Post on 27-Apr-2020
Index
Acoustical & Electromechanical Re-search Laboratory (A&ER), 68,87, 89, 90-2, 94
Adler, Robert, 170advanced materials control, 21advertising, 213Airco Technical Company (Canada),
163Alcoa, 227, 233Alexanderson Alternator, 35Alexanderson, Ernst, 35, 52Alic, James, 207Allied, 233AM signal format, 101, 135, 137,
153Ampex, 68, 91, 226antitrust litigation, 41, 81, 139-40Applied Research Group, 98Applied Technologies Division, 99Armstrong, Edwin, 54Arthur D. Little, 155AT&T, 8, 15-16, 31, 37, 43, 121, 218audio disc technology, 174, 203autocoater, 163, 185-6, 198, 201, 211Avco, 146, 150
Baker, Walter, 55, 64Ball, Henry, 125-6, 130-2, 138, 151,
160Banquet frozen foods, 12Barone, Stephen, 193basic materials research, 51basic science research, 69-75Bell & Howell, 132, 146, 149-50Bell Laboratories, 57Bendix, 233Betamax (Sony), 22-3, 181, 188-91,
194, 205-6, 208
Biewener, John, 171, 177, 179Bilby, Kenneth, 190, 205Bitting, Robert
assembles Video Playback SystemTeam, 124
background and experience, 118,228
conflict with RCA Laboratories,125, 178-9
heads new venture team, 118leaves RCA, 147relinquishes programming re-
sponsibilities, 140reports to Consumer Electronics
Division, 145succeeded by Bricker, 149warned of Japanese competition,
130Bradshaw, Thornton
analyzes VideoDisc failure, 217appointed chairman, 217focuses on core business, 217withdraws VideoDisc, 213
Brandinger, Jay, 207Bricker, Gordon, 149, 166, 171, 177Brown, George, 65, 86, 89, 92, 95,
106building-block research, 71-3, 7b,
78-80, 103, 224Burns, John, 11, 81-3, 84, 87, 171
cable television, 107-8, 151caddy, 16-17, 194, 200, 203California space program, 73Camden (N.J.) facilities, 44, 51-3,
56, 58, 60, 63, 70, 82, 91-2, 96,98-9, 117-18
245
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capacitance systems, 5, 20, 22, 24,93, 97-8, 101-2, 135, 153, 156-7, 169, 175, 183, 208, 212; seealso Discpix, VideoDisc
Cartrivision (Avco), 22, 146, 150cathode ray camera, 53; tubes, 59CBS
building systems technology, 10color camera technology, 114color television systems, 61-2;
early sales, 65; kinescope op-posed, 66; withdrawn frommarket, 65
disc production capability, 208-9divisional structure, 61EVR videoplayer announced, 22,
100, 102; color version prom-ised, 109, 115; competitive RCAstance, 109, 111, 116-17, 168;press reaction, 120-1, 133; writ-ten off, 146; see also EVR
formed, 43Hytron acquired, 61McCoy joins, 208-9NBC rival, 43postwar systems RCA competitor,
61, 170, 226prewar RCA rivalry, 21, 61RCA disc agreement, 21, 208VHF TV spectrum requested, 61-
2; FCC grants, 62-3; decisionreversed, 64-5
CIT Financial Corporation, 26, 208,217-18
clean-room production, 21, 133,155, 163
Clemens, Jon, 97, 135, 137Close, Frederick, 227color encoding, 151Colortrak, 158-9, 207Columbia Pictures, 128compression molding, 203Conrad, Anthony, 13, 150, 156-7,
171, 179, 182, 184, 186-8, 190consumer electronics industry, 6,
24, 128, 183, 191, 194, 217Consumer Electronics Division (In-
dianapolis), 73, 96, 130-1, 133,136-7, 145-7, 207
Consumer Electronics Laboratory,90, 98-9
246
consumer safety issues, 17, 202Coronet Carpets, 12, 26cross-licensing agreements, 45, 68
Daniels, Josephus, 36David Sarnoff Research Center, 27,
29, 48, 61, 76, 78, 102, 104-5,225
