Auracast Is Here: Bluetooth’s Hearing Access Revolution

Auracast may be one of the biggest shifts in hearing accessibility, Bluetooth audio, and assistive listening technology in decades.

In this episode of the Hearing Matters Podcast, Blaise Delfino, M.S. - HIS speaks with Mikey Shaffer, Vice President of North American Sales at Listen Technologies, about how Auracast broadcast audio is changing the way people with hearing loss, hearing aids, cochlear implants, and Auracast-compatible earbuds connect in public spaces.

Mikey explains how Auracast works within Bluetooth Low Energy, why it is often described as “Wi-Fi for audio,” and how venues like houses of worship, higher education, performing arts centers, airports, stadiums, restaurants, and corporate environments can use this technology to improve accessibility. The conversation also explores the future of assistive listening systems, hearing loops, telecoil technology, direct audio input, hearing aid stigma, and why community-based hearing healthcare matters more than ever.

Whether you are a hearing care professional, audiologist, hearing instrument specialist, venue operator, caregiver, or someone who struggles to hear clearly in noisy environments, this episode offers a clear look at how Auracast could help more people stay connected, engaged, and included. 

Learn more about Listen Technologies here, and explore Auracast resources through Bluetooth and Auri Audio.

Visit our website and take our quick online hearing screener. 

And if you're ready to take the next step, our online hearing care provider locator can help you find a trusted hearing care professional near you. Taking that first step can make a meaningful difference, helping you stay connecting to the people and moments that matter most. 

Omega AI hearing aids don’t just keep up. They redefine what it means to be modern and discreet yet durable and comfortable for all-day wear.

They’re waterproof, everyday-proof, and designed to go the distance of your day and then some. All while tailored to your unique hearing needs.

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Transcript

Welcome And Sponsor Thanks

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 0:06

Welcome back to the Hearing Matters Podcast, where we explore hearing technology, communication science, and the people and ideas shaping the future of hearing health care and hearing loss around the world. Before we kick things off, a special thank you to our partners. Care Credit. Here today to help more people here tomorrow. Inventist. Inventist is innovation. Blueprint Solutions. Clinic management made easy for hearing care professionals. Now with Blueprint AI. And fader plugs, the world's first custom adjustable earplug. Welcome back to another episode of the Hearing Matters Podcast. I'm your founder and host, Laise Delfino. And as a friendly reminder, this podcast is separate from my work at Starkey. Now, let's get into the conversation. You're tuned in to the Hearing Matters Podcast, the show that discusses hearing technology, best practices, and a global epidemic. Hearing

Meet Mikey And Assistive Listening

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 1:09

loss. I'm your host, Blaise Delfino, and joining me today is Vice President of North American Sales for Amtronic Listen Technologies. In this role, Schaefer is responsible for accelerating revenue growth, expanding market presence, and optimizing channel performance across North America. She leads the North American sales teams and channel partners in selling listen technologies and Amtronic Assistive Listening Systems. Schaefer joined Listen Technologies in 2016 and has held marketing, vertical markets, and regional sales roles at the organization. I would love to welcome Mikey Schaefer, VP of Sales at Listen Technologies. Mikey, welcome to the Hearing Matters Podcast.

Mikey Shaffer 1:57

Thank you, Blaze. That was quite the introduction. I am very glad to be here. That made me sound very fancy, but let me summarize. My job is to use the best job in the world. I get to travel this continent and help people understand the struggles of the heart of hearing in public venues. Assistive listening is, you know, it's often misunderstood, right? People think I work for a hearing aid manufacturer, and you know, sometimes I wish I did. But what I do is I help venues in our communities, my community, your community, become accessible to people with hearing loss. Whether they wear a hearing aid or whether they're not quite there yet, it's still a struggle in public spaces. Anywhere where we're amplifying audio, it's really difficult for folks to be able to hear and contribute and engage in those spaces when they have hearing loss. And so that's what I do. And you know, those are fancy words for saying I just travel this nation and help people care about those with hearing loss in their communities.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 2:57

