Hearing aids from Apple will really compete with Amplifon & C.? Many are wondering this after last week, during the “It's Glowtime” event in Cupertino, the Apple company presented the new AirPods Pro 2 with acoustic device functionality. In reality they are not real devices but a software that will allow the "headphones" to have some hearing aid-like functionality over the counter (OTC), or an “over the counter” device like those marketed for two years in the United States. The initiative, combined with the possibility of carrying out hearing tests, is part of Apple's broader plan to propose the iPhone and associated products as devices capable of monitor health of people and carry out prevention.
AirPods Pro 2: Opportunity or Threat?
The news has led several commentators to speak of a threat to major hearing aid manufacturers or distributors such as Sonova, Demant and the Italian Amplifon. But is it really so? For analysts from the main investment banks that follow the hearing sector – from Carnegie to Akros, from Bank of America to BNP Paribas – there is no threat. On the contrary, as Bnp Paribas underlines in a note, we can glimpse an opportunity for Amplifon & C.
The AirPods Pro 2, which also had the green light from the Food and Drug Administration in the US (while it is not yet clear what will happen in Europe), they are OTC (over the counter) devices for mild hearing loss to moderate (typical of the population under 60-65), today sold freely only in some countries (such as the United States) without the help of audioprosthetists, hearing care professionals. They have a very large and attractive potential market, from about 1 billion people in the world, but it is also the segment of the population most reluctant to equip itself with a device (two years after their introduction, OTC devices in the USA today are worth only 1% of the market). OTC devices will also be new Nuance Audio that EssiLux should launch still in the USA at the end of 2024.
The new AirPods are devices to be used in specific situations (such as conversations in noisy places) and for a limited time due to battery limitations (a few hours). By Apple's own admission, They do not address moderate to severe hearing loss (“These tools,” Apple writes in the announcement press release, “will help people protect themselves from noise pollution, be aware of changes in their hearing over time, and have important conversations with their hearing care professionals when they need more support”).
For this reason, BNP underlines, Apple's popularity has the potential to significantly increase awareness among people with mild to moderate hearing loss and could help remove the stigma that still surrounds hearing problems or hearing loss. However, analysts note, hearing loss worsens with age. "This - Bnp writes in a note - will require more developed and complex products that we doubt Essilux and Apple will develop internally.... Finally, we do not rule out that the limited battery life of the AirPods Pro 2 could favor a faster transition to hearing aids traditional”.
Traditional hearing aids
Such “traditional” devices are actually increasingly innovative, have batteries that last much longer and are characterized by latest generation services and features. They concern people with moderate to severe hypoxia, generally over 65 years old. They are marketed by operators such as Amplifon, which make use of the indispensable presence of the audioprosthetist, a hearing care professional – difficult to replace by technology alone – who helps people choose the right device and adapt it to their ear and their loss.
Numerous clinical studies, in fact, show how essential it is to start a rehabilitation process with the help of hearing aid specialists, such as those found in approximately 10.000 Amplifon points around the world. Innovation is an inevitable trend in all sectors and Apple's initiative certainly represents a very positive and promising evolution. But it is certainly premature to think of a threat to traditional hearing care operators, who continue to innovate and can count on specialized personnel to support the needs of people, especially older people with greater hearing loss.
