LeEco Brings Boundary-Breaking Ecosystem Model to the U.S., Invites Users to Help Shape the Future
SAN FRANCISCO – October 19, 2016 – Today, LeEco™ officially launched its disruptive ecosystem model in the U.S., which breaks boundaries between screens to seamlessly deliver content and services on a wide array of connected smart devices – including smartphones, TVs, smart bikes, virtual reality and electric self-driving vehicles.
At the “Ignite the Eco World” event, LeEco hosted more than 1,700 media, analysts, industry partners, consumers and employees to unveil its open, integrated Internet ecosystem consisting of platform, content, apps and the stunning array of connected smart devices that bring it to life. LeEco offers a unique model that puts users at the center of the ecosystem with disruptive pricing that makes premium devices affordable to all, and a feedback process that helps to refine the experience and define future products and offerings.
“We have created a new business model that will lead the next era of technology – the ecosystem era. We are disrupting several categories and changing the paradigm by breaking down barriers and boundaries between industries and screens tocreate a better experience and more value for both individuals and industries,” said YT Jia, Founder, Chairman and CEO of LeEco. “I know the road ahead is long and arduous but life is about constantly exploring the unknown, and I believe that if you dare to dream what 99% believe is impossible you’ve earned the right at that 1% chance to be successful.”
LeEco has built an ecosystem of incredibly advanced smart devices powered by its ground-breaking eui – ecosystem user interface – and integrated with content from the world’s top content producers. These breakthrough experiences run on LeEco’s Internet and cloud platform, LeCloud, which is one of the world’s largest video cloud networks.
“Our global vision for a connected ecosystem where great content can be enjoyed on a range of devices that are disruptively priced is what fuels our global expansion,” said Richard Ren, President of LeEco North America. “Following our success in China, we expanded to India last year and Russia in September. Today, we are pleased to officially launch in the U.S.”
It’s UP2U
With the User Planning to User (UP2U™) program, LeEco gives users a voice in how the ecosystem evolves, and the opportunity to co-create the experience and the next-generation of LeEco products.
When individuals share feedback with LeEco via user trials, social channels, on-device apps and at events, their comments are shared with the User Experience Center (UEC) and research & development (R&D) teams to influence product updates and shape future offerings.
“We developed the UP2U model to let users directly influence how our products and services evolve. We have a dynamic process for gathering and implementing the feedback into every aspect of our business from design, R&D and software, to pricing and even the content we deliver,” said Rob Chandhok, Chief R&D Officer for LeEco North America. “Because our software ties everything together and the content continues to grow, our devices and the experience continually get better.”
A Truly Connected Lifestyle
LeEco’s revolutionary Ecosystem User Interface (eui)is an intuitive interface that unifies our ecosystem with two core principles: breaking device boundaries and putting content at the heart of the experience. The eui experience transcends all boundaries providing seamless interconnectivity across all LeEco devices by removing the barriers between software, hardware, platform, content and apps. It is the answer to the fragmented user experience.
Cast content from your phone to your car with a simple swipe or receive alerts from your Smart Bike to your TV — the eui experience breaks boundaries between devices. eui allows you to take your experience from one device to another – the experience is seamless and intuitive without you having to think about it. Your content is always available at a touch of a button, regardless of which device you use.
LeEco’s unique 3x3 mosaic of streaming channels puts content from some of the world’s top producers front and center. With one swipe of your finger, access a window to all your content on the LeView™ screen. LeView offers a preview of all your apps with recommended programming based on your viewing habits from the LeEco content library.
When you want to lean back, kick your feet up and watch your favorite movies, the LeApp™ is your gateway to irresistible entertainment. LeApp delivers unlimited hours of dazzling entertainment and recommends programming based on your viewing habits.
The definitive TV experience, the LeLIVE™ app delivers your favorite TV channels with a simple touch on the home screen. LeLIVE gives you an unmatched TV viewing experience for provocative and outrageous entertainment on nine simultaneous screens in the palm of your hand.
