Linksys ready to meet Europe’s top retailers
by Stuart Wilson, Tuesday 16 February 2016
Networking solutions brand Linksys plans to meet Europe’s top retailers at next week’s DISTREE EMEA, showcasing its latest products including the new Linksys MAX-STREAM line-up. Mikael Palmhag, managing director at Linksys Consumer Europe, said: “We’re keen to meet the biggest retailers in Europe [at DISTREE EMEA] and establish an initial foundation for future mutual profitable business.”
As a focused trade event for the consumer technology channel, DISTREE EMEA gives exhibitors a unique opportunity to pre-schedule one-on-one meetings with the region’s most influential distributors, retailers and e-tailers in one place at one time. DISTREE EMEA takes place in Monaco from February 24-27th 2016.
After being first to launch a fully functional MU-MIMO router in May of last year, Linksys has expanded its MU-MIMO portfolio to include two additional routers, a range extender and a USB adapter.
The new Linksys MAX-STREAM line-up leverages the next generation of Wi-Fi - 802.11ac Wave 2 MU-MIMO (multi-user, multiple-input, multiple output) technology, which helps ensure uninterrupted Wi-Fi connectivity to all the devices in the home and function as if multiple devices have their own dedicated router. With MU-MIMO, the whole household can play video games; listen to music, check email, shop, stream movies, and more – all at the same time.
“The MAX-STREAM range offers the perfect products for 4K video streaming,” explained Palmhag.
Palmhag believes that the EMEA market will continue to see structural changes in 2016 and beyond as specific channels grow stronger.
“E-tail business will continue to grow and the major retailers will need to continue to trim their structure and organisation in order to stay competitive,” he explained.
Linksys believes that the next generation of products will be designed to solve specific WiFi issues that can exist in the home and office. As Linksys continues to develop its route-to-market across EMEA, the DACH region, UK and Italy offer strong growth opportunities, according to Palmhag.
“Linksys has great brand equity and products,” explained Palmhag. “Plus we offer good margins due to a solid price strategy. We have a solid commercial policy, which we don’t want to spread too openly. We are more than happy to share details during one-on-one meetings at DISTREE EMEA.”
Linksys business in EMEA continues to grow in specific categories such as range extenders and AC routers. The company remains committed to the indirect channel.
“We are always going through the channel and we are always keen to help and support our valuable partners,” added Palmhag. “Linksys is a premium brand with high quality, innovation and good margins for the whole channel.”