I’m not exactly what you might call an expert on sports. And digging around team rivalries and key players didn’t make things any clearer for me to find a suitable simile either. So imagine if you will that your favourite player from that team you love decides to jump ship to their arch rival team you hate. Well that just happened, as inMusic made a successful end-of-season bid for Pioneer DJ midfielder Rik Parkinson and have promoted him to centre forward for Denon DJ. Did I do it right? You get the idea.
inMusic is so chuffed with this acquisition that they’ve pushed out a press release:
DJ INDUSTRY VETERAN RIK PARKINSON JOINS DENON DJ® AS DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
After 15 years with Pioneer DJ, Parkinson’s expertise will drive DENON DJ to new heights of innovation and performance.
Cumberland, RI USA (November 19, 2019)—DENON DJ (www.denondj.com), a leading manufacturer of premium DJ products and solutions, today announced that noted DJ industry veteran Rik Parkinson has joined DENON DJ as their Director of Strategic Development. In this newly-created position, Parkinson will work with DENON DJ’s outstanding team of product and marketing professionals to build on the amazing success of recent products such as the DENON DJ PRIME 4 4-channel standalone DJ system and the SC5000M media player.
Parkinson brings with him a wealth of intense DJ industry experience. His in-depth knowledge of the market coupled with his technical product expertise gives Parkinson a unique vantage point from which he will help further the expansion and innovation of DENON DJ’s product line-up.
Pat Sullivan, President of inMusic said,
“Rik is a perfect fit for the product-focused culture at DENON DJ. When the opportunity to work with Rik presented itself, it was a no brainer that he would be a great addition to our very experienced DJ team for a market that is growing rapidly for us. He brings a lifelong passion for the DJ community and a true understanding of its rapidly evolving landscape. His experience and knowledge of the market, combined with DENON DJ’s respected products and innovative technologies, will help us create game-changing products for the future DJ. We couldn’t be more excited to see what Rik will do at DENON DJ.”
Rik Parkinson added,
“DENON DJ drives industry expectations with disruptive technology for today’s and tomorrow’s DJs, who seek feature-rich and reliable gear. It’s an honor to join this portfolio of highly-respected products and I can’t wait to work with a team like this that is deeply immersed in DJ culture and constantly challenging each other to deliver new fringe technology into our ecosystem.”
Parkinson assumes his new role with DENON DJ effective immediately.
WHY THIS MATTERS
People change jobs all the time. But what makes this one incredibly important and hence newsworthy is the timing and the companies involved.
Rik has been with Pioneer DJ for all the time I’ve been doing this DJ writing thing. His knowledge, experience, and contacts are an incredibly valuable asset, especially to the competition. But it’ll be Rik’s intimate knowledge of Pioneer DJ’s future that marks this out as hugely important.
While the response to Denon DJ’s Prime range has yet to show itself, don’t for one second think that Pioneer DJ hasn’t been working on the next wave. And for Denon DJ to be able to tap into Rik’s past and future knowledge is strategically vital, especially as it’s likely that they’ll start to show their new cards any day now.
As Rik’s new job title shows, this industry move is as much about skills as it is strategy. And whatever the behind-the-scenes industry wranglings, we can be sure that it can only benefit the DJ community.
So good luck to you Rik. I hope have the same impact on Denon DJ as you did Pioneer DJ.
Just goes to dhow that Denon needs help, they should have kept Silvio.
hope they keep denon its own thing and not try to put out pioneer copy cat junk
His knowledge of Pioneer’s “future” moves is completely useless to Denon. It’s called confidentiality clause and it’s inside every standard working contract.
However, I’m absolutely convinced for the man’s skills, just by looking at Pioneer’s dominance. Certainly a great move from Denon & a big blow on Pioneer.
Rik is indeed a smart guy and great hire, even without his knowledge of Pioneer DJ’s future.
But there’s always a way around these things. Knowing what his former employer/arch rival is and isn’t doing will absolutely shape Denon DJ’s product lines. He may not have to directly share it, but he can definitely imply knowledge — for example “I don’t think we should do that” with a knowing smile. He is after all the director of strategic product development. How can he not use his knowledge in that role?
I don’t doubt for a moment that lawyers have been involved as well. Lines will have been drawn, and suits will be ready to swoop should they be crossed.
I think it’s great for everyone. It’s a real grenade in the room moment, forcing everyone to step up. Bring it on.
Maybe he can convince Denon to bring out a deck that has pressure sensitive platters.
That would be enough to get me to switch.
I think Denon is moving very well..step by step lure new DJs generation with smart devices, fair prices and good deals (Serato, TIDAL)..I’m selling Rane set and I’d driving towards Pioneer, but I think right move is go on Denon..
they have only improve Engine and boom!
In a small industry like this, these are key moves.
Question now is, did he switch because he felt Pioneer DJ didn’t act fast enough and doesn’t see a viable product being released in the next 5 years or was he just looking for a new challenge.
All of the above.
please bring big jog wheels to Denon controller and all-in-one products.
Big Motorized Platters to the All in one products for me.
I wish him all the best. Having worked with him many times over the years on Pioneer product and software development his knowledge and expertise in DJ-related products and tech has clearly not gone unnoticed. Denon has an incredible history when it comes to DJ equipment and i’m sure that under Rik’s guidance and expertise it can only go one way.
Not sure if his knowledge of Pioneer’s future is of big value to Denon DJ, as their current line of products mostly is way ahead of the club standard already (in theory, at least).
Hopefully he will see the importance and urgency of a flawlessly running and feature-rich software behind the already innovative hardware.
Acquiring him sure hasn’t been cheap. It’s a good sign that Denon DJ is here to stay!
If he can help in the slightest with Software knowledge to sharpen the Engine Prime software, then that would immediate.
However, Denon is way ahead in the current line of new products as mentioned in hardware.