What we are doing at THX

by Ty Ahmad-Taylor, CEO, THX Ltd.

I joined THX in November of 2015. The first question that usually arises when I mention that I have joined the company is “oh, you guys compete with Dolby, right?”

No, we don’t.

They are a great company, and we’ve been partners for many years.

“You guys have that big sound, right?”

Yes, yes we do.

But that is just a sonic signifier of the company’s mission. It embodies not just what you hear, but also conveys the emotion of the visual and auditory experience in cinemas.

Anyone can buy a great sound system for any environment, at different price points.

Think of that system as a very nice car, perhaps. If you know some people who know some people, that nice car might be a Bugatti Chiron (or something cheaper, depending on personal taste and Eurozone bond rates.)

We are the driver (or the mechanic, depending on your point of view) for that race car, making it perform at its optimal levels in different environments.

The history

In the early 1980’s, George Lucas was unsatisfied with the quality of the playback of his movies in commercial cinemas — they didn’t look or sound the way they were designed in his studios.

He created THX to act as a guarantor of quality in cinemas, introducing the certification program to movie audiences in 1983 to coincide with the release of“Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.”

If you go to a THX Certified Cinema, you are guaranteed to get the best experience possible, one that most accurately reflects the “artist’s vision.”

Over the years, that certification process (a very high-end Quality Assurance, or QA program) has expanded to . . .

• Audio electronics
• Non-Internet-connected speakers
• TVs and Projectors
• Source Devices
• Content
• Automotive audio systems

Full stop. This was the business when I arrived.

What is certification?

Certification means that a given cinema or partner has met our certification requirements, which are a blend of quantification and qualification measurements. They are meant to distinguish that a given cinema or partner’s equipment is best-in-class and represents the artist’s vision.

After passing, a room or partner is allowed to display a THX Certification badge. Sometimes companies don’t pass, and we work with them to get past a particular threshold.

Why would anyone do that?

We had a partner that had a set of surround-sound speakers. They were not best-in-class, nor were they selling well.

After working with that partner to improve the speakers, it became a several hundred million dollar a year business for them.

We help partners make money by upping their quality standards. This means people buying movie tickets, more electronic devices, or paying more for an experience.

What we have done since November

We have expanded that certification process to include growth sectors in Consumer Electronics (CE), grown our optimization program, and announced that we are looking into consumer products.

Certification of quality now includes development of the following growth sectors:

• Headphones
• Virtual reality
• Streaming services
• Cable set-top boxes
• . . . and more

Optimization, which is making sure that you are getting the best audio (and video) experience, wherever you are, includes:

• In-home (via our THX tune-up application for iOS and Android, which is in the middle of enhancements and upgrades)
• Out-of-home, including Beyoncé’s The Formation World Tour

What to expect

Our Consumer Products expect to bow later.

We are also placing some longer term bets on Virtual Reality (not in the certification space), Augmented Reality and the Internet of Things that are germane to our legacy and mission, working with partners on behalf of consumers.

Better sound, better video, a better experience.

We are hiring the best and the brightest in the Bay Area to join the amazing audio-video engineers here as we execute tactically, using lean techniques, in the areas above.

THX will continue to improve on its legacy businesses in cinema and CE, and we are on our way in new sectors as well.

Ty Ahmad-Taylor, CEO THX Ltd. | @tyahma Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn