HHTM

UTRECHT, NETHERLANDS — If a child’s first ear infection occurs at a young age, particularly before 9 months, the chances for recurrent acute otitis media (AOM) infection are increased, according to a new Dutch study. The findings were published last month in the Journal of Pediatrics.    Identifying Children at Risk for Recurrent AOM   Dutch children enrolled in the Wheezing-Illnesses-STudy-LEidsche-Rijn (WHISTLER)

SASKATCHEWAN PROVINCE, CANADA — Patient wait times to see an audiologist are about to get even longer for residents in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan.  Two audiologists, one in Saskatoon and another in Prince Albert, were among the 70 positions terminated by the Saskatoon Health Region last month in order to balance its budget.  The two audiologists that lost their jobs worked

LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS — GN Group’s headset division, GN Audio (formerly GN Netcom), announced today that it has acquired the VXi Corporation for $35 million USD. VXi is the manufacturer of both the VXi and BlueParrott headset brands. VXi Corporation has shown substantial growth over the past decade, and last year reported annual revenue of $32 million USD. The acquisition of US-based VXi will provide GN Audio

WARSAW, POLAND — Danish hearing aid maker, William Demant Group, announced the opening of its new Demant Technology Centre in Poland. The new facility will house the company’s software Research and Development (R&D) division. The location in the new Q22 office building in Warsaw will also house other Demant companies, such as Oticon’s Polish subsidiary, Oticon Polska. The announcement of the new R&D division in Poland comes approximately one month

Editor’s Note:  Today Hearing News Watch brings readers a special post, written by contributors Jerry Punch, PhD and Richard James, INCE, discussing their new article published at the HHTM Journal.   By Jerry Punch, PhD and Richard James, INCE, BME We authored an earlier three-part series of articles on the topic of the effects of wind turbine noise on health on the

SOMERSET, NEW JERSEY — Gary Rosenblum has been named the new President of Oticon, Inc., effective today. He succeeds Peer Lauritsen, who retired following more than 40 years of service to the company. Rosenblum, while an outsider to the hearing aid industry, joins the company with an extensive background in consumer-driven medical devices. He most recently served as Vice President, Enterprise Customers for Johnson

BALLERUP, DENMARK — According to a September 26 Reuters’ article, GN ReSound CEO Anders Hedegaard was quoted saying that, unlike its competitors, the company is “not looking” to purchase retail businesses. Instead, GN will continue to focus on strengthening partnerships with retail customers.  While Sonova and William Demant battle over various global retail acquisitions opportunities, such as recent purchases of European retail heavyweight

ISSAQUAH, WASHINGTON — This past week, Costco quietly rolled out the latest iteration of its “Kirkland Signature” branded hearing aids in stores across the United States. As reported by HHTM in August, to the surprise of many analysts and industry insiders, GN ReSound did not have its contract renewed to become the retail giant’s Kirkland Signature brand supplier–which it had been since 2013.

Does the arrival of Apple’s new wireless AirPods, which carries a retail price tag of $159, signal a new era of how we connect with our smartphones and laptops?  Given the cultural significance of an Apple product launch, it is a good bet that the AirPod wireless headphone is the catalyst needed for the hearable market to really take off

ORLANDO, FLORIDA — The International Hearing Society (IHS) announced this week for the first time, its new Tinnitus Care Provider Certificate Program. Tinnitus, which is described as the perception of sound in the absence of an external stimulus, is a condition believed to be experienced by tens of millions of people. Research into the condition suggests that the disability caused