BANG & OLUFSEN INTRODUCES LIMITED EDITION COLLECTORS’ ITEMS IN NORTH AMERICA
Honoring 80 Years Of Technical Excellence and State-of-the-Art Design
Arlington Heights, Iliinois - March 9, 2006 - Bang & Olufsen, the global provider of high-end home theaters and custom multi-room music systems, introduces a signature series of limited editon BeoCom 2 cordless telephone handsets produced in honor of its 80 year commitment to outstanding design and performance. The Limited Editon BeoCom 2 handsets are unique as there will only be 600 collectors items produced world wide and exclusively sold in North America. The handsets will introduce a new color specially developed for this series, in addition three hundred units will feature unique patterns etched by hand directly onto the surface by Danish designer, Bess Kristoffersen. The handsets will each have its own identity, as each unit will be individually numbered and will showcase its own signature pattern.
“BeoCom 2 represents what our company strives to achieve – it is an everyday object, refined and transformed into the perfect combination of innovative design and state-of-the-art performance,” states Bang & Olufsen CEO, Torben Ballegaard Sorensen. “The inspiration for all of our product concepts comes from a myriad of places – in this instance, it stems from the cutting edge technology of tomorrow, to the thoughts and actions of an artist inspired by nature herself.”
“The patterns and structures that are to be found in nature remain a never-ending source of inspiration for me,” states designer Bess Kristoffersen. “No two blades of grass are identical, and all living things contain minute differences that give so much pleasure once the eye discovers them. Everyone of this special series of BeoCom 2 phones will also have its own unique characteristics, even though the starting point for them was all the same.”
With a corporate philoshophy aimed to always make a difference, Bang & Olufsen will donate 10% of the proceeds from the sale of each Limited Edition BeoCom 2 handest to the VH1 Save the Music Foundation. The VH1 Save the Music Foundation is dedicated to restoring instrumental music education programs in America’s public schools; and raising awareness about the importance of music as a part of each child’s complete education.. “At Bang & Olufsen, we recognize the importance of supporting young musicians and the positive impact music bestows on all of our lives,” states Kim Gravesen, President of Bang & Olufsen America Inc., “Furthermore, BeoCom 2 represents this enthusiasm, with its unique ring tone, specially conducted by Danish composer Kenneth Knudsen.”
“The VH1 Save The Music Foundation is so thankful to Bang and Olufsen for their support, said Paul Cothran, Executive Director, VH1 Save The Music. Their understanding of the need for music education throughout our public schools will allow more public schools students to receive the benefits that music brings.”
BeoCom 2 handsets will be available for sale in North America this month. The original BeoCom 2 was launched in the US in 2004 and has been the top selling phone since its arrival. The limited edition phones can be found in Bang & Olufsen stores in the US, Canada, and Mexico and will retail at $1450 for the handset with the handcarved etchings and $1000 for the remaining signature series.
For more information please contact Monica Gartner, Public Relations Manager, Bang & Olufsen America, Inc. at 847-590-4920 or mcy@bang-olufsen.dk
Since VH1 Save The Music was created in 1997, more than $30 million worth of new musical instruments has been donated to 1,200 public schools in 80 cities, improving the lives of more than 700,000 children. VH1 Save The Music’s many honors include the Governors’ Award (a special Emmy Award), the George Foster Peabody Award for broadcast and cable excellence, and many Beacon Awards.
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