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Beats by Dr. Dre and Monster End Partnership

Beats by Dr. Dre and Monster go their separate ways after five-year contract expires.

Beats by Dr. Dre, the exceedingly popular headphones developed by hip hop pioneer, will be splitting from its manufacturing partner Monster Cable Products at the end of this year. Business Week confirms that Beats has opted to let its contract with Monster expire after a five-year partnership.
In the beginning, Beats turned to the veteran cable manufacturer for expertise at bringing sophisticated electronics to market. But as the company grew into a successful electronics brand in its own right, its relationship with Monster began to strain. Reportedly, the two companies hold "divergent views on which side deserves the most credit for the line’s success and Beats balking at its share of the revenue.”
Perhaps anticipating the split, Monster has already announced eight new lines of its own headphones, sans the Beats label, at this week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
HTC, the Korean mobile devices manufacturer, purchased a majority stake in Beats for $300 million in 2011. Since its launch in 2008, other hip hop figures have sought to recreate the company's formula, launching such headphone lines as Soul by Ludacris, Sleek by 50 Cent and Chambers by the RZA.

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