Central to the experience is having your content ready when you are. LeEco has an open video cloud platform that covers 60+ countries and major cities across five continents with 30 Tbps output bandwidth. With over 750 nodes, LeEco is the largest CDN node player in the world, and one of the largest cloud service providers for the b2b marketplace in China.
Content Connects an Ecosystem of Technology
Content has always been at the heart of LeEco’s vision. Since its inception in 2004, LeEco has amassed more than 5,000 movies and 100,000 TV episodes, and attracted 50+ million daily active users and 730+ million monthly active users in China.
In the U.S., LeEco has partnered with top content providers to bring its eui content platform to life including: Lionsgate, MGM, Showtime, Vice Media, Awesomeness TV, A+E, with others being added weekly. To learn more about our content partners, visit our blog www.leeco.com/us/blog.
LeEco not only knows how to distribute content – it knows how to create it. Le Vision Pictures is one of the top producers of original box office hits and television shows in China, and in September LeEco announced Le Vision Entertainment, which will focus on English language original entertainment content for LeEco's next-generation audiences. Le Vision Entertainment will deliver and shape innovative and cutting-edge content, utilizing its diverse range of distribution platforms across LeEco's content divisions around the world, including markets like China, India, Russia, and others.
Premium Devices with Disruptive Value
LeEco is the leading Internet TV brand and the fastest growing smartphone brand in China as a result of its disruptive approach of delivering great content seamlessly to premium devices that are affordable for all. LeEco will bring this model of content at the heart with innovative yet affordable hardware as the foundation of our distribution model. To provide even greater value for our users, we have created the EcoPass™ that brings together high-value benefits including:
· A 2 year warranty for LeEco ecophones and 3 years for ecotvs
· 5TB of cloud storage on LeCloud, and unlimited storage for photos and videos
· Unlimited movie viewing on Fandor
· Exclusive sale days on LeMall.com™ and priority customer service
· Discounted prices for many add-on content partners featured in LeApp
Ecophones
Ecophones are the next-generation of smartphones that put content front-and-center to deliver the ultimate entertainment experience. With eui, the Le and LIVE apps offer a lineup of content including a dynamic preview display, and a 3x3 mosaic of streaming content. Personalization is another key element. With eui, ecophone users can access LeView, a “minus one screen” experience that puts tailored content, customized to your viewing preferences, just one swipe away from the home screen. With eui, content is always only one click away. LeEco will launch two ecophones in the U.S. that will begin selling at www.lemall.com on Nov. 2.
Le Pro3 is LeEco’s flagship ecophone that combines beautiful design, powerful performance and a unique way to consume content. With a 5.5-inch screen and sleek design, the Le Pro3 features fine, brushed metal backing and a tough Corning® Gorilla® Glass screen with 2.5D curved edges for a smooth finish. The Le Pro3 sports premium audio features, including dual speakers, surround sound powered by Dolby Atmos® and Continual Digital Lossless Audio (CDLA) technology. The Le Pro3 offers incredible, long-lasting performance thanks to a powerful Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 821 processor and a category leading 4070mAh battery. The Le Pro3 also features a 16 MP rear-facing camera for vivid photos, panoramas and videos in 4K; and an 8 MP front-facing camera perfect for capturing selfies. The Le Pro3 comes in gold and gray, and will sell for $399. It also includes a 3-month free EcoPass membership.
Le S3 raises the stakes with best-in-category audio, processor, and front and back cameras. Beautifully designed with an elegant, all-metal unibody and a 5.5-inch screen, the Le S3 doesn’t cut any corners on what matters most. Featuring a Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 652 processor, the Le S3 delivers unrivaled performance for its category. It also over-delivers on the camera with a 16 MP main and an 8 MP selfie camera, which can be activated with the highly responsive and intelligent fingerprint scanner. The Le S3 combines the power of CDLA and Dolby Atmos® with in-box Type-C CDLA earphones for the ultimate audio experience. The Le S3 is available in gold, gray and rose gold for $249, and includes a 3-month EcoPass membership.
ecoTVs
Ranging in screen sizes, LeEco’s TV’s are one of China’s leading smart TV brands, selling more than 7 million units over the past three years.