see also RCA LaboratoriesDecca, 22, 134, 181decoding circuitry, 17deForest, Lee, 35Depression, 53, 56Discovision, 23Disco Vision Associates, 212Discpix, see also VideoDisc
capacitance technology, 96-7, 108feasibility goals, 112Morsey applies pressure on, 110PREVS decision against, 116project started, 96-8proprietary technology, 108Records Division dislikes, 117,
123renamed VideoDisc, 136Stanley-Tan report considers, 102,
107-8Teldec approach judged inferior,
135tentative introduction date, 116
discs, 15, 16, 17, 177coated, 15, 18, 92, 154-5, 162,
180, 185-6, 197-200, 202, 211conductive, 202-3, 226uncoated, 15, 92-3, 97-8, 199,
201-3Dynagroove, 87
electromechanical technologiesmastering, 15, 18, 112pickups, 15, 134recording, 101, 134, 154, 156, 201,
203electron beam equipment, 137, 163-
4electron beam technologies
mastering, 15, 17, 163-4, 180,186, 201
microscope, use in, 81, 101, 222recording, 92, 101-2, 153-5scanning, 151, 154
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Electronic Components Division, 80electronic retrieval devices, 15electronic systems, 217Electronic Videorecorder, see EVRelectronics industry, 218, 224electronics research, 68-9, 71-2, 90,
218Electronics Research Laboratory, 93,
98-9Emerson, 60Enders, William, 107-9, 112-13,
115, 130Engstrom, Elmer
backs long-range research, 83director of research and engineer-
ing, 69favors central funding, 56focuses on home information, 218head of RCA Laboratories, 80-1institutes research budget, 81notes Sarnoff's lack of formal
training, 229RCA president, 83replaced by Robert Sarnoff, 103research director, 51supports RCA Laboratories, 78supports Homefax, 89
European Common Market, 12Evanoff, George
appointed corporate staff mem-ber, 113
functions taken by Sonnenfeldt,171
marketing report videorecorder,1969, 116
marketing review prerecordedvideoplayers 1974, 165-6, 174
plan rendered obsolete by Phil-ips-MCA entry, 177
recommends Videodisc, 166EVR (CBS), 22, 100, 102, 108-9,
115-17, 119-21, 126, 129, 134-5, 146, 168, 226, 233
Ewing, Douglas, 70, 72, 82
Farnsworth, Philo, 53fast search capability, 20Federal Communications Commis-
sion (FCC), 52, 55, 61-3, 89,144
247
Federal Trade Commission (FTC)investigation, 41
film, see high-density informationstorage media
film companies, 142FM signal format, 54, 62, 101, 135,
137, 153follower strategies, 182-5Folsom, Frank, 60, 65, 81Ford, 12, 223Fotomat, 214"Four Star International," 140Fox, Len, 202, 226frame-by-frame information format,
92, 97, 117freeze-frame, 112, 161, 203-4Frey, Donald, 146, 149Frost & Sullivan videoplayer report,
195
General Electricannounces videodisc venture, 212divests RCA, 45electronics R&D, 69forms NBC with RCA, Westing-
house, 43Harrison (NJ) electric tube plant
transferred to RCA, 45, 51, 74nonmagnetic television recording,
92radio, little interest in, 50RCA, joint stake in, 31, 37-9rights to Alexanderson Alterna-
tor, 35standardization committees, ac-
tive in, 40, 55, 63-4supports JVC disc model, 212television research, 52, 60, 65views RCA disc demonstration,
198General Electric Laboratories, 44, 57Ginsberg, Charles, 68Goldmark, Peter, 61, 109, 170Goldsmith, Alfred N., 32, 49-50Goodman, Julian, 108government research contracts, 11,
58-9, 70, 75, 78, 82-5, 92Griffiths, Edgar H.
