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Sonos Announces Support for Ultra HD Audio and Dolby Atmos Music; Long-term Sustainability Commitment

Company reveals plan to drive its value chain to carbon neutrality by 2030 and to net zero by 2040.

Sonos has introduced support for Ultra HD audio and Dolby Atmos Music on Amazon Music, giving fans more immersive ways to enjoy their favorite tracks and delivering a listening experience true to the artist’s intent. The company has also announced its first Climate Action Plan as the foundation of its commitment to a more sustainable future.

Ultra HD Audio and Dolby Atmos Music

Sonos Amazon Music Ultra HD

Customers with an Amazon Music Unlimited subscription can access the content on their Sonos speakers by downloading the latest software within the Sonos app (Settings > System > System Updates > Check for Updates). Customers will also see new badges on the Now Playing screen that indicate the audio experience they are hearing via Amazon Music, so they know exactly what they are listening to. The badges are:

  • HD: Indicates a lossless 16-bit stereo stream
  • Ultra HD: A lossless 24-bit stereo stream
  • Dolby Atmos: A song mixed and available in Dolby Atmos

To make it easy for customers to check out the new formats for themselves, Sonos’ Sound Experience team has curated two playlists on Amazon Music that showcase Ultra HD and Dolby Atmos Music. To stream on Sonos, add these playlists to the Amazon Music library and then stream from the Sonos app (Browse > Amazon Music > My Music > Playlists).

The news follows a recent music survey from Dolby of U.S. adults that showed nearly 90 percent of respondents who subscribe to a music streaming service think enhanced audio quality is a “must-have” feature of their subscription.

Long-term Sustainability Commitment

Sonos has introduced its first Climate Action Plan. Implementing the plan will drive Sonos’ value chain to carbon neutrality by 2030 and to net zero by 2040. Details of the plan were released as part of Sonos’ 2021 Listen Better Report, offering an annual overview of the company’s ESG efforts.

“With our Climate Action Plan, we’re entering a new phase in our commitment to environmental responsibility, stepping up our efforts across the board to reduce our impact,” says Patrick Spence, Sonos CEO. “Sonos is a company founded on innovation; we are invigorated by the challenge to innovate and create better solutions for our customers and for the planet.”

Sonos also introduced a new approach to product sustainability, with an immediate goal of improving energy efficiency, given that more than three quarters of Sonos’ carbon emissions can be attributed to the energy consumed during each product’s lifecycle.

Sonos partnered with VitalMetrics to map the carbon footprint of the company’s value chain — from sourcing materials and packaging, to product use and end-of-life. Based on this environmental baseline report, Sonos developed a Climate Action Plan to guide reduction of greenhouse gas emissions across the company’s areas of greatest impact — products, supply chain and distribution — as well as direct operations.

With a primary focus on product and operational carbon reductions, supported by high-quality, verified offsets, Sonos is committed to meeting its goals through natural strategies including habitat regeneration and conservation. For the year ahead, Sonos has partnered with SeaTrees by Sustainable Surf to help offset Sonos’ direct emissions with a marine ecosystem project in the Southern Cardamom Watershed in Cambodia.

The Climate Action Plan also has Sonos collaborating with organizations using sound to improve the environment and funding cutting-edge bioacoustic research. The company has also joined Music Declares Emergency to support the wider music industry in reducing its environmental impact.

Sonos Roam

Sonos has long believed a premium listening experience can be consistent with environmental consciousness. In addition to its Climate Action Plan, Sonos today introduced its Product Sustainability Program designed to drive down the carbon footprint and overall environmental impact of its products.

The company unveiled short- and long-term targets across energy efficiency, materials, product longevity and packaging, and this year, will conduct its first product environmental life cycle assessment.

  • Energy Efficiency: Product energy use is the most significant contributor to Sonos’ carbon footprint. The company is committed to improving the energy efficiency of its product portfolio, with a focus on idle and sleep states. Sonos introduced sleep mode with Roam — helping make it Sonos’ most energy efficient speaker — and by FY23, all new Sonos products will include sleep mode. The company aspires to reduce idle power consumption to less than 2 watts for its entire portfolio, starting with all portable products in FY22.
  • Product Longevity: Sonos strives to keep its products in use for a long time and continues to support every speaker it has released. In FY21, the company began a new Design for Disassembly process, which will be incorporated into all new speakers and components, starting in FY23. This approach builds in features — such as fasteners instead of adhesives — that make it easier to repair, refurbish and recycle.
  • Materials: Electronic waste (e-waste) is one of the fastest-growing waste streams in the world. Sonos is working towards a circular future where its products can be recycled to make new Sonos products. By the end of FY23, 100 percent of new Sonos products will begin using post-consumer recycled plastic in place of virgin plastics, and will also be 100 percenthalogen-free.
  • Packaging: A comprehensive approach to product circularity must include packaging. And to Sonos, premium packaging also means responsible packaging. This year, Sonos undertook a major packaging design update using FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified, proprietary Sonos Custom Kraft paper. This paper was first used for Roam, and will continue to be used for new products launching between FY22 and FY25. By FY25, Sonos packaging will be made with 100 percent responsibly sourced paper, including paper that is either PCR (post-consumer recycled), FSC-certified or made from plant-based fibers as we aim to eliminate plastics from our packaging entirely. The company continues to reduce the use of plastics from its packaging, using PCR plastics where necessary.

As part of its sustainability commitment, Sonos also announced it is joining the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA), the world’s largest industry coalition dedicated to corporate social responsibility in global supply chains, and will commit to progressively align its own operations with the social, environmental, and ethical industry standards outlined in the RBA Code of Conduct.

Sonos will spend the next year formalizing its environmental goals and refining the company’s approach to the supply chain and distribution focus areas of its Climate Action Plan. This includes working with major suppliers to improve their respective climate footprints, and exploring the localization of repairs and refurbishment where possible.

For more information, visit www.sonos.com.

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