"We are as excited about this announcement as Prof. Dr. Fritz Sennheiser himself," said Volker Bartels, speaker for the Sennheiser executive team. "Fritz Sennheiser still takes a keen interest in the company he founded, and feels very honoured by this recognition from the American consumer electronics industry."
Under the management of Fritz Sennheiser, who also taught RF wireless technology and electro-acoustics at Hanover University, the family-owned company designed many important innovations. These included the shotgun microphone in the 1950s, open-back headphones in the 1960s, infrared transmission technology in the 1970s and revolutionary developments in multi-channel wireless technology in the early 1980s.
"Prof. Dr. Fritz Sennheiser's motto was to allow his developers to give free rein to their creative ideas," continues Bartels, "no matter how crazy they might seem. And his staff translated this freedom and trust into innovative audio solutions."
Gary Shapiro, President and CEO of CEA, praised the 2008 inductees: "I am proud to honour the accomplishments of these 12 leaders in the consumer technology industry, which provides the products and services that inform, educate, entertain and keep consumers connected. They inspire all of us."
The twelve honourees will be officially inducted into the Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame during an awards dinner in October.
The Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame was founded in 2000 - every year, a panel of industry experts decide on new honourees. Hall of Fame members include inventors and scientists such as Emil Berliner, Heinrich Hertz, Alan D. Blumlein, Alexander Graham Bell and Nikola Tesla, alongside current pioneers such as the inventors of the MP3 format, Dieter Seitzer, Heinz Gerhäuser and Karlheinz Brandenburg. Other members comprise executives, engineers, retailers and journalists who provided significant contributions to the consumer electronics industry.
(Jim Evans)