agrees to continue VideoDisc pro-gram, 190-5
appointed RCA CEO, 14, 188
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Griffiths, Edgar H. (cont.)chooses new VideoDisc leader-
ship, 206-7commits RCA to VideoDisc
launch, 21, 196-7, 205-6, 207-8follows traditional RCA policies,
205-6orders market report for Video-
Disc, 188prefers VideoDisc program can-
cellation, 184provides RCA Laboratories with
support base, 225questions importance of technol-
ogy leadership strategy, 182reviews VideoDisc program, 190-
5Sonnenfeldt link, 228
Gruber, Peter, 128
Halter, Jerry, 154, 156Hannon, William, 99, 118, 135Harbord, General James, 39, 58-9Harrison (NJ) facilities, 45, 51-2, 56,
58, 74Harvard Business School, speeches
at, 35, 42Hazeltine facilities, 63Hear-See player, 91, 94, 96Hertz, 12, 26Hewlett, Richard, 227high-density information storage
media, 15, 17, 218high-density recording, 90, 96, 134high-resolution recording, 222, 225Hillier, James
appointed head of RCA Laborato-ries, 82
attempts restructure of RCA Lab-oratories, 76, 78, 80, 84-5, 87-9, 224-5
attempts technology transfers,158-9, 174, 180
backs Videodisc program, 156,164, 171, 179
considers technology leadershipstrategy, 113-4, 230
corporate vice-president Research& Engineering, 89, 106, 108,164; replaced, 188
creates laboratory linkages withproduct divisions, 86-7
emphasizes home entertainment,85
investigates EVR, 100opposes Magtape, 150prefers Discpix, 115speech to IEEE, 76states RCA Laboratories planning
priorities, 84-5supports electron-beam technol-
ogy, 101-2technical background, 82vice-president RCA Laboratories,
76Hitachi, 209Hittinger, William, 148-50, 158,
188, 191holograms, 98-9, 132-3Holopix
becomes Holotape project, 104,107
description of technology, 98disc format dropped for tape,
107, 117hologram research, 98-9pricing goals, 100rival to Discpix project, 99, 102see also Holotape
Holotapebudget ended, 145candidate for home information
center, 121crash program at Laboratories,
115, 118-19, 223designed to rival CBS EVR, 120-
1, 134, 233gains corporate attention, 123-5,
230high component costs, 112loses corporate favor, 134, 136,
145, 156product divisions dislike, 153proprietary technology, 108, 115public demonstration, 104, 115,
117, 119, 120-1, 122, 128, 168relations with corporate staff
worsen, 119, 125research advances, 117, 118-19,
126, 132-3
248
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rivals Discpix and Phototape proj-ects, 107-9, 116, 117, 123, 127,130, 135
schedule adjustment, 130specifications reopened, 126, 132-
3target prices, 116, 129, 133, 178technologies involved, 111
Homefax, 89-90, 107, 121Honeywell, 13Husky Company (Canada), 163, 185Hytron, 61
IBM, 11, 12, 107, 111, 121, 212, 218,227
ICL, 13iconoscope, 52-3, 59Indianapolis facilities, 45, 60, 63, 73,
91, 94, 96, 132, 135, 145, 147,152-3, 157-9, 169, 179-80, 184,186-7, 196, 198, 200-2, 204,207, 211
information encoding, 131, 151, 204information storage formats, 15injection molding, 163, 203innovations, 1-7
incremental, 19, 35nonincremental, 35, 223
Institute of Electrical & ElectronicEngineers (IEEE), 76
Institute of Radio Engineers, 32Interim Research Planning Commit-
tee (IRPCO), 87-90Isom, Rex, 63, 117, 154, 158ITT, 12, 45
Japan Victor Corporation (JVC), 24,156, 199, 206, 212, 216
Japanese color television, 107Japanese competition, 23, 28, 111,
128-9, 131, 149, 155-6, 170,188, 191, 194-5, 216, 235
Japan, demonstrations in, 175-7,198-9
J. C. Penney, 209Johnson, James, 165Joliffe, Charles, 54, 61-2
Keizer, Eugene, 90-1, 96-8, 135,153
Kell, Ray, 100Korean War, 63, 70Kreuzer, Barton, 94, 96, 145-6, 149
Lancaster (PA) facilities, 60, 107,112, 136, 147
Land, Edwin, 227LaserDisc (Pioneer), 23lasers, 19, 96-9, 101, 124, 151, 169,
212see also optical mastering
Laservision (Philips-MCA), 23, 206,212
leadership strategy, 113-14, 182-4Lend-Lease Act, 57Lewis, Henry, 99Lockhart, Kenneth, 153long-playing (LP) records, 15-16,
140, 218
McCoy, Donaldadvises Colortrak on colorimetry,
159appointed chief technical officer
for VideoDisc, 180-1attempts VideoDisc technology
transfer, 159, 162-3, 169, 171attends Philips demonstration,
151demonstrates VideoDisc in Japan,
175develops disc production capacity
at CBS, 208-9director of Consumer Electronics
Laboratories, 123, 133reports on VideoDisc technical
problems, 177-9revises Holotape price upwards,
133McDermott, Thomas, 140-5, 147,
176, 205, 209Magnavision (Magnavox), 206Magnavox, 23, 146, 206magnetic technologies
discs, 91head pickups, 15recording, 92, 226tape, 14-15, 68, 91-2, 94, 148-50,
160, 165, 181, 191, 212videocassettes, 22
249
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magnetic technologies (cont.)videorecorders, 94-5videotape players/recorders, 22,
107, 111, 124, 129-30, 136Magtape
Bell & Howell arrangement, 132,149-50
Consumer Electronics Divisionprefers, 136
corporate backing decreases, 150,157
Hillier opposes, 15mass market economics lacking,
156programming, 144, 147project started, 132; ended, 148,
157, 167proprietary technology lacking,
156startup plan by Venture Group,
138-9, 145system, 146-7; difficulties, 147
Marconi (British), 31Marconi, Guglielmo, 31, 33-5, 53Marconi Wireless Company of
Americaconcentrates on growth, 32neglects technology, 33-5patents expiring, 35precedes RCA, 30sold to GE, 37U.S. Navy takes over, 36wireless research, 34-5
mastering systems, 15, 137, 153-4,175, 185-6, 193, 199-202
materials research, 222Matsushita, 10, 27, 154-6, 175, 183,
191, 195, 199, 205-6, 216, 234MCA, 23, 151, 161, 166, 168-9, 171,
177, 181, 206, 212, 217see also Philips N.V.