And Mikey, I have to say, when we first connected a couple of weeks ago, your caring nature absolutely bled through that conversation because hearing loss and assistive listening devices are incredibly personal to you. And before we dive into you sharing that personal story to our listeners tuned in, we are going to be talking a lot about Oracast technology. But what Mikey and I really want to do today, really want to do on this episode, is really lay the groundwork of where assistive listening was, where it is today, and where it's going in the future. And Mikey, super excited for you and your team's success, continued success, because the industry, hearing health in general, as I said before we hit record, is about to experience a complete 180. So, Mikey, before we dive into what Oracast is and how Bluetooth is about to experience the biggest upgrade in years, as I said, hearing loss is personal to you. So please, let's start there.

Mikey Shaffer 4:09

Sure.

Hearing Loss At Home Changes Everything

Mikey Shaffer 4:10

Thank you. It is, it is personal to me. And you know, before coming to Listen Technologies 10 years ago, I actually worked directly with the deaf and hard of hearing in my community. I worked at Relay, Utah, ensuring equal access to telecommunications. So this is a space that I have worked in and cared about for a very, very long time. After coming to Listen Technologies, it became aware that my own husband suffered a pretty severe hearing loss late in life. We have been together since we were 16 or 17 years old. So sometimes these things kind of, you know, they're a slow roll. But because of my experience working in my community with the folks that I was working with, it became apparent to me before it was ever apparent to my husband. I kind of knew the signs. And, you know, family generally notices first, especially when you've been together a really long time. And so, you know, it showed up with him, you know, asking people to repeat themselves. And it got to a point where it was very clear that he was struggling in our conversations and had kind of started to check out, which is the most heartbreaking aspect for a family in this situation, because it's workable, it's adjustable. We are more than happy to do the adjustments that we need to do in our home, but only when the folk, the person who needs it, realizes, right? We got to a point where he wasn't laughing at my jokes and I find myself hilarious. So that was the first sign. But also things like, you know, the kids would say, I love you, dad, good night. And he'd say, Fine, go to bed. And we thought, is he just getting really grumpy? People would say, Is Rick grumpy? I'm like, no, his face is just like that because he can't hear you. He's trying to hear you. And so it got to a point where we were able to gently have the conversation. And of course, that was something he had to come to terms with. And until he was ready to move forward with hearing aids, you know, we were very patient. And the day he made that decision, basically was, you know, it's a new chapter for us. So life just has a way of getting you the experience that you need for where you have to go. And my work led into this, and it now informs my work every single day.

Why Venues Miss Invisible Hearing Loss

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 6:15

And Mikey, pulling from that experience, so you and your husband have been together since you were 16, 17 years old. And that means you are absolutely a familiar listening partner. So you yourself started to see those communication breakdowns. And how often do we as hearing healthcare professionals experience that as well? That's why when patients come to the office, we always ask them, please bring a familiar communication partner, because this is not just about the patient, this is about the entire family dynamic that hearing loss impacts. Now, how does having a husband who presents with hearing loss and wears hearing aids shape the work that you do at Listen Technologies?

Mikey Shaffer 7:10

You know, well, it legitimizes my work for one. You know, I am for the most part, I am speaking to people who have not experienced hearing loss. And so my experience, their trust in me, you know, gives me the ability to kind of build that empathy in them too. Hearing loss is often referred to as the invisible disability. We don't know when someone is struggling in a public space or even in a one-on-one conversation, there's very few signs. And that person you may pull back altogether from being in that experience because it's difficult for them to contribute and participate. And so those types of experiences really help move the needle on people's understanding of why this is so important. Whether I'm talking to the venue who's trying to create an inclusive space or the person who's going to service that venue and make them aware that this product exists, we're building that story, we're building that understanding. So many of these places have spent so much time and money and effort on the acoustics in the space and the great audio systems and all of that. And they don't realize that, you know, up to 20% of folks in our in just our nation alone may not be able to fully participate at that venue. And so my experience helps kind of bridge that gap and build that empathy into the conversation.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 8:29

And

What Oracast Is And Why It Matters

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 8:30

Mike, you currently work for Listen Technologies, you've been with the organization, as you said, 10 years. You are on the cutting edge of one of the biggest technological breakthroughs our generation will see, which is Oracast. Now, we've recorded a few episodes. I did a couple solo episodes on what Oracast was, just to lay the groundwork of what you're about to explain for our community. So, what is Oracast and why should people care?

