Logitech President and CEO Gerald P. Quindlen is stepping down after a series of disappointing earnings reports and slumping sales.
Company Chairman Guerrino De Luca will be acting president and CEO while Logitech searches for a new leader, the company announced late Wednesday. De Luca was previously Logitech's president and CEO from 1998 to 2008.
"On behalf of the entire board of directors and employees, I wish to thank Jerry for his service and his many accomplishments during his tenure at Logitech," De Luca said in a statement. "I resume my former role as CEO, on an acting basis, with unwavering commitment to Logitech and strong confidence in the company's future and growth potential."
In its fiscal first quarter ended June 30, Logitech reported a net loss of $29.6 million, compared to $19.5 million in profit in the year-ago quarter. Logitech cited ongoing weakness in Europe and a $34 million charge related to price reductions made in a set-top box and keyboard product bundle called Logitech Revue for Google TV. Quarterly revenue was $480 million, up from $479 million a year ago.
Logitech, which owns channel-centric videoconferencing player LifeSize Communications, also lowered its outlook, saying fiscal 2012 sales would come in about $2.5 billion instead of $2.6 billion.
The struggles come at a time when Logitech is trying to boost the profile of LifeSize as a key videoconferencing contender and infrastructure player against larger vendors like Cisco and Polycom, and also promote its Logitech for Business unit, for which it is looking to recruit more than 200 channel partners.
Logitech for Business accounts for about 20 percent of Logitech's overall revenue, according to the company.