The ultimate experience in home cinema, the uMax85boasts a huge 85-inch display housed in a slim industrial design packed with superior technology features including industry-leading Full Array, 448 Active Local Dimming Zones, HDR, Dolby Vision™, Fluid Motion 1920 Display Technology and Harmon Kardon® Audio. The uMax85 will be available on Nov. 2 at www.lemall.com for $4,999 and comes with a 12-month free EcoPass membership.
The artfully designed Super4 X Series houses premium technology in an ultra-slim frame built from the finest-grade aluminum alloy materials and features an ultra-narrow bezel. Available in a range of screen sizes including 43, 55 and 65 inches. These ecotvs feature HDR, Harman Kardon speakers and 3GB RAM and 32GB* of storage. The Super4 X Series ecotvs will be available on Nov. 2 at www.lemall.com
· 43-inch - $649 with 3-month free EcoPass membership
· 55-inch - $899 with 12-month free EcoPass membership
· 65-inch - $1,399 with 12-month free EcoPass membership
Both ranges of ecotvs feature LeEco’s eui experience, and signature LIVE and Le apps, which offer customized viewing and seamless integration with LeEco ecophones. All ecotvs offer advanced voice search and Harman Kardon speakers*, as well as Android™ TV and Google Cast™ technology.
More Innovative Technologies, Built for Today’s Life and Tomorrow’s Lifestyles
LeEco also previewed its vision of connected screens that includes smart bikes, virtual reality and self-driving electric vehicles.
The company showcased its category-defining LeEco Super Bike, an Android smart bike that offers security, connectivity and an industry-defining smart riding system. The LeEco Super Bike is the only smart bike equipped with laser lane markers, for a high-tech take on safety. Advanced features include a smart riding system, fingerprint identification, a smart lock, two-way radio, sensor group and power management system. With the Super Bike we are launching a special UP2U program designed to capture and implement user feedback for the next generation products. Individuals interested in participating can visit www.lemall.com and our social community for more information.
The ExploreVR provides an immersive virtual reality experience for games, apps, movies and TV shows. Powered by a LeEco ecophone, content comes to life in riveting full 3D, 360-degree virtual reality. An advanced ergonomic design and state-of-the-art optics delivers an ultra-comfortable, cinematic, immersive and adventurous VR experience. LeEco will be utilizing the Snapdragon VR SDK as it develops compelling, new VR content for the launch of its ExploreVR headset.
LeEco also offered a glimpse of the automotive future: For the first time, the American public gets a preview of the LeSEE™ Pro self-driving electric vehicle that has astounded global audiences. LeEco is familiarizing U.S. audiences with its groundbreaking concept electric vehicle, LeSEE, which combines sophisticated design and high-performance handling with top of the line EV features such as intelligent inductive charging. LeSEE Pro’s cutting-edge self-driving features include machine-learning of facial, emotion, system and path recognition.
To learn more about the Eco World unveiled today, visit LeEco at www.leeco.com and to purchase our ecophones, ecotvs and accessories, visit www.lemall.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
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Editors Notes:
* The Super4 X43 Pro has 16GB storage and does not have Harmon Kardon speakers
Detailed ecophone and ecotv product information, photos and videos are available on our newsroom www.leeco.com/us/newsroom.
About LeEco
LeEco is a leading global technology company that provides breakthrough experiences through its open, integrated ecosystem of streaming content, platforms, and smart devices that fit perfectly into a broad spectrum of lifestyles. LeEco opens new opportunities for consumers by offering a wide array of next-generation connected products – including smartphones, TVs, bikes and cars – and content spanning sports, film and live entertainment. LeEco was recently named one of Fast Company’s 2016 “Most Innovative Companies,” and Alphr’s “Best of Mobile World Congress – Most Innovative Company.” To learn more, visit www.leeco.com and follow on Facebook and Twitter.
