TELEFUNKEN PALCOLOR HIFI 292 PIP "MILLENNIUM" YEAR 1989.

The set was a top flagship in 1989.

Marketed under the name of TELEFUNKEN was even after branded THOMSON.

- The  TELEFUNKEN  PALCOLOR HIFI 292 PIP  "MILLENNIUM" Features a multistandard PAL/SECAM/NTSC 3.58 & 4.43 CCIR B/G/H/I/L/D/K/M. The different coding processes, e.g. NTSC, PAL and SECAM, introduced into the known colour television standards, differ in the nature of the chrominance transmission and in particular the different systems make use of different colour subcarrier frequencies and different line frequencies.

The following explanations relate to the PAL and NTSC systems, but correspondingly apply to video signals of other standards and non-standardized signals.
The colour subcarrier frequency (fsc) of a PAL system and a NTSC system is fsc(NTSC) = 3.58 MHz or fsc(PAL) = 4.43 MHz.
In addition, in PAL and NTSC systems the relationships of the colour subcarrier frequency (fsc) to the line frequency (fh) are given by fsc(NTSC) = 227.50 * fh or 4•fsc(NTSC) = 910 • fh fsc(PAL) = 283.75 * fh or 4•fsc(PAL) = 1135 • fh so that the phase of the colour subcarrier in the case of NTSC is changed by 180°/line and in PAL by 270°/line.

The invention relates to a  multistandard decoder for video signals and to a method for decoding video signals. Colour video signals, so-called composite video, blanking and sync signals (CVBS) (chroma-video-blanking-sync) signal is a signal comprising both the chrominance and the luminance component of the video signal. Therefore, the CVBS video signal may be PAL video signal, a SECAM video signal, or an NTSC video signal. are essentially composed of a brightness signal or luminance component (Y), two colour difference signals or chrominance components (U, V or I, Q), vertical and horizontal sync signals (VS, HS) and a blanking signal (BL).

In order to decode a video signal and restore a color image, a color TV set has to identify the color TV standard used at the emission. Conventional color TV sets are equipped with a system for automatically identifying the norm or standard of the color TV set used for the emission. The invention more particularly relates to an automatic method for identifying a color TV standard in a multistandard TV set.

Presently, the most commonly used color TV standards are PAL, NTSC and SECAM standards. For these three standards, each line of the composite video signal comprises a synchronization pulse, a burst of a few oscillations of the chrominance sub-carrier signal, then the signal itself corresponding to the image, comprising superimposed luminance and chrominance information, the latter information being carried by the luminance signal.

The characteristics of the chrominance sub-carrier in the various PAL, NTSC and SECAM standards are defined in the published documents concerning these standards and will not be described in detail here. However, the main characteristics of these various standards will be briefly reminded because these indications are useful for a better understanding of the invention.

In the PAL standard, the frequency of the chrominance sub-carrier is equal for all the lines, but the phase of one of the modulation vectors varies + or -90° from one line to another. The frequency of the chrominance sub-carrier is standardized at 4.43 Mhz. In this system, the burst signal is also shifted by + or -90° from one line to the next.

In the NTSC standard, the chrominance sub-carrier is equal for all the lines.

In the SECAM standard, one uses two chrominance sub-carrier frequencies which alternate from one line to another, at 4.25 Mhz and 4.40 Mhz, respectively. These two chrominance sub-carriers are frequency modulated.

The multistandard color TV sets must have distinct internal systems designed to decode the luminance and chrominance signals for each standard used.

Therefore, these TV sets have to previously identify the received standard.

Systems for automatically identifying the standard used already exist. Generally, for such an automatic standard identification, the systems known use the bursts of the chrominance sub-carrier signal that are present at the beginning of each line. In fact, these bursts are standardized and calibrated samples of the chrominance sub-carrier transmitted on the video signal and comprise all the characteristic information concerning the transmitted color standard. The information contained in these bursts represents the frequency, the phase of one of the modulation vectors and the frequency or phase variation of one line with repect to the next one.