Mikey Shaffer 9:06

That is a very big question. So, Oracast is a new protocol within Bluetooth Low Energy, which is the most current version of Bluetooth Classic. We know Bluetooth Classic, we all know it, we love it. We still use it today. It is how we replace a chord in our life. It is a one-to-one pairing so that we can stream our phone calls and our audio books and our music, right? We connect to a speaker and that may run through our phone or our hearing aid, but it's one-to-one, it's personal. And that is still very, very useful. It's going nowhere. But for folks who wanted to use it for assistive listening, it didn't cut it, right? It's a one-to-one pairing. It's not a broadcast to everyone in range. It would drain the battery life on a hearing aid. And in live scenarios, not phone calls or streamed audio, it could create extra latency that could make that experience uncomfortable to listen to. And so AuraCast, you know, folks knew that. Hearing aid manufacturers know that. We knew that. The public knew that that was not the perfect fit, but that they wanted it to be. And so what Oracast gives us is the ability to broadcast that audio over Bluetooth. Think of it as Wi-Fi for audio in a way. There's no pairing. It's simply audio that is available. And if you have a device that can connect directly to it, you can connect and stream that audio directly to your phone, your earbud, your hearing aid, your cochlear implant. So it is truly groundbreaking and it's changing the game for assistive listening. But for those of us with average hearing, think of all the environments where we're going to benefit to. And you know, your airports, your stadiums, and arenas. These are spaces where none of us can hear very well or clearly, and we need to. And so Oracast is now available to all of us. On it will be available on all of our devices the same way we use Wi-Fi, the same way we use traditional Bluetooth. So it's pretty exciting.

Real World Use In Noisy Spaces

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 11:02

So, Mike, yeah, have uh an example, real life example. A couple of nights ago, some buddies and I went to a local restaurant to watch the Knicks and the Spurs. And the acoustics were just horrendous. Now, I have normal hearing on an audiogram, but I definitely present with difficulty and noisy situations. So you put that on top of it, then you have horrible acoustics, and then the game is like blasting. It makes not for a great listening experience. Am I correct in saying that had that restaurant outfitted their location with Oracast, and I had Oracast compatible earbuds or hearing aids, I could have streamed that game right through my earbuds or hearing aids if I'm wearing them. Correct.

Mikey Shaffer 11:54

And so could everybody else in that room that has a way to connect. And that's the beauty. And that's what's going to really get this ball rolling, is that we venues now have a way to accommodate those with hearing loss in that situation and the rest of us as well, which really gets this adopted much quicker, right? When we can get everyone to care, then we can get everyone marching in the same direction for Oracast adoption. So, yes, you nailed it. That's the exact environment where this is going to be successful.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 12:22

And in a couple seconds now, you're going to explain to us like where you're seeing the fastest real-world Oracast adoption today. But I want to share a story with you, Mikey, that I don't think I've shared with even during our discovery call. I have an acquaintance who was sharing with me that she and her mother went to a concert and her mother is hearing impaired and wears hearing aids. And her mother reported to her, you know, I'm just, I don't enjoy this as much as I used to. And now this specific venue was not outfitted with Oracast. And I believe this was a couple of years ago. But we're hearing that all too often now, Mikey. And the hearing technology today is so incredible, way more advanced than it was seven or eight years ago. But they can only do so much when there's this cacophony of sound just coming at you, especially at a music venue or in an airport.

Where Oracast Is Being Adopted Fast

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 13:22

So situations we've already mentioned, but where are you in listen technologies seeing the fastest adoption? You know, is it public venues? Is it corporate environments? And really what is driving that acceleration?

