Retired Sonos Staff

End of Software Support - Clarifications

Dec 8, 2022 11:29 AM UTC
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We announced yesterday that some of our oldest Sonos products will be moving into a legacy mode in May of 2020. Our commitment is to support products with regular software updates for a minimum of five years after we stop selling them, and we have a track record of supporting products far longer.

Here is some public information we’ve shared, gathered into one place to respond to some of your questions in one easy thread, so that people can find the correct information easily.

Beginning in May, software updates and new features from Sonos will only be delivered to systems with only modern products.

After May, systems that include legacy products will continue to work as before - but they will no longer receive software updates or new features.

Sonos will work to maintain the existing experience and conduct bug fixes, but our efforts will ultimately be limited by the lack of memory and processing power of these legacy products.

We don’t expect any immediate impact to your experience, but access to services and overall functionality will eventually be disrupted, particularly as partners evolve their own services and features.

Customers with both legacy and modern products have time to decide what option is best for them. You can continue to use your whole system in legacy mode - in this case, it will stop receiving updates and new features.

You will also be able to separate your legacy products from your modern products, so that the modern products can still receive updates and new features, and legacy products can still be used separately. We’ll have more information on how to do this in May when you can take that action.

Another option available to all customers with legacy products is to take advantage of the Trade Up program, which allows you to upgrade older Sonos products to modern ones with a 30% discount. Trade Up will be open to customers at any time should they decide to upgrade.

We recognize this is new for Sonos owners, just as it is for Sonos. We are committed to help you by making options available to you to support the best decision for your home.

If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate with asking.

Update 2/22: A message from our CEO

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

First, rest assured that come May, when we end new software updates for our legacy products, they will continue to work as they do today. We are not bricking them, we are not forcing them into obsolescence, and we are not taking anything away. Many of you have invested heavily in your Sonos systems, and we intend to honor that investment for as long as possible. While legacy Sonos products won’t get new software features, we pledge to keep them updated with bug fixes and security patches for as long as possible. If we run into something core to the experience that can’t be addressed, we’ll work to offer an alternative solution and let you know about any changes you’ll see in your experience.

Secondly, we heard you on the issue of legacy products and modern products not being able to coexist in your home. We are working on a way to split your system so that modern products work together and get the latest features, while legacy products work together and remain in their current state. We’re finalizing details on this plan and will share more in the coming weeks.

While we have a lot of great products and features in the pipeline, we want our customers to upgrade to our latest and greatest products when they’re excited by what the new products offer, not because they feel forced to do so. That’s the intent of the trade up program we launched for our loyal customers.

Thank you for being a Sonos customer. Thank you for taking the time to give us your feedback. I hope that you’ll forgive our misstep, and let us earn back your trust. Without you, Sonos wouldn’t exist and we’ll work harder than ever to earn your loyalty every single day.

If you have any further questions please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Patrick Spence
CEO, Sonos

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HelterSkelter

Enthusiast II

I’ve not seen anything in the statements that allays my fear that my sonos kit, on which I have spent thousands will not be bricked in the very near future. I’m not looking for new features, just that it continues to operate as it did when I purchased it.

Neither Ryan’s original statement or the CEOs statement say that your kit will be bricked. It will become less flexible, and certain bits might stop working in time to come, but no-one from Sonos has said that it would actually be bricked - not unless you choose to brick them by picking the upgrade option….

In all honesty though, I think Patrick needs to address the brick thing, and get out an announcement to address the eco side of all this.

Sonos claims to be a sustainable company, yet is offering financial incentive to put a huge amount of equipment and plastic into landfill.

Yes, by all means offer a 30% trade up to a customer with equipment, but the customer should be allowed to sell or gift that legacy item and allow it to be used again.

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rick9957

Lyricist III

Amazing that management doesn’t understand the appeal of their own equipment to the customer.

if they really heard them they know there customers don’t want a split system. If there stock keeps dropping google might just do a hostile takeover to settle the patent issue

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andy_120

Enthusiast II

Just looked at the yamaha system seems to do what I want and stream music, looks like I found my replacement to sonos if they don't buck up there ideas and abandon this wholesale stupidity soon

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lawhhh

Lyricist III

I’ve not seen anything in the statements that allays my fear that my sonos kit, on which I have spent thousands will not be bricked in the very near future. I’m not looking for new features, just that it continues to operate as it did when I purchased it.

Neither Ryan’s original statement or the CEOs statement say that your kit will be bricked. It will become less flexible, and certain bits might stop working in time to come, but no-one from Sonos has said that it would actually be bricked - not unless you choose to brick them by picking the upgrade option….

Sonos said this…..

access to services and overall functionality will eventually be disrupted

to me that sounds like at some stage I won't be able to use my system anymore. If only I had bought a few hundred more legacy units then I could build the worlds most expensive, non fire proof, BBQ with them… As long as don't light the fire on my sonos bbq pit and just serve cold food the party should go great, there will be no music just funny tales of if ripped off consumers to get the party going. It will be one of those parties where nobody dances but there will be lots of laughter….

Sure, technically the BBQ will not be made with bricks, it will be made from useless lumps of plastic and metal that loosely resemble the size and form of a brick but are much useful than a brick.

