StereoNET first heard of the potential acquisition back in May this year, however ARCAM executives denied the rumour at the time.

In a joint statement dated 14th July 2017 and sent to ARCAM and HARMAN customers, they said:

ARCAM and HARMAN share a likeminded passion for bringing the highest quality sound into people's lives and we believe bringing the power of the two companies together will benefit the partnership we have with you. 

Scott Campbell, ARCAM Director Sales & Marketing continued:

Nothing will change in our day to day business. Richard and his team will continue to represent the ARCAM brand as normal. Charlie Brennan and the current management team will remain in Cambridge and become part of HARMAN’s Lifestyle Audio division.  

ARCAM joins a combined portfolio that includes AKG, Harman Kardon, Infinity, JBL, Mark Levinson and Revel.

Søren Majlund, Commercial Director EUN, Harman Lifestyle Audio Division said:

HARMAN recognizes the value and potential of Arcam’s people, technologies and brands, and we expect the combination will deliver growth opportunities and benefits to our customers. We believe this is an unprecedented opportunity to grow Arcam’s engineering capabilities and extend its product reach into new markets.

In Australia ARCAM is distributed by Advance Audio who have worked tirelessly to revive the brand in the local market. While it is unclear if ARCAM distribution will remain with Advance or move to Harman's Australian operation in the future, of the bigger picture ARCAM's chief, Charlie Brennan, has said:

No big announcements are planned. Business as usual.

ARCAM have enjoyed considerable growth and success in recent times with their current line-up of audio-video products, and in particular their AV Receivers. This acquisition makes a lot of sense for HARMAN International who have struggled in the AV Receiver market with their Harman/Kardon brand previously.

For more information visit the ARCAM brand page.