Mikey Shaffer 13:38

So, you know, I've launched a few technologies in assistive listening. Things don't move fast in assistive listening, but in my time, we've launched a few technologies and we know what that adoption rate usually is. And it's kind of reliant on the hearing aid adoption rate as well, right? We can connect it directly to hearing aids that have that technology within them. And that ball is rolling much faster than we ever anticipated. And here we are, it's everywhere. It's prolific. The trust, the amount of trust being put in this new technology is really, really encouraging to see. So your houses of worship or local spaces are really adopting very quickly. But higher education, performing arts centers, anywhere where, you know, higher education is a great example. These folks are young, they know how to use technology, they have technology turnover very often. And they also want a discrete way to connect. They don't want to check out assistive listening receivers. So spaces like that, again, the performing arts centers, we're seeing this be deployed throughout so many Broadway theaters. Sydney Opera House, big names. This summer it will launch at Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. So it's really hard to tie it to, you know, one type of venue. Even corporate environments are really getting in on this, and they're generally not legally required by the ADA to do so, but they're doing it because they know it's the right fit. And they're very interested in future-proofing these installations and this investment. And this is the way to do it.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 15:06

I'm really excited here, Mikey, because when you were saying it's like it's not mandated to have this technology, but what's so incredible is when I'm out in the field and I'm just talking, you know, because naturally I love hearing healthcare and the technology that that is behind what we do on a daily basis. When I share about the ORCAS technology, there's never a like, well, no, we don't need it's always, oh, that's amazing. I was actually explaining it yesterday to actually one of our guests on the Hearing Matters podcast in the studio, and he was just blown away by the fact that multiple people could connect. And when you're talking about accessibility, I mean, a direct audio input is really what AuraCast is. Now, we do, of course, have a lot of hearing care professionals that tune in to this show. But I also want to be cognizant, Mikey, of the consumers that are tuned in and listening right

Brand Agnostic Streaming And ADA Reality

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 16:06

now. If they are currently wearing hearing aids, does Oracast only connect to one specific brand or is it brand agnostic, sort of like an open source stream, if you will?

Mikey Shaffer 16:17

It is exactly that. It is brand agnostic. It is an open source stream. In fact, those of us building to this protocol have agreed to build to a protocol where it's all interoperable. So my transmitters will work with your receivers, which are hearing aids, if we've built to the same protocol. The same thing is true for speakers and earbuds. And so that's what makes it the most exciting. It's we are all working for this adoption. You, we, you know, hearing care specialists, they want transmissions in their communities so that the hearing aids they are providing will connect. And I want the same. I want hearing aids in these communities that are able to connect to my transmissions. And so we are working together in a way we've we haven't been able to before. And that's why we're getting the adoption that we are. We have the power of Bluetooth behind us. We have the power of the hearing aid manufacturers, manufacturers like us, and I should mention all the other manufacturers in the audio space are adding this on. So speakers, microphones, you name it, we're building an ecosystem so that in a few years, anywhere my husband goes, he can walk in, see if there's audio available, and connect it directly to his hearing aids. So again, it's a very exciting time. You can in real time see the lists of products that Bluetooth has approved as Oracast-enabled devices on their website. It's updated every day. This is happening very, very quick. It's real, it's here. There's no reason to wait. And it plays really well with the other technologies that are already out there. For your listeners, just for their personal awareness, public spaces are required to accommodate those with hearing loss with an assistive listening system. It's required under the Americans with Disabilities Act. So there are many systems already out there. Most of them rely on checking out a receiver and wearing a headset or perhaps connecting via a neck loop to a telecoil-enabled hearing aid. Those are already existing. ORACAS plays really well as a complement to those systems as well. There is no one size fits all public address assistive listening. Everyone has different needs and preferences. The best system is the one that gets used. So putting in complementary systems doesn't mean we have to tear out what's already been invested in a venue, but it does mean we can give more and better access if we add on an ORCAS system as well. And that's true for all of us. It also has very, very high quality audio, better audio than we can deliver with any of our other technologies in assistive listening, which makes it a really pleasant experience. And then you're delivering it directly to their listening device that has been programmed specifically for their needs. You can't beat that.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 19:07