mediacontributes to VideoDisc failure,
216-18favors VideoDisc, 212negative effect on research, 233reaction to Magtape shelving, 148
Melpar, 82, 86Mills, Delbert, 108Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing
(3M), 111
250
MIT, 70, 118Morsey, Chase
background at Ford, 106, 223backs Corporate Venture Group,
122backs videoplayer research, 108-9cuts off Homefax support, 107heads corporate new product
planning, 106new marketing plan, 122puts pressure on Discpix, 110puts pressure on Holotape, 116,
121-2refuses McDermott funds, 144seeks programming director, 140sees CBS as threat, 109-10, 114-
15sets up Advanced Product Plan-
ning group, 107Motorola, 146
Nally, Edmund, 33, 37, 39National Research Council (NRC),
50National Television Standards Com-
mittee (NTSC)first, 55, 62second, 63-5
NBCand Alic, James, 207cable television project proposed,
107Discpix involvement suggested,
102financial difficulties, 206-7formed, 43President Julian Goodman, 108;
Robert Sarnoff, 11, 105; HerbertSchlosser, 20, 205
profits, 183programming expertise, 139, 141RCA disliked, 105, 124, 140Selectavision demonstration, 8Sonnenfeldt moves to, 206television costs, 60-1, 66"Today" show, 19"Tonight" show, 114
nonmagnetic technologiesapproach, 92, 94, 96-7, 102tape, 15videoplayers, 90
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Olson, Harry, 89, 91, 93optical technologies
discs, 22-3, 168images, 15mastering, 15systems, 24, 151-2, 161, 212
optics, 59, 222orthicon, 59Owens-Illinois, 233
patents, 222see also RCA patents
pattern innovations, 75pause capability, 20Philco, 68Philips, N.V.
Discovision, 23Japanese market sought, 174-5,
199-200Laservision made by Magnavox,
206MCA, joint venture with, 23, 168,
177, 181, 217, 233; videodiscdemonstrated, 168-9; presscoverage, 169-70; mass marketnot sought, 170, 183, 200, 233
North American, 23optical videodisc system demon-
strated, 151, 161; system fea-tures, 161-2, 165
organization, 10RCA VideoDisc rivalry, 162, 165,
169-71, 191, 195technology to Japan, 235videocassette system demon-
strated, 131, 149; compared toRCA Magtape, 131
videodisc technology, 169-70,195, 217
visited by RCA Venture Group,145
photographic images, 15, 22photolithography, 222Photophone sound recording, 44Photopix, 97,100Phototape, 100, 108, 110, 115pickups
laser, 15, 24magnetic head, 15optical, 174piezo electric needle or pressure,
251
15-16, 154-5, 174, 183, 234 (seealso capacitance systems)
pilot programs, 174-5, 179-80, 184,194, 196, 201, 211, 221
Pioneer, 23playback vs. recording concept, 188player design, 152-3, 178, 184, 196,
201, 203-4, 208-9, 212-13, 216,218
Playtape, 111playtime, 18, 151-2, 161-2, 181,
195, 203Polaroid, 227Pollack, Roy
Consumer Electronics Divisionhead, 148, 177
Group Vice President, 20, 188,207
opposes VideoDisc, 188, 190-1,227
replaces Sonnenfeldt, 206-7television turnaround, 207timing described as VideoDisc
failure, 217Prerecorded Electronic Video Sys-
tems (PREVS), 108, 110, 115-17prerecorded tapes, 217, see also pro-
grammingprocess control, 18, 222process innovation, 18programming, 112, 136, 139-44,
146-7, 165-6, 178, 181, 183-5,195, 201, 207, 209, 214-26
proprietary advantages, 9-10, 68,92, 103, 108, 115, 144, 155-6,180, 191, 194, 199-200, 225,234-5
radar research, 59Radio Company, 37
see also RCARadio Corporation of America, 12,
31, see also RCAradio industry,
buffs in, 33, 39early history, 32-40first stations, 38sales, 38-9, 42Sarnoff's Radio Music Box, 32, 38standardization of components,
40
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Radio Keith Orpheum (RKO), 94Radio Manufacturers Association,
