Logitech confesses to 'gigantic' mistake with Google TV
Company pulls the plug on its Revue set-top box for Google TV, saying that the device cost it $100 million in operating profits and that Google TV just isn't ready for prime time.
Logitech is halting production of its Google TV Revue set-top boxes, acknowledging that the whole affair was a financial disaster for the company.
At an Analyst and Investor Day hosted by Logitech on Wednesday, CEO Guerrino De Luca confessed that the Revue was a "mistake of implementation of a gigantic nature." In his presentation, DeLuca in part pointed the finger at Google TV, referring to it as a "beta" product, according to The Verge.
De Luca told investors that Logitech lost more than $100 million in operating profits on the Revue after bringing it to the market almost a year ago. As a result, the company will simply let existing inventory of the Revue run out this quarter and will not make another set-top box to replace it.
The CEO intimated that Google TV simply wasn't ready to launch when it did and that Logitech mistakenly thought the search giant's product was revolutionary, The Verge reported. DeLuca also blamed his company's own "operational miscues in EMEA [Europe, Middle East, and Africa]" for the Revue's failure to ignite the market.
"To make the long story short, we thought we had invented [sliced] bread and we just made them," DeLuca said. The company made a commitment to "just build a lot because we expected everybody to line up for Christmas and buy these boxes [at] $300...that was a big mistake."
Launched during last year's holiday-shopping season, the Revue garnered some praise for its ability to access a variety of online media. But the product was also criticized for being pricey, kludgy, and buggy. In August, Logitech slashed the price of the box to $99 in a move to boost slumping sales.
The limitations in Google TV also may have set up the Revue for failure. Logitech had been counting on a long-awaited 2.0 update to Google TV, which finally launched late last month. But at that point, it was a case of too little, too late--at least for the Revue.
De Luca said he still believes Google TV may have a future but threw in a final dig by saying it would be a "grandchild of Google TV" that would stand a chance.