Mikey, so much to unpack there. As you're, this is why I love hosting the show, because I get to learn so much from all of our guests. So, first things first, when you were answering that question, was I just had this thought that Oracast will absolutely and is positively influencing the reduction of the stigma associated with hearing aids. Because if we're talking about untreated hearing loss and wearing hearing aids, yes, the stigma has been reduced throughout the years. But is part of that and has part of that stigma been associated with lack of connectivity, not from a technological standpoint, but from a community-based standpoint. Whereas now hearing aid users can go to their favorite venue and connect to Oracast. Or let's say a patient, like I was telling you about my acquaintance, she and her mother went to a concert. She doesn't want to go to concerts anymore. And then that can have the trickle-down effect of you're socially withdrawing, you're not doing a lot of stuff that you'd liked. The importance of direct audio input, Oracast is creating that. As a hearing care professional, I just have to extend my gratitude and thank you and your team. And of course, you know, Bluetooth SIG for all collaborating and working together because you are creating this inclusive ecosystem, not only for the hearing impaired, but for those with normal hearing. And I also had a thought here where, you know, we know that untreated hearing loss is linked to loss US earnings. So now with Oracast, when I was in graduate school, we had an assistive technologies class. Thank you to Dr. Susan Dilmouth

Upgrading Venues Without Ripping Systems

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 20:50

Miller. I have to shout her out. But she had us do all these different projects. And one of them was go to a movie and ask for their ALD device. And for whatever reason, like growing up in the industry, I was like nervous to do this. Like, and I'm I'm just being vulnerable here. Like, I was like, oh, I don't, this is just like uncomfortable for me. But, anyways, they have the devices, we tested them out. But this technology has been available. What I think is so cool personally about Oracast is this connection to all devices, not just one singular device. And then third, you talked about the venues. Now, there are some venues who have loop systems. One of the drawbacks of the loop systems was the cost, right? Some people don't want to have the loop systems in. Even in educational systems like a classroom, FM systems love them, huge proponent of them. I think every class should have one. But again, cost. With Oracast, like, how should venues, Mikey, be thinking about upgrading? Is this an incremental retrofit? Is this a full system replacement? What are you kind of seeing in the field?

Mikey Shaffer 22:06

That's a great question because we are addressing it in the field every day. And up until now, hearing loops were the direct connect to a hearing aid. Certainly there's other technologies, but a telecoil hearing aid and a hearing loop was ideal because you could just enter into the space. And as long as you were within that loop and you could just activate your telecoil and you would have a direct connection to your own hearing aid, which is I it's the ideal, right? You don't have to call attention to yourself. You don't have to get up and check out equipment. It's ideal, but you're right, it's expensive. And getting that funded, it was difficult and also installed. It's installed in the infrastructure of the building. So that's what makes it great. It's not an afterthought add-on, but it's expensive. It's, you know, can be disruptive in the construction project and it can be ruined if someone cuts through it not knowing it's there and things like that. So they, you know, oftentimes they would find them offline or things like that. With Oracast, that is a much easier lift. I can get this product in more spaces faster because it's a fraction of the cost. It's an add-on to their existing system. And again, 100% of their patrons can now have access to it. And so that gets these venues to really care. But what do they do with these investments they've already made? Again, it's a complementary solution. Not everyone has a telecoil or as a telecoil hearing aid or an oracast-enabled hearing aid. So having both is even better and accommodates more folks. And again, things are better together. And if you can't do one or the other, start somewhere. That's what I always tell venues. There are some legal requirements on how many receivers you might need and things like that. And that's a topic for another day. But what I always tell these venues who are just kind of intimidated to get started is start somewhere. Do the best you can with the resources you have today. And the one person who might need it tomorrow night when they come to that play will have what they need. And so that's always my advice. Start somewhere. Call me if you need some advice. But if you have something in place, great, add this on. If you have nothing in place, this is what you should be putting in place right.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 24:21

And I would encourage our hearing care professionals. Again, we always say that hearing health care is community-based. And Mikey, you see this. I'm sure your husband had first dibs on like the Ori system and giving it a trial run and things of that nature. But to our hearing care professionals tuned in, going out and educating your community is, Mikey, am I correct in saying this? That's probably going to be the best way to get this implemented in your community. Like be zealous, be excited about it, but also go at it from the angle of who I am sharing this with might not have the knowledge that I have in terms of ALDs, assistive listening, the latest and greatest Bluetooth. So maybe kind of bring back the talk track a little bit and tell a story versus share a feature. Like how would you

How Clinicians Can Drive Local Access

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 25:18

how would you go about that?

