Radio-Victor Corporation of America (RCA)

ActiveCamden, New Jersey, USA

BiographyRCA, or the Radio Corporation of America, was founded in 1919 and existed until 1986; the RCA name is currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment and Technicolor. RCA first began manufacturing electronic devices in the 1920s with the advent of radio technology. The company’s original foundations grew out of a merger of smaller American corporations such as Marconi, General Electric, and Westinghouse – all major players in the production of wireless communication devices – and, initially, RCA’s role was simply to market their products. The United States’ first national radio network, referred to as the National Broadcasting Company, or NBC, was formed by RCA executives in 1926. In 1929, RCA, Westinghouse, and General Electric formally consolidated their efforts so as to share research, development, manufacturing, and marketing duties. Soon after, RCA also purchased the Victor Talking Machine Company, officially becoming known as the Radio-Victor Corporation of America, and began manufacturing radios and phonographs from the company’s headquarters in Camden, New Jersey. Throughout the 1920s, Belorussian-American businessman, David Sarnoff (1891 – 1971), who served as RCA’s CEO from its inception until his retirement in 1970, worked to expand the company’s territory into the burgeoning technology of television. As such, RCA was able to demonstrate the first television service at the historic 1939 World’s Fair in New York. The company also set the standard for colour-cast television practices in the United States as of December 1953, with the first sets produced in March of 1954. By 1962, nearly 70% of NBC’s prime-time broadcasts were in colour. Throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, RCA continued to contribute to the market of consumer electronics, also making significant developments in VHS technology, telephones, and small appliances.