Because Phonak is now discontinuing the Paradise hearing aid line without a suitable BTE CROS UP Naida replacement version (the standard acrylic ear mold that’s not a dome speaker). The Paradise is the last line of Phonak aids with a Naida UP CROS unit that is suitable for my loss. According to my audiologist, Phonak has promised us a Naida UP CROS compatible unit with the Lumity hearing aids, but this has still not happened.
Now, with the Infinio Spheres and Infinio, there is no BTE Naida UP CROS version yet, no BTE Naida UP CROS version for Lumity, and nothing from Phonak that suggests it is on the horizon.
The argument that folks with single sided deafness simply do not make good business number sense actually breaks down when you consider these numbers:
The prevalence of single-sided deafness in the United States (using a simple Google search) is estimated at 0.11% to 0.14% of the adult population, which translates roughly to 271,122 - 345,064 individuals.
At $2,500 per CROS Unit, for 345,000 people, this translates to roughly $862.5 million in profits.
Why wouldn’t any manufacturer do this and keep the line alive for $862.5 million in potential annual profits?
If those numbers added up to profits then sure. But there are a number of holes here. No mfr makes $2500 on a hearing aid. They don’t take that much revenue (vs profit) on a hearing aid. If every single sided… well, many just get one aid. Or they don’t get anything. More like (imo) they make $400-$1000 revenue on a hearing aid. How much is profit? That depends on how much development and test costs. They sell way more custom HAs than CROS. Yet those typically (not this time, but historically) lag one year after BTE and 2 years after RIC release. Will we see the CROS version for naida release with the naida general release? I hope so.
Why did they drop paradise? It costs money to keep alive. When that money goes up in comparison to what it could possibly generate in return, you cut. This is a business, not a charity. You have to keep production lines going from the chip fab to the quality control and support personnel to keep delivering product. When volume goes down, cost per unit goes up. “Opportunity cost” goes way up when you compare putting money into new product dev and test vs 5 year old platform.
I sure hope naida drops in a month or two. And I hope a CROS version is supported. But I’m not surprised they are stopping paradise production. Maybe it has been done for a while, and they were selling NOS -new old stock. They may be down to remaining stock levels to support projected needs for warranty/repair for the time they need to do that and now they cut off further sales.
That’s a good explanation, @WhiteHat - thank you! I’m not particularly pleased with the state of things in this regard but it’s definitely not your fault. Thank you for the other perspective.
And you failed to take into account that Phonak are not the only ones making CROS hearing aids, so their market share would be a fraction of the 345,000 you claim. Furthermore, they say only 20-30% of people who could use hearing aids actually have them, so that’s now it a fraction of a fraction. And I’d be willing to bet that the percentage of people with SSHL who actually use CROS is even lower. Many get by okay with just one ear, and as a CROS wearer, I can say that they’re not always what they’re cracked up to be, and don’t always help as much as one might hope. Reading forums, CROS seems to be a mixed bag, and lots of people who try CROS don’t like them. All this to say is that it’s a pretty niche market, and the potential sales (not to be confused with profit, as already pointed out) is a small fraction of what you claim.
There is a limited market size for UP BTEs due to the success of cochlear implants. Most UP BTE users with sensorineural hearing loss would be recommended for CI candidacy if they had an unaidable ear and Sonova has the potential to make a lot more money off CIs than it does off a CROS system.
Users of a Lumity rechargeable BTE in their better ear are less likely to be CI candidates and some may even have near normal hearing so it makes sense to have this option available.
The different battery technologies in a rechargeable CROS vs a zinc-air disposable in the UP BTE may also result in a poor user experience from a practical point of view.
You might look at Signia rechargeable SP BTEs and rechargeable CROS as an alternative option.
Your options are signia and oticon for UP BTE with a CROS. Oticon can take an FM battery boot if you want Roger access whereas signia would be telecoil neckloop.
I think you might be right Wilfried… as a Phonak Paradise CROS user, it has never been a great solution for my SSHL.
My Audi and I worked hard to get the best fit possible, but as CROS is not that common we both had a steep learning curve. It would have been a loss making sale given the many visits to understand the limitations of the aids before settling for a quite ordinary outcome. Fortunately the aid in my good ear performs well and has some compensations (such as BT and handsfree calling).
I can see why R&D investment and manufacturing cost may not pay off for HA manufacturers, especially if you then factor user disappointment with the results into the mix. The potential reputation damage to the brand makes CROS a risky product.
@Neville - I don’t think I should be forced to stick with a brand that has constant redundant rebooting issues for $5,000 equipment.
Phonak doesn’t have that. I don’t see why Oticon can’t invest similar R&D and testing into their hearing aids to make sure the problem is eliminated entirely like Phonak. So until they do, I am not using Oticon. I. REFUSE.
So I am going to continue making noise and maybe I’ll even file a lawsuit to force Phonak to continue with UP CROS Naida BTEs. Since they promised a Lumity version was on the way, I’ll file promissory estoppel as well. Maybe I’ll also sue Oticon while I am at it to fix the rebooting issue in their BS hearing aids.
@Hearing_Potential - I have had bad experiences with surgeries, so no, I’m never doing CI. I don’t see why I can’t have the same model in every generation that I was sold on when I was converted to Naida CROS UP in 2016 by my audiologist. And at 75% word recognition and above in my right ear, I am not and will NEVER be a candidate for CI unless my hearing suddenly disappears overnight.
I get significant benefit from CROS. The extra volume boost is a real game changer for me and not dealing with the head shadow effect is also a game changer for me in restaurants and other situations where I may have speakers to the left and front of me.
So you will pry my Phonak Naida CROS UP from my cold, dead hands.
Out of curiosity: was your CROS verified and fitted based on a REM? I tried with my Paradise, but didn’t see much benefits, maybe because it was not verified by REM.
Just for clarity for other forum users: indications for CI depend on the region of residence.
However, IIRC, in the USA, people with single-sided deafness (SSD) or asymmetrical hearing loss are definitely eligible for a CI on the poorer ear, even when the better ear has 100% word recognition score (WRS) in quiet.
I agree it sucks, I’m just outlining your option. Maybe the option I missed and possibly your better option is to hunt out old good condition CROS Ps and Naida Ps online. I have a patient still managing to wear picofortes, so you wouldn’t be the first.
I never heard a whisper of a cros L and was actually told NOT to expect one. There’s a CROS I out now, but not compatible with the current Naida (and possibly not the future Naida).
To be clear, I was answering your question as to why Phonak might not have released a CROS compatible UP BTE on their more recent platforms. Not making any specific recommendations re: you as an individual other than signia devices being an alternative possibility.
Try contacting Phonak through their social media in the future. They’re open to requests and suggestions from their end users. I hope your paradise devices last for a long time. You may wish to see if you can get a second set as a backup.
