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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SonosManu

Enthusiast II

I think it would be useful for those of us looking for real information about the way forward for our systems, if other customers wouldn’t clog this thread up with repeated spamming of requests for huge discounts?

The way this consumer anger is going, Sonos might not get an opportunity to sell any fresh & exciting products if the brand continues to self-devalue in the way it has in the last 72 hours.

It’s a situation of Sonos’ own making.

Some people have spent thousands.

What do you expect people to do?

Roll over so customers can go through the same rinse & repeat in another 5 Years time (or less), when it’s decreed expensive equipment is outdated & ‘legacy’?

There is no real information, because Sonos hasn’t decided on the information, or more likely it has but is keeping it’s customers in the dark as it’s going to cost them.

That’s the issue.

I don’t think at any point I’ve said to “roll over”, and I think your reply here is illustrative of the hysteria that some customers have whipped themselves up into in how you’ve taken what I wrote and completely blown it out of proportion, but spamming this thread with massive images and repeated requests for discounts when what customers more generally need is clarification and information on what they are doing about split systems, isn’t helping other customers.

I don’t think that it is hysteria when I have to pay over £700 to keep my system up-to-date with nothing new to show for it. Next it is Play 1 and Play 3 Gen1 that is going to be another £500 from my pocket to keep a system working! It is the reality nothing else and it is not acceptable!

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Sgm198

Lyricist III

This can’t end well. If/when Sonos goes under what happens with all our products, legacy and new. Management will move on leaving chaos behind. Will any of the bigger players find anything to pick over amongst the rubble. As the main thing was customer brand loyalty rather than innovative technology, I suspect not.

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TJ5150

Lyricist I

This whole thing is saddening to me on many levels. My 5 zone/9 speaker/13 device setup has been growing slowly for a decade. it is a part of my daily routine, is integrated into my home automation controller/security system, and is always playing something streaming when we’re home.

For years I have evangelized for the brand. When conversations with friends come up about home audio/hi-fi, i have told stories of how great my sonos system is and that i’d never consider other options. Sonos is somewhat of a hard sell (for the price) unless and until you can use it in your home. I’m confident i’ve helped to sell many, many products for them. Sonos has been a product I have loved to talk about with people.

I received the email about 5 of my devices. I’ve shared this email with several friends expressing my concern. There is NO WAY i would recommend Sonos to friends, and I will definitely not purchase any more products in the current environment.

I’ll keep what I’ve invested in for now, will not add to it, and will wait and see what happens. but i’m extremely disappointed. And I’m still not totally clear if my hybrid/legacy setup will continue to stream from siriusXM/tunein in the future.

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bonervz

Enthusiast II

I see that Patrick Spence had a long career with RIM (Blackberry) we all know how that turned out and SONOS is heading down that same road. The similarities are uncanny. Hmmmm?

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Sonos from leader to loser in 2020.

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Egbert

Contributor I

Well the CEO"s message is at least recognition that they've fouled up, but only contains small signs of improvement. The test will be what you actually deliver. Your reputation, once so good, a company that I happily recommend to many others (very rare for me), hangs in the balance.

And literally thousands of people won't be buying your products until you sort this. That's a lot of deferred turnover, so I'd advise moving very quickly.

Still staggering that a CEO didn't see this kind of reaction coming. Blindingly obvious.

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Guy_19

Enthusiast II

Could someone please add the CEO’s email address again - I know it’s in here somewhere!

Found it here - patrick.spence@sonos.com

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7 rooms: One SL Stereo Pair, One SL x 2, Move, Play:5 Gen2 & Port into Arcam AVR with AE floorstanders, Port into Denon microsystem.

F

fxfx

Lyricist I

This is the END!

I have personally bought 5 Sonos devices and suggested to so many friends, that rely on my tech “expertise” to buy there own gadget, that I cannot even count.

This absurd decision may reward you now but it will be a huge damage to your company in the long term.

Well done SONOS!

PS

Amazon is selling your legacy product in the SONOS page in this very moment:

https://www.amazon.it/Sonos-Wireless-Amplificatori-Controllabile-Smartphone/dp/B001DHKUEK?ref_=ast_sto_dp&th=1

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bonervz

Enthusiast II

I think it would be useful for those of us looking for real information about the way forward for our systems, if other customers wouldn’t clog this thread up with repeated spamming of requests for huge discounts?

The way this consumer anger is going, Sonos might not get an opportunity to sell any fresh & exciting products if the brand continues to self-devalue in the way it has in the last 72 hours.

It’s a situation of Sonos’ own making.

Some people have spent thousands.

What do you expect people to do?

Roll over so customers can go through the same rinse & repeat in another 5 Years time (or less), when it’s decreed expensive equipment is outdated & ‘legacy’?

There is no real information, because Sonos hasn’t decided on the information, or more likely it has but is keeping it’s customers in the dark as it’s going to cost them.

That’s the issue.

I don’t think at any point I’ve said to “roll over”, and I think your reply here is illustrative of the hysteria that some customers have whipped themselves up into in how you’ve taken what I wrote and completely blown it out of proportion, but spamming this thread with massive images and repeated requests for discounts when what customers more generally need is clarification and information on what they are doing about split systems, isn’t helping other customers.

I don’t think that it is hysteria when I have to pay over £700 to keep my system up-to-date with nothing new to show for it. Next it is Play 1 and Play 3 Gen1 that is going to be another £500 from my pocket to keep a system working! It is the reality nothing else and it is not acceptable!

Niaccurshi: You just dont get it. So sad.

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Sonos from leader to loser in 2020.

R

Rob NYC1

Enthusiast II

Dial in to the Sonos earnings call. There is a Q&A session and callers and put questions directly to the CEO. Everyone please dial in! (and please repost this info - I think SONOS is deleting it when I post it here…. and I’m not on twitter or facebook so i can’t)

Feb. 5 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time

calling from inside US (833) 236-2748, with conference ID 9666837.

calling from outside US (647) 689-4173, with the same conference ID.

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John_375

Contributor I

This is so sad.

I'm still using the sweet Bose Acoustimass III speakers I bought 25 years ago and they sound great hooked up to a Connect:Amp. Well at least the speakers still work great today, the Amp is now headed towards obsolesence.

Those 70 year old McIntosh tube amps still work great too, and they keep adding new brand advocates to their stable.

Ever since seeing the first Sonos at CES 15 years ago, I have spent more than $5k on Sonos gear (probably close to $10k), including sub-woofers, sound bars, amps, speakers, etc. etc. And now most of it is likely to become completely worthless. I've been a huge brand advocate for you guys, leading to many, many more sales - but no more. This is not how you treat your longest and best customers.

Even just putting the products into a non-supported zombie mode won’t cut it.

I will no longer recommend your products.

It was a great run, but I have had enough.

This is going to be a great marketing case study soon about how a once promising company ticked off their most dedicated customers and either rapidly spiraled down to irrelevance, or did the right thing and rolled back this crazy action. Let's see which way it goes.

jim

Can’t agree more. I was distraught when Sonos failed to support the lovely controllers - ok an App is fine but takes away from the aesthetics. I have spent thousands on Sonos products and now I am lumbered with ‘legacy products’ How will separate systems actually work? I have amps connected to Bose speakers and my CD player is connected via Connect. I have a Play 5, I have bridges. I stream music but I use my own library etc etc etc. How the hell do I move forward. This is a frankly unacceptable situation from what I thought was a top class company. I was thinking about adding Move, Sub and more speakers but now NO! I have also introduced many friends to Sonos. I and many, many others have been let down - big time. 30% discount for recycling a perfectly good system!

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