Mikey Shaffer 25:19

It's what we do every day. I'm sure you don't really want to know the signal-to-noise ratio on my products, but you do want to know where you might be able to try them, right? And and really, sure, Sydney Opera House is cool. Ellis Island, very cool. But the assistive listening systems that matter are the ones in our own community, right? And this is why things are moving so quickly because the hearing care specialists and audiologists, they care about this, right? They really want to make this happen in their communities. And so us working together to put this into their communities is so important. But having that conversation, again, helping people understand that having a hearing aid in a one-to-one conversation and using that hearing aid in a public space are two totally different things. You hit on that, right? The rustling of papers, the crying babies, the HVAC systems, it's all competing for that microphone that is that hearing aid, right? Very distracting. And so helping people put themselves in that space and imagine what that's like if it was being amplified directly into their ear is a great place to start that conversation. And then helping venues understand what is available, they don't know. We're the subject matter experts, you and I. So we have to help them understand what's available. And then there's a certain element of what's in it for them, right? What's in it for them is creating an inclusive space, not losing patrons because they can't hear and participate. What's in it for all of us is that when folks in our community who have hearing loss fully participate and engage in our community, we all benefit. This is not just for the benefit of my husband. It's for the benefit of everyone in the community who wants to hear what he has to say, wants to see him participate in activities, wants him to buy that ticket to that play. We all benefit when we include everyone. And so that's where the conversation needs to start. The technology, we can work that out. We can help make the best recommendation for the resources they have at that time. But you and I and everyone listening to this podcast right now, it's our responsibility to go into our own community and have that conversation. Sponsor a system if you have to, but we just need one venue, a place to send people to try the new technology they've invested in their hearing aids, and it will just take off from there.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 27:34

Mikey, I had this thought as you were just finishing that. Is Bluetooth creating a technological hearing health care blue zone? Like, is Oracast creating this technological hearing health care blue zone? Now, blue zones are zones where you have a high number of centenarians, people who live 100 or longer. And I bring that up because it's like, what has to do with the blue zone? Well, obviously, it's food, it is not socially withdrawing, exercise, all this stuff. Like Oracast is creating this aspect of keeping the community connected. And if I were a venue owner and a hearing healthcare professional came to me and said, you need the system, these are the benefits, this is why it's really important for your patrons. I would absolutely, number one, I'd be about it. Number two, I would promote some sort of event around Oracast. I mean, are you are you seeing that in the field today?

Mikey Shaffer 28:41

Yes, and it's one of our most powerful tools that we use. And we are so grateful when venues are willing to host it. And again, you're right, you are creating blue zones by giving access and that stimulation, right? We become withdrawn. We we know we can track untreated hearing loss to depression. We know we can track untreated hearing loss to dementia, right? These are things we can actively do in our community and for those we love around us to help them live to 100, right? To create environments that are built for the blue zone, as you call it. I hadn't heard that term before, so I'm really glad you clarified it. I love it, actually. But again, we're also seeing hearing loss at much younger ages, right? You called it an epidemic at the top of this episode. It a thousand percent is to a disturbing degree, right? And we will see those numbers increasing and increasing as my children age, as your children age. And that is the reality that we are living in, because we have been piping in audio through earbuds directly to our ear for my children's entire lifetime. So, yes, our loved

Loops Versus Oracast And The Future

Mikey Shaffer 29:45

ones are going to live longer and participate in our conversations and our communities longer because of what Oracast is doing and because of the might of Bluetooth out there creating this excitement. For the first time, I am seeing a path to, again, flooding our communities with access. I seriously hope I work myself right out of a job someday.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 30:06

And I can vouch for you saying that because you said that during our discovery calls. So, Mikey, something that I've been pondering is the hearing loop and orcast coexisting. Like, do you see that happening long term or will the hearing loop sunset one day? Like, what are your thoughts?

