--- title: Privately Held Bose Buys Skullcandy in Its Fourth Acquisition Since 2024 description: Bose, a private company whose majority owner is MIT, has bought Skullcandy from Mill Road Capital, its fourth acquisition since November 2024. author: Darie Nani (Editor-in-Chief) date: 2026-10-22T13:23:22.151Z updated: 2026-10-22T13:23:22.162Z canonical: https://www.sovereignmagazine.com/article/who-owns-bose-corporation image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/skullcandy-crusher-1080-anc-engineer-473875.webp categories: Business content_type: News region: United States publication: Sovereign Magazine schema_type: Article --- Bose Corporation has bought Skullcandy, the Park City, Utah, maker of headphones, earbuds and speakers, from a fund managed by Mill Road Capital Management, a private investment firm based in Connecticut. Bose announced the deal on Oct. 21 and said the financial and other terms will stay confidential. Skullcandy is Bose's third acquisition of 2026 and its fourth since November 2024. "As we work to reach even more people, we're expanding how we do that, not only through Bose products, but through technology partnerships and a growing portfolio of brands," said Lila Snyder, Bose's chief executive. Bose is a private American company, founded by Amar Bose in 1964 and based in Framingham, Massachusetts. Amar Bose gave the majority of the company's stock to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as non-voting shares, [MIT News reported in 2011](https://news.mit.edu/2011/bose-gift). MIT receives cash dividends on those shares whenever Bose pays them, but under the terms of the gift it cannot sell the shares and does not take part in Bose's management or governance. "As a privately held company, we have the freedom to make bold, long-term investments in opportunities we believe in, and Skullcandy is a great example of that," Snyder said of the deal. ## Skullcandy Keeps Its Name and Its Park City Base Skullcandy will stay a separate brand inside Bose's Premium Consumer Audio business and will remain based in Park City, Utah, Bose said. A multi-year partnership had already put Sound by Bose technology into Skullcandy earbuds and headphones. Skullcandy's Crusher 1080 ANC headphones, which list at $279.99, pair its Crusher Bass "with premium Sound By Bose audio technologies," the company says. Bose said Skullcandy's roots in boardsports and its ties to music, gaming, fitness and other communities let Bose reach consumers "where it has less presence today." Bose plans to invest in Skullcandy's growth and give it access to Bose's technology, resources, global distribution and commercial relationships. "Skullcandy was born on a chairlift in Park City, Utah, over 20 years ago, and we've always believed great music should be part of the experiences people love," said Brian Garofalow, Skullcandy's chief executive. He said joining Bose would bring "more of their audio expertise and technology to our products." ## Bose Bought McIntosh in 2024 and Two Audio Technology Firms This Year The run of deals started in November 2024, when Bose bought McIntosh Group from Highlander Partners, a Dallas private investment firm. McIntosh Group owns McIntosh and Sonus faber, which make amplifiers, speakers, turntables and other audio equipment. [Bose said at the time](https://www.bose.com/pressroom/bose-acquires-mcintosh-group-announcement) that the brands would work together on car audio, drawing on its "40-plus years of experience in automotive audio." The next two purchases went to Bose's Audio Technology business, which licenses its capabilities, "including Sound by Bose technology and the Bose WaveForm Audio Engine," to other manufacturers. In June, Bose bought StreamUnlimited Engineering, a Vienna company that supplies streaming software, hardware modules and certifications to makers of connected audio and smart-home products. Bose said the deal gives it a way to put its audio technology inside other companies' phones, tablets, wearables and multiroom systems. On Oct. 1, Bose bought Firelight Technologies, which makes FMOD, software that game developers widely use to make in-game sound react to the action as it happens. Bose said FMOD will remain open and broadly supported. "Gaming represents a significant opportunity for our continued growth," said Nick Smith, president of Bose Audio Technology and Bose's chief strategy officer. ## Mill Road Agreed to Pay $196.6 Million for Skullcandy in 2016 Skullcandy was listed on Nasdaq in 2016 and had agreed to merge with Incipio when its board judged a competing offer from Mill Road a "Superior Proposal." Skullcandy ended the Incipio agreement and agreed to sell to Mill Road affiliates for $6.35 per share in cash, about $196.6 million in total. More on Bose is at [bose.com](https://www.bose.com). ## FAQ **Q: Who owns Bose Corporation?** MIT holds the majority of Bose's stock under a gift from founder Amar Bose that MIT announced in April 2011. MIT said it would use the dividends on those shares to support its education and research. **Q: Is Bose German or American?** American. Amar Bose earned three degrees in electrical engineering at MIT and taught on its faculty from 1956 until 2001, and he started the company in 1964. **Q: When was Skullcandy founded?** Skullcandy was founded in 2003, on a chairlift in Park City, Utah, and grew out of action sports culture. **Q: How much of a premium did Mill Road pay for Skullcandy in 2016?** Mill Road's $6.35 a share was about 43% above Skullcandy's closing share price on June 22, 2016, the last trading day before the Incipio deal was announced, and about 4% above Incipio's $6.10 offer. Mill Road said at the time that it already owned 9.8% of Skullcandy. **Q: Where is Firelight Technologies based?** Firelight is based in Melbourne, Australia. The company says FMOD has served game developers, sound designers and composers for 25 years. **Q: Who advised Bose on the Skullcandy deal?** Jones Day was Bose's legal counsel, as it was on Bose's purchase of McIntosh Group in 2024.