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Miku

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Miku
Basic information
Founded 2018
Type Private, For Profit
Industry Smart Baby Monitors
Official website https://mikucare.com

Miku is a Private company that was founded in 2018 by Eric White[1] and is selling smart baby monitors with features such as Night Vision, sensors for temperature, humidity and ambient light, a 1080P camera, 7-day video storage, and audio/video recording capabilities.[2] Both the Miku Smart Baby Monitor (standard model) and Miku Pro come with a 12-month manufacturer warranty from the date of purchase.[2][3]

Controversy Year Background Info Aftermath Related Article Related Video(s)
Miku Charges subscription for features that were previously free 10/01/2023 After being Acquired by Innovative Health Monitoring, a subscription service was added to Miku on October 1, 2023 to allow users who had already purchased their Miku Smart Baby Monitoring device to continue using previously free features through the Miku app such as Live Breathing,Sleep Tracking, and push notifications when your baby wakes up. Miku users who had already purchased Miku Care+ were not affected by this new subscription. Ongoing My $400 baby monitor has locked previously free features behind a monthly subscription[4]

The document referenced in the reddit post (IHM Acquisition PDF)[5]

they made a $400 baby monitor a subscription...[6]

Miku Charges Subscription for Features that were Previously Free[edit | edit source]

Through the acquisition of Miku Inc by Innovative Health Monitoring LLC, Miku sent out an email notice to all of their users on September 15'th 2023 detailing changes to Miku starting October 1'st 2023. These changes would

Changes Made[edit | edit source]

Introduced a subscription service which would allow new users to continue using Miku features that were previously free.

  1. Updated Free features:
    • Live HD video and audio streaming (available locally only unless the customer's smartphone or tablet is operating on the same wireless network as the monitoring device)
  2. Updated Subscription Membership features At $9.99 per month:
    • Live HD video and audio (local and remote access);
    • two-way talk;
    • live breathing waveform;
    • sleep and health analytics;
    • environmental analytics;
    • various notifications and alerts;
    • sounds and lullabies;
    • three days of video storage;
    • Care+ access;
    • wellness trends.;
    • tips from medical and sleep experts; and
    • wellness tracking tools (height, weight, feeding, body temp, diaper changes)
  3. Offer access to higher tier memberships that include longer term video storage at the following levels:
    • Monthly Membership + 30 days of video storage ($14.99 per month);
    • Monthly Membership + 1 Year of video storage ($19.99 per month); and
    • Monthly Membership + Unlimited video storage ($29.99 per month)

Customer Response[edit | edit source]

Many customers were displeased with the subscription service added to Miku. Leading to products being returned and customers emailing Innovative Health Monitoring to voice their opinions with the company.

Due to these subscription changes being instituted through automatic updates to the Miku mobile application, turning off automatic updates and refusing to update the Miku app would keep the features that were now locked behind a subscription.[7]

Broader Implications[edit | edit source]

ToDO

References[edit | edit source]

  1. "Our Founder Shares Why He Built the Miku Smart Baby Monitor". Miku. 4 Oct 2019. Retrieved 4 Apr 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Specs". Miku. Retrieved 3 Apr 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. "Miku Inc. Limited Warranty". Miku. Retrieved 4 Apr 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. "My $400 baby monitor has locked previously free features behind a monthly subscription". Old Reddit. 4 Oct 2023. Retrieved 4 Apr 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. "Letter to Customers" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 Oct 2023. Retrieved 4 Apr 2025.
  6. Rossmann, Louis (5 Oct 2023). "they made a $400 baby monitor a subscription..." YouTube. Retrieved 4 Apr 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. "Miku bought out and now charging a subscription for basic features". Reddit. Retrieved 4 Apr 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)