- CTI Picture Improvements circuitry in which colour signal, e.g. the line-sequential colour difference signals (R-Y,B-Y), is processed by an edge steepening circuit e.g. a colour transient improver and/or a two-line delay line in which the colour signals from two lines are added. The delay line may be part of a drop-out compensation circuit in which the colour signal of line n is replaced by the signal present for line n-2. A CCD-line may be used as the two-line delay line, and an amplitude limiter included. ADVANTAGE - Increased picture sharpness and improved signal-to-noise ratio.

It has many features including PIP (Picture in Picture) and it's full multistandard.
The Tv set here shown features a PIP  picture-in-picture (PIP or pix-in-pix) feature; in a digital television system having a picture-in-picture (PIP or pix-in-pix) feature, two images from possibly unrelated sources are displayed simultaneously on the TV screen as a single composite image. The composite image includes a small picture (defined by an auxiliary video signal, for example, from a VCR) displayed as an inset within a large main picture (defined by a primary video signal, for example, from the TV antenna). The output signal of one tuner or of other TV signal sources in the base band are digitized and stored in a part of a memory. After automatic switching over to another TV-channel, this new signal is stored in another part of the memory and so on. The whole memory is then read out continuously and produces the displayed multipicture on the screen.
More specifically, the present invention pertains to a television receiver with a multipicture display.
In a television receiver with multipicture display a single video signal can be reproduced simultaneously in two or more subareas, or two or more different video signals can each be reproduced in associated subareas. Each of the subareas can display either a reduced-size picture or a part of the picture supplied by a video-signal source. A digital signal-processing circuit converts the signals from the video-signal source to picture data consisting of luminance and color data for each picture element. A random-access memory (RAM) holds the picture data of the entire screen. A control unit controls the writing of the picture data into an area of the RAM depending on the number of video signals to be reproduced and the line-by-line readout, with only selected lines being transferred from the video-signal source into the associated memory area. A digital-to-analg converted which is furnished with the picture data read from the RAM delivers the analog red, green, and blue signals.
A television receiver of this kind is described in a printed publication by Intermetall Semiconductors ITT, "VMC Video Memory Controller", August 1985.
That television receiver circuit uses random-access memories (RAMs). For the multipicture display, the screen is divided into up to nine equal-sized subareas which each contain a part of a picture of normal size or a complete picture of reduced size. In that mode, successively produced "snapshots" of up to nine different video signals can be displayed simultaneously. The switching of the video signals takes place manually.
Offenlegungsschrift DE No. 24 13 839 A1 describes a circuit for a television receiver with a facility for simultaneously reproducing two or more programs. In a part of the picture of the directly received main program, the secondary program, received with a single switchable tuner, is stored in a memory with a reduced number of lines and is called up line by line when the electron beam of the picture tube sweeps across the predetermined part of the picture. The disadvantage of this method lies in horizontal grating-like interference in the main picture which results from the fact that lines of the main picture are missing at regular intervals when the tuner has been switched to the secondary program, and which can only be incompletely compensated.
Accordingly, the problem to be solved by the invention is to provide a circuit of the above kind with which the grating-like interference caused during reproduction using the above-described single-tuner switching method is eliminated.
The output signal of one tuner or of other TV signal sources in the base band are digitize and stored in part of a memory. After automatic switching over to another TV-channel, this new signal is stored in another part of the memory and so on.
The whole memory is then read out continuously and produces the multi-picture display on the screen. Another advantage consists in the fact that, for the construction of the whole screen picture, all picture data are withdrawn from the RAM, so that the usual picture-improvement techniques can be applied. By fast readout from the memory rows, the displayed picture is freed from both line flicker and background flicker.
By changing the sampling rates of the different video-signal sources, it is readily possible to monitor the latter, nearly up to the still picture. In an arrangement in accordance with the invention digital picture processing and digital storage are used thereby permitting the circuit to process analog or digital signals,from video signal sources.

