Sonos CEO quickly backtracks on plan to end support for older speakers

Patrick Spence is like totally, seriously, sorry. He knows he screwed up, guys, OK? Can’t you maybe, just possibly, cut him a little slack?

The CEO of Sonos issued a lengthy apology on Thursday following his company’s decision to end support for older models of speakers. It turns out, and who would have thought, that customers weren’t stoked that their expensive speakers — some for sale as recently as 2015 — would no longer receive updates after May 2020. 

To make matters worse, Sonos initially explained, if you had newer speakers connected to older models then even your hot newness would stop receiving updates. But that was then — a time before Spence wised up to the scores of customers complaining about his company’s terrible decision. 

“We heard you,” wrote Spence. “We did not get this right from the start. My apologies for that and I wanted to personally assure you of the path forward.”

Image: LANCE UALNOFF / MASHABLE

Sonos’ new path forward, as outlined in the Jan. 23 apology letter, is to “keep [legacy Sonos products] updated with bug fixes and security patches for as long as possible.”

Oh, and that whole thing about your older speakers preventing newer speakers from getting updates? Never mind! Totally not necessary, in fact. 

“We are working on a way to split your system so that modern products work together and get the latest features,” wrote Spence, “while legacy products work together and remain in their current state.”

It’s important to mention that Sonos speakers aren’t cheap. The company’s One speaker costs $199, and a Surround Set costs $1,359. As such, it’s understandable that customers would be frustrated that their longtime brand loyalty to the company — as manifested by owning and using older Sonos products alongside newer ones — would actually come back to bite them. 

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“I hope that you’ll forgive our misstep,” continued Spence, “and let us earn back your trust.”

Well, groveling at the feet of your angry customers is certainly a start. Continuing to provide updates for still-functioning hardware is probably a good next step.