55radio spectrum disputes, 54-5Radio Shack, 209Radio Trust, 41, 43; Justice Depart-
ment suit against, 44-5Radiotron Division, 40, 45, 51, 56Radiotron Standardization Commit-
tee, 40Ramberg, E., 92RCA (see also RCA Laboratories;
RCA research; RCA television)acquisitions, 12-13, 43, 121, 208
(see also RCA divestments)advanced development groups,
26, 72-3, 86-7, 94, 130-1, 135,145, 152-3, 162
Advanced Product Planning, 107,130
Board of Directors, 13, 81, 94, 177Broadcast Division, 91camera technology, 114Communications Research, 56computers, 10-14, 27, 82-3, 93,
106-7, 126, 144, 156, 164, 171,180, 190, 193, 233
consumer electronics, 8, 10-11,14, 191, 195
Consumer Electronics Division,15, 23, 26-7, 107-8, 110-11,117, 120, 124, 148-50, 152-3,157-8, 162, 201, 207-8
Consumer Electronics Laboratory,123, 159
Consumer Electronics Sales &Marketing, 207
corporate facilities, 178corporate staff organization, 12-
13, 106, 130, 144, 161, 164, 166,225; strengthened by R. Sar-noff, 106
cross-licensing, 37dealers, 8, 19-21, 25, 40, 60, 164-
6, 183, 191, 194, 195, 207, 209,213-16, 218
development costs, 83diversification, 43divestments, 208, 217-19Electronic Components, 11, 107
financial difficulties, 13-14, 143-4, 197, 213, 217, 225
government contracts, 11, 107Government Systems Division, 80holding company structure, 45Home Instruments, 11, 94, 102,
108-9 (see also Consumer Elec-tronics Division)
image, 12, 19-20, 28, 105, 190,205, 228
Industrial Electronics, 82, 86integrated systems strategy, 21joint ventures, 12License Laboratory, 50-1licensing, 13, 27, 41, 50, 56, 65,
71, 80-4, 86, 105, 135, 145-6,150, 154, 164, 169-70, 174-5,178-9, 183-5, 191, 193, 199,206, 211, 216, 231, 234
Licensing Department, 23, 193,231
Licensing Division, 184management shake-up, 182, 188"Manhattan Project," see Video-
Disc product programManufacturing Company, 54manufacturing locations, 59, 60,
66, see also Camden, Indianapo-lis, Lancaster
marketing, 104-6, 112, 130, 144,165, 183, 194, 226, 231
New Business Programs, 171operating divisions organization,
1970, 12organization 1965, 11origins, 37overseas licensees, 13, 106patents, 10, 37-8, 40-1, 54, 56-7,
60, 65, 81, 131, 171, 186, 202product divisions, 17, 72, 80, 82,
86-8, 226-7Professional Broadcast Division,
94-5Professional Broadcast Equip-
ment, 11Records Division, 26-7, 87, 91,
102, 111-13, 117, 123-4, 136,139-41, 152-6, 158
Research Center, 14, 26 (see alsoRCA Laboratories)
252
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research and development bud-gets, 26, 78, 149
Research & Engineering, 188, 193sales, 26, 39, 102satellite research laboratory, 26service, 11service company, 60shareholders, 13, 85, 187, 190Special Programs, 142, 145, 147strategy, 229-35
diversification, 106, 223focus on R&D, 74research control, 50, 56, 58research role played down,105-6review, 165
Systems Research Laboratory, 86,90-4, 96, 98
technical organization, 8, 10technology transfers, 65, 157-60vacuum tube technology, 40venture group, 113-16, 122-6,
129-32, 135-8, 141, 145-7Victor, 45, 52, 60Video Playback Systems Team,
124see also Selectavision; VideoDisc
RCA Laboratories, 5-7, 15, 17, 46,76, 131, 136-7, 144-5, 150-1,153-9, 164, 174, 177-9, 186-7,190, 197, 201-3, 211, 218, 224-6,231
back prerecorded video concept,107-9
budgets introduced, 81corporate control of, 110criticized by Robert Sarnoff, 104-
5electronics focus, 48, 68-9fundamental research emphasis,
69group rivalries, 82, 88increased staff, 83leadership change, 81magnetic tape focus, 94-5New Business & Research Evalu-
ation, 89, 98, 107postwar staff, 67-70Princeton facility built, 58, 61Princeton University ties, 58, 70
