After a particularly difficult 2024, Sonos will not be relaunching its ambitious video streaming box project. Known under the code name Pinewood, it was supposed to compete with major players like Apple, Roku, and devices from Amazon and Google. Never officially mentioned by Sonos, the project has been regularly discussed by the website The Verge and journalist Chris Welch. The American media has a reputation for being generally well informed about the connected speaker manufacturer's projects, much to the chagrin of the latter, who is fed up with leaks. rehearsals.
The abrupt cancellation of this box marks a strategic shift for the company, which is looking to refocus on its core business after the annus horribilis that was 2024. According to rumors, the project was already well advanced and had undergone several months of beta testing. The video streaming box was supposed to be released sometime in 2025, but interim CEO Tom Corad announced its abandonment during a meeting. The teams in charge of the project will be reassigned to other missions, without further details for a company still marked by the industrial accident of the update of its application.
The Sonos "Pinewood" box was supposed to compete with the flagship boxes on the market, allowing access to the main streaming services (Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, etc.). It was also supposed to have an HDMI switch function to connect multiple devices, such as a game console or a Blu-ray player. This functionality made it possible to manage audio and video independently, the box being designed to integrate into the Sonos ecosystem. On the connectivity side, a gigabit Ethernet connection was to be expected in addition to Wi-Fi 7 for maximum performance.
Why is Sonos giving up on launching its streaming box?
Several factors seem to have motivated Sonos' decision to abandon what was to be its big launch in 2025. First of all, the American firm would arrive a little late in this segment to dislodge giants like Apple (Apple TV), Amazon (Fire TV) and Google (TV). The market is already saturated, and some employees were even worried that Pinewood would experience a faded success, like the Sonos Ace headphones. Despite good critical reception, the high-end headphones would be a huge failure and would not be able to make a place for themselves among Bose, Sony, Sennheiser, or even Apple.
Above all, Sonos is not really in a strong position to try new things and must first focus on improving its existing products. This obviously requires improving the mobile application and regaining the trust of a disappointed customer base, two major projects for Tom Conrad. The interim CEO isn't completely ruling out a future foray into video. He says the decision to stop the project has been made "for now," suggesting the idea could return in the future.
Until then, the company will be working hard to regain its momentum after a year marked by internal restructuring and layoffs. The events of last year also prompted former CEO Patrick Spence to resign.
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