Songbird Hearing, the disposable hearing-aid company which mysteriously suspended operations several years ago, has recently received venture capital financing to re-start its operations. NewSpring Capital and The Provco Group of Pennsylvania have put $4 million in new financing into the New Jersey company, according to the VentureWire newsletter.
Songbird originally spun out of the famed research labs of Sarnoff Corp. (formerly RCA labs). The idea was to market a very inexpensive completely-in-the-canal (CIC) hearing aid for people with mild to moderate hearing loss that could be thrown out when the battery died after a month or so of use, just like disposable contact lenses. But after selling its product for several years, Songbird quietly shut down its operations with minimal explanation in 2005.
By manufacturing its DSP components in high volumes, by taking advantage of other design innovations, and by cutting out the expense of a middleman by selling through the mail direct to consumers, Songbird intended to reach a much larger base of customers than traditional hearing-aid manufacturers. It was a great idea at the time. But the restart effort comes at a time when the hearing-aid business is being turned upside-down by small-form-factor, open-fit, behind-the-ear BTE products that are easier to fit and more comfortable to wear than previous BTE or in-the-ear devices. I can’t wait to see if Songbird comes up with a new product or simply tries to restart sales of the product it had been selling before it suspended operations. Stay tuned.