product division links, 80, 86-7,105
relation to corporate staff, 225restructuring, 87Section 13 1/2, 93seed money, 86, 94-5share in corporate R&D budget,
78staff divisions, 70-1strategic planning, 84-5television, color, focus on, 66
RCA researchadvanced electronics, 51, 58allocated corporate funds, 56applications-oriented stress, 82combination of groups involved,
51color television emphasis, 61core electronics technology, 83data processing, 82, 85, 88, 93early history, 49-52entertainment electronics focus,
85fundamental, emphasis on, 91funding by manufacturing divi-
sions, 55; corporate, 56long-range emphasis, 56, 83organization, 17, 26, 45, 159-60product-oriented focus, 88-90radio, 50, 54staff goals, 222television, 52-3; as pattern inno-
vation, 75RCA television
black and white, 52color, 8, 10-12, 14, 52, 107, 157-8early research, 52field testing, 54iconoscope, 52-3, 59investment costs, 53orthicon, 59patent protection, 54sales, 138, 207singled out by Sarnoff, 53spectrum, 54-5standardization, 55, see also Na-
tional Technical StandardsCommittee
real-time mastering, 18, 133, 137,151, 154, 164, 178, 200, 203
253
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replication, 193, 200research, negative stereotypes of,
220-1research and development (R&D)
definition, 221institutional character, 224joint ventures, 234managing, 220-35mistrust of, 220-1
researchers, 220-1, 226Rhodes, Roland, 153, 162Riverhead (Long Island) facilities,
49,56Rockefeller Center demonstrations,
168, 178, 197Rockville Road facilities, 184, 211roll-out plans, 179, 194, 208, 211,
219Royal Navy (British), 33
Sanyo, 29Sarnoff, David
alarmed by EVR, 100anniversary presents, 49, 67, 223backs Laboratories, 225builds company, 9cites importance of self-obsolesc-
ence, 49commitment to innovation, 227commitment to technological
leadership, 41-2, 46-7continuing leadership, 11creates corporate research center,
4-5dislike of bureaucracy, 46early years Marconi, 31-6early years RCA, 37-9entrepreneurial vigor, 118executive vice-president, 45failing health, 113focus on home information, 218;
on innovation, 291; on tele-vision, 52-5
frequent visitor to Laboratories,48-9
known as the General, 48, 54, 67,100
lack of formal engineering train-ing, 229
leadership becomes less effective,67
254
leadership style, 30, 47, 205Navy service, 36pressure on researchers, 223promotes licensing abroad, 84,
234RCA career, 29receives Japanese award, 84relies on color television, 85research strategy, 231speech "Message to Broadcasters/'
1947, 30speech to Harvard Business
School, 1928, 35, 42spokesman for Cold War, 73supports color television, 62-5;
electronics, 72; Homefax, 89;RCA Laboratories, 78, 83; re-search, 56-7; VideoDisc, 20
Sarnoff, Robertappoints McDermott, 140-1; Son-
nenfeldt, 171CEO, 103commits RCA to technological
leadership, 170dislikes CBS competition, 114ends Magtape, 150introduces Selectavision, 104loses faith in Selectavision, 231modifies David Sarnoff's research
strategy, 11, 231planning session, 171presents Holotape, 120-2PREVS presentation, 115replaced, 182reviews VideoDisc, 156-7style of management, 12, 104-10survives reshuffle, 164, 166VideoDisc, 168, 179
Sauter, Jack, 25-6, 207Savage, Donald, 113scanner module, 131scanning electron microscope, 137Schairer, Otto, 56Schlosser, Herbert, 20, 205, 207Screen Actors Guild, 142Sears, 209Selectavision
business plan, 183corporate budget, 145dealers, 194early products, 190
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label, 205program announced, 117, 231projects, 15, 147, 159, 165, 228,
232status report, 150