The screen is a 29 inches color blackmatrix PLANAR type.

The VIDEOCOLOR PLANAR featured has even an improvement for increased EHT to obtain more focussing.One aspect of the present invention is concerned with reducing the size of the crossover, and thus of the image thereof on the screen, compared with the known gun. In accordance with this aspect of the invention, the voltage applied to the first anode is higher than in a corresponding conventional gun and in particular is greater than the voltage applied to the focussing anode. As a result, a high electric field is formed between the grid and the first anode which tends to reduce the size of the crossover, aspect of the invention seeks to utilise this high voltage in controlling the beam size.


The VIDEOCOLOR PLANAR featured an improvement in a cathode-ray tube including a rectangular faceplate which has an exterior surface having curvature along both the minor and major axes. The faceplate also includes a cathodoluminescent screen on an interior surface thereof. At least in the center portion of the faceplate, the curvature along the minor axis is at least 10 percent greater than the curvature along the major axis. In the improvement, points on the exterior surface near the ends of the major axis, at the edges of the screen, lie in a first plane which is perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis of the tube; points on the exterior surface near the ends of the minor axis, at the edges of the screen, lie in a second plane which is spaced from and parallel to the first plane; and points on the exterior surface near the ends of the diagonals of the rectangular faceplate, at the edges of the screen, lie in a third plane which is spaced from and parallel to the first plane. The three planes are spaced from the center portion of the faceplate in the order of second plane, first plane and third plane.

And  The VIDEOCOLOR PLANAR features process of manufacturing a cathode-ray tube which includes a faceplate panel with an exterior surface having thereon an anti-glare, anti-static, dark coating is described. The process is characterized by the steps of: (a) forming a substantially homogeneous initial carbon dispersion containing substantially equal parts, by weight, of carbon particles and an organic vehicle; and (b) combining a sufficient quantity of the homogeneous initial carbon dispersion with an aqueous solution of lithium polysilicate to form a final dispersion suitable for application to the faceplate of the CRT.
 For many applications it is desirable to have an effective faceplate transmission of about 40% to enhance the contrast of an image displayed on the tube and also to provide an anti-static coating on the tube. A dark, or neutral density, coating on an exterior surface of a CRT faceplate panel is a cost-effective alternative to a dark glass faceplate to achieve such a result. The incorporation of anti-glare, or glare-reducing, properties into a neutral density faceplate coating is well known in the art and is described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,898,509, issued to Brown et al. on Aug. 5, 1975.


It was the first model series introducing the IMC (Interactive Menu control) a OSD menu system for each type of programming session:

Programming of channels / tuning
Programming of picture features
Programming of sound features.


The MILLENNIUM series was offering the best of the features needed by such class of tellyes.

A 29 (30) inches PLANAR type screen with black matrix and superb bright picture.
50 programs with PLL synthesizer tuning with autosearch.
Full multistandard for video and sound.
Digital stereo HIFI sound with high power output. (Speakers are external).
Color transient improvement.
Video teletext with preferred pages storage programming feature.
PIP and multi PIP sequentially accessed.
2 AV SCART SOCKETS fully selectable , even RGB.

A SCART Connector (which stands for Syndicat des Constructeurs d'Appareils Radiorécepteurs et Téléviseurs) is a standard for connecting audio-visual equipment together. The official standard for SCART is CENELEC document number EN 50049-1. SCART is also known as Péritel (especially in France) and Euroconnector but the name SCART will be used exclusively herein. The standard defines a 21-pin connector (herein after a SCART connector) for carrying analog television signals. Various pieces of equipment may be connected by cables having a plug fitting the SCART connectors. Television apparatuses commonly include one or more SCART connectors.