Mikey Shaffer 30:28

We answer this question daily too. And again, depending on where you live in the world, this the answer is going to differ, right? In the rest of the world, hearing loops are a standard. They're in every transportation system, taxis at every bank, every counter window, they're everywhere, right? And that speaks to a lot of the national healthcare systems that are giving out telecoil-enabled hearing aids, right? In North America, we don't see quite that level of adoption, right? Because we are limited by what hearing aids people are buying, right? If the technology is not there, then they won't benefit from an installed hearing loop. And so I do think the adoption here is moving quickly and but is going to be dependent on the adoption of ORCAS devices, how quickly we can get that done. It's certainly happening faster than I thought it would. There are plenty of phones on the market, earbuds on the market, hearing aids on the market available today. So if hearing aid manufacturers decide to begin sunsetting telecoil hearing aids, I think we'll see that adoption move a little bit faster, but they will certainly coexist. Oracast is not here to end of life's hearing loop. It's here to coexist with it and serve a community with the connection device they have. So again, long way of saying, I do think in North America we will see a sunset. I think it's going to depend on the life cycle of folks replacing their hearing aids. And we don't replace them as often as we place our phones in our earbuds. So, I mean, what do you see is the average hearing aid replacement timeframe?

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 32:06

So it definitely changes office to office, I will say. Some offices will say every three to four years, you might want to consider upgrading your technology. Personally, when I was in private practice, I encouraged patients. I said, you'll get about five to six years out of this technology. But what was interesting, and yes, we know that technology advances, and you do have those early adopters, Mikey, who are wanting to upgrade their hearing technology every three years, whether they have a benefit or the funds to do so. I was always part of the camp of let's get the most mileage out of this technology as we can. I'm going to make sure that every year when we conduct your annual hearing evaluation, if there is a shift, we're going to reprogram your hearing aids with the utilization of real ear measurement. Let's use a redux to remove any and all moisture, hearing aid test box, et cetera, et cetera. So it's interesting you hearing about the sunset of the loop because I think you're spot on where in 2017, when I stepped into the family practice full time, I mean, I had patients and I'd say, these hearing aids are Bluetooth compatible. And majority of patients were like, uh, I'm good. I'd say, okay. But then three years later in 2020, patients were like, let's turn it on. Show me how to use that. And it was, it's so cool, for lack of a better term, to see the evolution happen just within the last 10 years. I can't believe I'm saying that because, you know, like, oh my gosh, I graduated 10 years ago almost. Crazy. But to see the technological advancements happen has been so incredible. So incredible. I'm curious to know, in terms of adoption and then the implementation related to Oracast, is Oracast like a slow rollout? And who have been some of your early adopters?

Mikey Shaffer 34:15

So again, I I thought it would be slower. It's kind of actually just been a sprint. I thought it would be a marathon, but it's a sprint.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 34:23

So let me ask you, why,

What Success Looks Like In Five Years

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 34:25

like, why did you think that it would be slow? And I'm just genuinely curious.