Selectavision Holotape, see HolotapeSelectavision Magtape, see MagtapeSelectavision VideoDisc, see
VideoDisc product programSelectavision Business Develop-
ment, 145semiconductors, 80, 86, 200-1, 217,
222sensors, 17Sharp, 209Siemens, 10, 13signal encoding, 15, 92, 96-7, 203signal-to-noise ratio, 18, 96, 152skipped field approach, 131SLX (Sony), 166solid-state research, 69, 91, 158Sonnenfeldt, Richard
appointed to VideoDisc, 171assesses Japanese competition,
199-201backs VideoDisc continuance,
194-5cancels pilot operations, 201effectiveness, 228familiarity with statistical process
control, 222goes to NBC, 206-7imposes schedules, 186management approach, 180presides at VideoDisc demonstra-
tion, 168-9presses for improvements, 197-8promotional abilities, 190qualifications, 171reassigned, 206reports to Conrad, 179, 182-4solidifies control, 178-9staff vice president for VideoDisc,
168studies VideoDisc, 174, 177visits Indianapolis, 180
Sony, 23, 94, 129-30, 166, 181-2,188, 190-1, 194-5, 197, 208
Sorenson Consulting Group, 112-13Stancel, Al, 154-5standardization, 138, 193, 206
255
see also National Television Stan-dards Committee
Stanley, Thomas, 93, 96, 98, 102,107-8, 113, 115, 123, 125, 160
Stanley-Tan Report, 102-3, 107statistical process control, 222stereo, 20, 213, 217stop motion, 112stylii, 17, 93, 153, 158, 169, 175, 177,
184, 194-5, 198, 201-4systems
advantage, 166approach, 51, 90, 113-14, 122,
139, 197innovation, 20, 61, 66, 113Research Laboratories, 65
takeover threats, 217Tan, Henry, 102tape
formats, 131replication, 131, 133transport mechanism (TTM), 132,
149technology
leadership, 184-5, 190, 193obsolescence, value of, 35, 49, 85,
205sharing, 60transfer, 86, 135, 179-80, 223,
232, 235Telefunken, 10, 22, 35, 134, 145,
152, 181television (see also television, black
and white; television, color)defense-related research, 55early experimental station, 52FCC restricts syndication, 144field testing, 54interests sacrificed to radio, 143-4market decline predicted, 84orthicon used in, 59production technology improved,
59RCA alienates industry, 65regulatory environment, 54standards, 55, 62-5; RCA stan-
dard adopted, 65Worlds Fair broadcast, 55
television, black and whiteobsolescence foreseen, 85
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television, black and white (cont.pricing experience, 226programming, importance of, 139RCA mass-market receiver, 60roll-out marketing pattern, 219Sarnoff insists on its introduction,
60success frequently cited, 228technology sharing, 60
television, coloradvent of, 61burden on RCA consumer divi-
sions, 80commercial broadcasting begins,
65golden age, 8growth predicted, 85importance as RCA product, 120improvements, 193Japanese competition, 107, 188,
191manufacturing investments, 191pricing experience effect, 226programming scarcity, 139Sarnoff tries to force develop-
ment, 223Sonnenfeldt influenced by experi-
ences of, 194Sony enters market, 181-2Systems Research Laboratory role
in developing, 86, 92Zenith gaining market share, 107,
182-3; losing to RCA, 208Teldec, 22, 134-5, 137-8, 151-2,
154, 160, 181Texas Instruments, 228Thompson Brandt, 10Thomson (France), 151Thorn, 10time-shift capacity, 167Toshiba, 10, 209transistors, 91, 94turntables, high-speed, 17
UHF spectrum, 62Umatic (Sony), 23, 129, 166United Fruit, joint owner of RCA,
31, 37United States
Congress defeats Navy proposal,36
256
House Marine & Fisheries Com-mittee, 36
Justice Department, 44Navy, 35-37Office of Naval Research, 69Office of Scientific Research &
Development, 59Senate, 55Supreme Court, 63
vacuumcoating techniques, 180, 222tubes, 51, 59, 80
Van Cortland Park (NY) facilities,49-50, 52
