By Suman Tarafdar

An acknowledged back office for global technology, India however has not been seen as a leader in pioneering tech products. One partnership may be looking to change that, as Indian tech company boAt and Dolby, the global sight and sound technology giant come together to launch new products.

The synergy between the two seems to be working, for they indicated that there is a pipeline of four products, across product categories, without specifying the specific categories, though both term it “the tip of the iceberg”. The partnership started in 2020 with the Dolby-powered soundbar, followed by gaming headsets in 2021.

Saying Dolby is committed to the journey, Karan Grover, senior director, commercial partnerships, IMEA, Dolby Laboratories, says, “It’s a journey, not a collaboration, and we’re excited to be working with an Indian brand. By partnering with boAt, we are bringing a consistently pleasant audio experience on neckbands with Dolby Audio for the first time in India”.

Sameer Mehta, co-founder and chief product officer, boAt, echoes the sentiment. “This is an amazing partnership,” he affirms. “The team at boAt Labs is partnering with major international technology firms like Dolby to design and engineer next-generation products with an emphasis on improving audio and user experience. The collaboration with Dolby is evidence of our dedication to creating truly cutting-edge technologies in India for the global market.”

We are bringing technology at a far more aspirational price and form factor, which is widely accepted by Indian consumers, points out Grover. Mehta credits Dolby with making the technology accessible to a consumer, especially in a price sensitive market such as India. “We wanted everyone to experience it without burning a hole in their pocket – and that’s how we came together and said let’s deliver this to the consumer.

Both credit India’s love for sound driven content, especially music as a reason for the launch of the product in India first. “The way content forms are developing in this country is so much sound driven,” explains Grover. “Also, we are a ‘noisy’ densely populated country, so the needs of a consumer are a little different. Also, factors such as our tropical location, humidity etc go into engineering the final product.” Dolby works with various OEMs across the globe, and in India too partners with several manufacturers across sectors, licencing its technology.

Grover says there is a huge opportunity in India, “especially with boAt as a brand.” He adds that for every form factor, the experience is unique, saying it is not possible to compare a cinema with a living room with a neck band. “There is a lot of customisation. A lot of attention is going on passenger vehicles, and are working closely with them. 

While neither is willing to reveal the next product partnerships, it will be across form factors, admits Mehta. “It can be home audio systems or headphones. We are agnostic to that.” Going by the track record, this is a partnership consumers can only wish to see more successes from.