Mikey Shaffer 34:30

For a couple of reasons. One, when we're talking about direct connections, not us transmitting to our own receivers, but when we're talking about a direct connection from an assistive listening transmitter to a hearing device, we can build that transmitter, but we are beholden to all the other technology manufacturers in this world to have a receiving device available. Right? There are very few hearing manufacturers, to my knowledge, that don't have a solution on the market that incorporates Oracast. We're all waiting for Apple to make their announcement. They've already stated that it is their devices are capable and that they will get to a point where they release that. And that's going to really create just a windfall of opportunity. But there are so many other devices already on the market, I think, or people get hung up on the Apple part. But you can connect through an app to oracast hearing aids with your Apple phone now. You can, so that's really not a preventer for us, and we weren't sure if it would be. And then, like again, we've never had an environment when we release a new assistive listening technology for public address where everyone wanted it to happen, right? I used to serve on the Let's Loop Utah committee, where my whole work was dedicated to getting people in the community to care about installing hearing loops and getting audiologists to care about explaining that technology to their users. And it was like honorable work, but it was a tough boulder to push up a hill because you're asking people to spend a lot of money for something that not everybody could use in that way. And with Oracast, we're asking them to spend a very small amount of money for something every single person in the audience will be able to use. And so I think that's what's helping it go so quickly. I've never had the power of Bluetooth and hearing aid manufacturers coming along aside me to have this conversation. And it's a big conversation. It requires a lot of, you know, explanation. And I only have a small reach. You have a large reach. You have, we all are influencing our own sphere and our own community in a way I have never seen happen in assistive listening before. And everybody's really excited because it's also very cool. Right. And that is, I think that's what's helping this move along much faster than I thought. Like I said, I thought three to five years and we'd be having real conversations. And it blew all of our expectations out of the water in year one.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 36:54

And it just goes to show you that as humans, we are social beings. So when you have a tool and a technology that can bring more people together, I'm a huge Gary Vanderchuk fan, and he's really been talking a lot about how the world is going back to analog. I mean, people being with other people, go figure, right? We are the most socially connected, you know, generation to exist, yet we're so disconnected. Oracast connects us, which is so, so cool and so needed today. So, Mikey, you've been really gracious with your time, but I have one more question. Now, if we looked back in five years, what would tell you personally if Oracast truly succeeded, not technically, but really culturally or you know, behaviorally?

Mikey Shaffer 37:45

You know, actually, this is really easy to answer because if I mean you answered it earlier in 2017, folks thought they could live without Bluetooth. Before that, we thought we could live without Wi-Fi. And now we recognize the symbol for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth everywhere we go. I don't think it will take five years, but five years from now, success to me looks like that is recognizable. It's a logo. We walk in and we see and we know we can access audio there. It looks like my husband and I both walking in to a venue, an airport, a sports bar, you name it, and getting the prompt. Hey, there's an Oracast audio stream here. Would you like to listen to it? Yes, I would. Absolutely. Going up to your bank counter and you're talking through the glass and it's hard to understand. And you say, Oh, there's an Oracast stream here. I can connect directly and here. That's what it looks like to me.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 38:43

I love that. Connectivity starting with your community and then reaching globally. I love that.

Where To Learn More And Closing

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 38:51

Mikey, for our listeners tuned in, where can they go to learn more about listen technologies, not only about the Oracast transmitter, but the other ALDs that your team offers.

Mikey Shaffer 39:05

Thank you. So you can go to listentech.com and you will see our full suite of solutions. Some are appropriate for some venues and others are appropriate for others. So there's a lot to learn there. There's also auriaudio.com, which is specific to Ori as our product, but also to specific to Oracast in general. There's tools there for how to talk to your community about it. There's tools there for how to talk to your audiologist about it. There's tools for hearing care professionals and how to talk to their communities about it. So we've built a lot of tools to make this conversation easy. Again, we've been having this conversation for all of our other technologies for almost 30 years. And we are so appreciative of all the help now to have this conversation with our own communities. I'd also encourage you to go to the Bluetooth cast website. There's a lot of information there, both for end users and for venues. You can look up venues in your own community that have installed an oracast solution and are on the Bluetooth website. There's a lot of information out there.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 40:05

Mikey, thank you so much for joining us on the Hearing Matters podcast. This is definitely not the last time you'll be on the show because we'd love to have you back to talk about, you know, the success of what you and your team are seeing in the field. So thank you so much for joining us.

Mikey Shaffer 40:20

Thank you so much for having me.

Blaise M. Delfino, M.S. - HIS 40:23

You're tuned in to the Hearing Matters Podcast. Today we had Mikey Schaefer, Vice President of North American Sales for Listen Technologies. If you'd like to learn more, visit listentech.com. I'm your host, Blaze Delfino. And until next time, hear life story.