for
performers
• The SM57, the main lectern microphone for all U.S. presidents since Lyndon
B. Johnson
• The iconic Shure SM58®, the microphone of choice for music performance
worldwide
• The Axient® Wireless System, the world’s first with intelligent hardware and
software to detect and avoid interference
“Shure has launched numerous innovative wired and wireless microphone products,
conferencing systems, audio processors, earphones, headphones, and software
systems, expanding its footprint both nationally and globally over the decades,’ said
Frost & Sullivan Industry Principal Alaa Saayed. “Significantly, it is the most
purchased brand among institutions, enterprises, houses of worship, live events’
sound contractors, as well as theatres, broadcast, and studios.’
Shure has consistently demonstrated a keen understanding of customer and market
trends. One of the key Mega Trends that it has been able to tap optimally is
wireless connectivity. It has led the industry transition to digital wireless technology
with its wide array of sophisticated, spectrally efficient wireless microphone
systems in the very high frequency (VHF) and ultra high frequency (UHF) spectrum.
It also offers alternatives in the unlicensed 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, and digital enhanced
cordless telecommunications (DECT) spectrum.
The company’s wireless microphones address user needs and environments across
all price and performance tiers. Its premium lines, such as Axient® and UHF-R®,
are used in live concert venues and television shows, as well as for special event
broadcasts such as the Super Bowl, the GRAMMY® Awards, and U.S. political
conventions.
Shure recognized the unique needs of millennial content creators and studio
recorders brought on by the social media explosion and designed microphone
solutions and educational modules specifically for them, offering a distinguished set
of products and a variety of deployment methods and service levels.
Shure continues to be perceived as a provider of superior audio, innovative
technologies, and solid customer support. For its unmatched brand awareness
among business users and individuals, Shure is deserving of the 2016 North
America Frost & Sullivan Company of the Year Award.
