ruwido secures Astro deal
September 11, 2019
By Colin Mann
Input device and interaction mechanisms specialist ruwido is expanding into the Asian market via a partnership with Astro, the leading content and consumer company in Malaysia.
The cooperation with Astro has seen the first remote release to public beta participants in August 2019, with the latest generation of 4K Ultraboxes (hybrid set-top boxes). The new remote embedded with voice control technology will be introduced to the customers in the future without any hardware change.
“The Asian market is incredibly exciting and it makes us extremely proud that Astro, the forerunner in technology and leading in terms of content and innovation, trusts in our company, products and business performance,” said Ferdinand Maier, CEO of ruwido.
“We aspire to provide compelling and engaging content for our audiences in Malaysia and beyond,” added Sultan Shahrul Imran, VP, Product Engineering, at Astro. “We want to ensure the best possible experience, including how users interact with their TVs. With the remote control being a central part of the user experience, we have decided to partner with ruwido to offer our customers access to premium content in a convenient way.”
Reflecting and aligning with Astro’s characteristic design DNA, ruwido developed the remote control at its independent production site in Austria. The creation process takes place under one roof, from the design to the hardware and software production. Relying on quality, sustainability and responsible sourcing has resulted in ruwido securing a leading market position in Europe and Canada, with the partnership with Astro giving the company a strong footprint in the Asian market.