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Solo Nur Ali

Contributor I

Unlike some, I'm satisfied with what Sonos' CEO sent out, and I'll wait and see if my products get bricked before I jump to another solution. From my simple research, it seems Samsung might have a viable alternative? Let's hope so.

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HelterSkelter

Enthusiast II

Dear Patrick,

I completely agree with all the sentiments expressed above and in the media. This is a move that clearly demonstrates arrogance, hubris, and a complete disregard for the customers who have adopted your products, and for the friends, partners and dealers who have advocated for Sonos as a trusted brand. That trust is gone, and it was your direct action that killed it.

I’ve spent several thousand dollars on Sonos hardware, and I’ve advocated it to countless friends and customers for years, and in one selfish swoop, you’ve damaged an entire trust ecosystem, never mind making us look like chumps.

Business books are filled with stories like this… brands that became great by making a product that the market wanted, then failing spectacularly by believing that they could milk and abuse those customers and they’d still keep coming back. They don’t. You have unlimited chances to build customer trust, and one chance to destroy it.

And please don’t insult the collective intelligence of those who were smart enough to have picked your product in the first place. We understood the product’s value then, and we could afford to pay the premium for it. We know enough to understand that this isn’t about technological limitations, but about greed and stupendous insensitivity to your market - us. This is a music streamer, not an augmented reality gaming processor.

We can only hope that the Sonos board and its investors will hear and understand the reaction to this and respond by reversing course.

You’re hearing the initial fallout now from those who are plugged-in and paying attention. The fallout will continue, and become a much bigger crescendo as the broader public (your market) finds out and becomes as pissed-off as we are. Brands are built on great customer experiences… not this.

Patrick… you’re the CEO. You’re supposed to know better than this. It’s your only job to know better than this.

Regards,

Andy

Exceedingly well worded!

Think you’ve said what we are all feeling.

Sincerely hope Patrick reads this, and hears it, for the truth that it is.

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bbraw67

Trending Lyricist I

This is the e-mail (with updated counts) I sent to Patrick Spence which he read and promptly did not respond to :

Sonos Team

I really am at a loss for words

I have been with Sonos really from the beginning and have recommended your products to many people along the way, I have also been very supportive in the testing group and so to say the below e-mail is shocking is an understatement.

In reality what you are saying to me is if I want to remain current I have to replace the following components:

2 x ZP90

5 x Bridges plus another 10 still sealed in the boxes

1 x Connect

3 x Connect Amps

4 x Play 5 Gen 1

4 x CR100

So my immediate concern is when are you going to do the same to all my other components and please do not say that will not happen !!

4 x Play 1

2 x Play 3,

2 x Soundbar

2 x Connect

1 x Connect Amp

2 x Subs

4 x Boost

To offer me 30% discount to replace thousands of dollars of existing (some still in the boxes) Sonos components is really not credible as this just solves your immediate problem but not mine as I have a bigger problem than most as all my components have to be purchased in Singapore as I live in Indonesia and that attracts an additional 50% tax on all new Sonos products that I bring in. So effectively I have to be 120 % cost out of pocket just to get what I already have.

I would suspect you are going to have an enormous negative reaction to this as people have been collecting Sonos components over many years and after the debacle of the CR200 where we all lost serious amounts of money this really is a major business development flaw.

This is a very sad day for me as I will now stop investing any further in Sonos and for the first time seriously look at the alternatives.

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UKUser

Enthusiast I

I’ve not seen anything in the statements that allays my fear that my sonos kit, on which I have spent thousands will not be bricked in the very near future. I’m not looking for new features, just that it continues to operate as it did when I purchased it.

Neither Ryan’s original statement or the CEOs statement say that your kit will be bricked. It will become less flexible, and certain bits might stop working in time to come, but no-one from Sonos has said that it would actually be bricked - not unless you choose to brick them by picking the upgrade option….

In all honesty though, I think Patrick needs to address the brick thing, and get out an announcement to address the eco side of all this.

Sonos claims to be a sustainable company, yet is offering financial incentive to put a huge amount of equipment and plastic into landfill.

Yes, by all means offer a 30% trade up to a customer with equipment, but the customer should be allowed to sell or gift that legacy item and allow it to be used again.

From the Guardian newspaper: A freeze on software updates will initially have little effect, but over time it will eventually prevent the speakers from working at all, “particularly as partners evolve their technology”, Sonos said.

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amun

I’ve not seen anything in the statements that allays my fear that my sonos kit, on which I have spent thousands will not be bricked in the very near future. I’m not looking for new features, just that it continues to operate as it did when I purchased it.

Neither Ryan’s original statement or the CEOs statement say that your kit will be bricked. It will become less flexible, and certain bits might stop working in time to come, but no-one from Sonos has said that it would actually be bricked - not unless you choose to brick them by picking the upgrade option….

Sonos said this…..

access to services and overall functionality will eventually be disrupted

to me that sounds like at some stage I won't be able to use my system anymore.

But it’s not the same as them being bricked in May….

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torchill

Contributor II

You have successfully found a way for me to NOT like Sonos anymore. I was one of your biggest fans and outspoken about how i enjoyed your speakers; however, with this stupid obsolescence experiment AND the belief that BRICKING a device is eco-friendly, I have determined that I can’t trust anything Sonos does as it literally makes no sense. Is this being run by politicians? As my old devices fail I will now be replacing with BOSE. SONOS has FAILED!!!! Time to short SONOS stock...

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