venture groups, use of, 104, 113-14, 228
see also RCA venture groupVHF spectrum, 54-5, 62VHS (Matsushita), 22-3, 27-8, 205-
6VHS (RCA), 205Victor Talking Machine, 43-4, 51,
56videocassette recorders (VCRs), 23,
131, 149, 206, 208, 212, 214,216-19, 229
Videodisc development projectadvanced development groups
involvement, 152-6; technologytransfer to, 157-61, 169
background, 75, 97, 136 (see alsoDiscpix)
research, 28, 137-8, 152-5; re-search team low morale, 123
Sarnoff, Robert, backs, 148, 156-7technical performance goals, 18,
152, 177technology, 150-1; compared to
competition, 151-2, 161-2Webster supports, 164, 179-80
VideoDisc product programaccelerated development, 196-7,
207announced, 168-9Bilby supports, 190business plans, 166, 177-8, 182,
188-9, 194competition, 181, 188, 194, 199,
216-17
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Conrad commitment to, 157, 182,187
Consumer Electronics Divisionunenthusiastic, 27
dealers negative toward, 214-15demonstrations in Japan, 174-7,
199description, 16, 19feasibility questioned, 190-5Griffiths and, 182, 188, 196, 197,
208Hillier supports, 164, 179, 188introduction, 8, 19-22, 24-5;
scheduled, 178, 187, 191, 199-200, 206, 213; too late, 229
investment costs, 26, 165, 196,204; losses, 213, 218
lessons of, 200, 226management staff, 207-8, 225manufacturing, 21, 162-4, 185-6,
198, 201, 211marketing, 25-6, 188-9, 194, 209,
211, 219pilot program, 180, 184-5, 196,
201Pollack opposes, 190-1, 188, 227press hostility, 217pricing, 20, 23-4, 178, 188-9, 200,
204, 208, 213, 216production discontinued, 213programming, 20, 140-4, 146,
165-6, 183, 209-11proprietary advantages, 185, 191,
193-4, 199RCA Laboratories involvement,
27, 137-8, 150-1, 200-5, 211risks, 21, 195, 208sales, 213, 216Sarnoff, R. supports, 148, 156,
182Sonnenfeldt heads, 168, 171; con-
solidates, 178-9; reassigned,206
stereo version, 213, 217strategy assumptions, 218-19technology improvements, 170,
181, 188-9, 211videodisc systems
description, 14-15, 17-18magnetic tape competition, 212;
price advantage over, 206
257
marketplace entrance, 181, 212next-generation, 180Philips' features, 170RCA publicity, 151, 168research applications, 281technology, 174, 200
videoplayers, 14, 17, 22, 90, 103,129, 183, 195, 221-2, 225-6,230, 232, 234
videotape recorders, 68, 90-2, 149,193, 195, 200, 205, 226
videotapes, 23, 214-26vidicon, 97, 99, 112, 124
Wards, 209Warner, John, 40Warren, Ray, 96, 124, 131-2, 137,
149, 160Watson, Thomas, 227Webster, William
background, 89, 98budget cutbacks managed, 145criticizes erratic funding, 225discounts CBS videoplayer
claims, 100electromechanical recording op-
posed, 154Electronics Research Laboratory
experience, 93fosters competition among re-
searchers, 91Laboratories head, 89, 98magnetic tape opposed, 130pressured to promote VideoDisc,
179PREVS strategy meeting, 113-14;
project backed, 223VideoDisc examined, 138; seeks
product status for, 156, 158-9,164
videoplayer technology, unde-cided on, 123
Wertheim Report, 211Western Electric, 233Western Union, 43Westinghouse
color camera, 114divests RCA stock, 34electronics R&D, involvement in,
69
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Westinghouse (cont.) Waters Guild, 142facilities given to RCA, 50-1, 73-
4 Xerox PARC, 224NBC, forms with RCA and GE,
43 Young, Owen D., 37, 38radio, little interest in, 50RCA, joint stake in, 31, 37-9 Zeiss, William, 170standardization, participation in Zenith, 27, 65, 107, 170, 182, 188,
committees on, 40 190, 208WJZ, joint project with RCA, 38 Zworykin, Vladimir, 52-3
Woodward, J., 92
258
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