Sonova Group’s acquisition of the Advanced Bionics cochlear implant business is starting to pay off. The recent integration of technologies developed by Sonova’s Phonak hearing aid subsidiary into a new cochlear implant sound processor from Advanced Bionics foreshadows even more interesting products and features to come.
The only question raised by this first-ever cross-fertilization of hearing aid and cochlear implant technologies is why someone hasn’t done it sooner.
In May, Advanced Bionics announced commercial release of its Naída CI Q70 Sound Processor in Europe and Canada, with U.S. market introduction pending expected regulatory approvals there. In addition to a first for the industry — combining a hearing-aid’s sound processor technology with a cochlear implant’s sound processing system — it provides the added benefit of integration with Phonak’s extensive line of wireless peripheral technologies.
Naída, a name borrowed from Phonak’s hearing-aid product line, is a major step in the evolution of hearing technology because it breaks down the previously quite-separate silos built by the hearing aid companies and world’s three the cochlear implant companies. And while the level of integration already in Naída CI is impressive, a look at Sonova Group’s July 2013 investor presentation indicates there’s a lot more to come.
The new cochlear implant (CI) system integrates a more powerful processing unit that is 40 percent smaller than Advanced Bionics’ previous behind-the-ear processor. The Naída CI also features Phonak Binaural VoiceStream Technology delivering wireless ear-to-ear communication. And the new product set integrates Phonak’s AccessLine accessories that deliver wireless Bluetooth connectivity with consumer electronics from leading brands, including Apple, Samsung and Nokia.
Now music, phone calls, TV shows, FM and other media can be streamed wirelessly to a compatible Phonak hearing aid and a Naída CI sound processor or to two Naída CI sound processors at the same time. And to make phone communication easier, bilateral recipients using Naída CI processors can answer calls handsfree and stream calls wirelessly to both ears simultaneously.
There’s more on the drawing boards. The company’s financial presentation lays out a timeline for expected improvements in 2014, including another new generation of behind-the-ear processors and a successor to Advanced Bionics’ current HiRes 90K Advantage implant (the circuit board that sits in the skull bone under the scalp and crunches and transmits the audio data into the electrode snaked into the user’s cochlea).
Advanced Bionics already introduced its new and improved HiFocus MidScala electrode which is easier to insert into the cochlea and provides better transmission of signals to the cochlear nerve. And on the timeline yet another improved electrode is scheduled for 2014.
So back to the question: why hasn’t someone done this sooner? One possible reason is that even though hearing aids are classified as medical devices, they have never been subjected to the same levels of regulatory scrutiny, reviews and approval processes that surgical implants must endure before making their way to the market. Medical implant makers must make substantial investments in jumping through regulatory hoops, which necessitates a different investment and business model than the more commercial hearing aid business. For instance, Advanced Bionics’ previous corporate parent was Boston Scientific, the pioneer in implantable coronary stents, which spent years being reviewed by health regulators before being approved for sale to surgeons.
But as the hearing aid companies have dramatically increased their investments in R&D, they have been on the lookout for ways to leverage those investments into new market opportunities. The fit between hearing aids and cochlear implants is close enough that it’s become worth it for hearing aid companies like Sonova Group to make the investment in regulatory infrastructure, especially if it feels confident it can use its existing technology to make more competitive implants.
Sonova isn’t the only major hearing aid player to move into the implant business. William Demant Holdings established Oticon Medical, a sister company to its Oticon hearing aids business, to market its Ponto bone anchored hearing aid implant. Then last year William Demant acquired Neurelec, the French cochlear implant maker. Don’t be surprised if we see future announcements from Oticon medical demonstrating how it’s leveraging its sister company’s hearing aid technologies for its cochlear implants.
tob says
I was SO sure it would be happened sometime; the manufacturers of INTERNAL part of a CI should SPECIALIZE in this and release specifications to traditional “pneumatic” acoustic hearing aids; so there wolud be a LOT of availability, competition and accessible pricings on the external part, as is for “pneumatic” counterpart.