Although a SCART connector is bidirectional, the present invention is concerned with the use of a SCART connector as an input connector for receiving signals into a television apparatus. A SCART connector can receive input television signals either in an RGB format in which the red, green and blue signals are received on Pins 15, 11 and 7, respectively, or alternatively in an S-Video format in which the luminance (Y) and chroma (C) signals are received on Pins 20 and 15. As a result of the common usage of Pin 15 in accordance with the SCART standard, a SCART connector cannot receive input television signals in an RGB format and in an S-Video format at the same time.

Consequently many commercially available television apparatuses include a separate SCART connectors each dedicated to receive input television signals in one of an RGB format and an S-Video format. This limits the functionality of the SCART connectors. In practical terms, the number of SCART connectors which can be provided on a television apparatus is limited by cost and space considerations. However, different users wish the input a wide range of different combinations of formats of television signals, depending on the equipment they personally own and use. However, the provision of SCART connectors dedicated to input television signals in one of an RGB format and an S-Video format limits the overall connectivity of the television apparatus. Furthermore, for many users the different RGB format and S-Video format are confusing. Some users may not understand or may mistake the format of a television signal being supplied on a given cable from a given piece of equipment. This can result in the supply of input television signals of an inappropriate format for the SCART connector concerned.

This kind of connector is todays obsoleted !

This is anyway fabricated by THOMSON because TELEFUNKEN discontinued production few years before this came out but TELEFUNKEN is still present in THOMSON at the time providing semiconductors technology.

The set features the THOMSON CHASSIS  ICC5  IN it'S HIGHEST UPGRADED VERSION.
The ICC5 got a bad press but they were an advanced design and unusual for the time for a European chassis in that they didn't make widespread use of Philips techniques or components.B&O sets have used it like the MX3000, MX4500 and MX5000. B&O had also used the previous ICC3 in the MX2000 and the M20, so they weren't much of a culture shock - the removal of the big mains transformer that the ICC3 had was clearly the key design goal.I found the chassis to be reasonably reliable after reworking and well laid out in general maybe a bit too compact, there were a few quirks without a doubt , the E-W stage once sorted with modified coil etc. wasn't so unreliable after all. The PCB layout was one of the most complex design almost like a computer board. It was only when they aged you started to get some real weird faults. The ICC7/8 were a lot more conventional circuitry wise, and posed few real problems. The ICC9 and IDC2 were not very reliable at all, possibly the least reliable of the lot, the IKC2 was a close second! Personally i disliked the IKC2.This models series are the last featuring the THOMSON CHASSIS ICC5, replaced with THOMSON ICC7, ICC8 SERIES.




Telefunken (WAS) is a German radio and television apparatus company, founded in 1903, in Berlin, as a joint venture of two large companies, Siemens & Halske (S & H) and the Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft (General Electricity Company).

The name "Telefunken" appears in:

* the product brand name "Telefunken";
* AEG subsidiary as Telefunken GmbH in 1955;
* AEG subsidiary as Telefunken AG in 1963;
* company merged as AEG-Telefunken (1967–1985);
* the company "Telefunken USA" (2001). Now Telefunken Elektroakustik (2009)
* the company "Telefunken semiconductor GmbH & Co KG" Heilbronn Germany (2009).
* the company "Telefunken Lighting technologies S,L" (2009)

The company Telefunken USA[1] was incorporated in early 2001 to provide restoration services and build reproductions of vintage Telefunken microphones.

Around the turn of the 20th century, two groups of German researchers worked on the development of techniques for wireless communication. The one group at AEG, led by Adolf Slaby and Georg Graf von Arco, developed systems for the German navy; the other one, under Karl Ferdinand Braun, at Siemens, for the German army.

When a dispute concerning patents arose between the two companies, Kaiser Wilhelm II decided that the two companies were to be joined, creating on 27 May 1903 the company Gesellschaft für drahtlose Telegraphie System Telefunken ("The Company for Wireless Telegraphy Ltd."), and the disputed patents and techniques were invested in it. This was then renamed on 17 April 1923 as Telefunken, The Company for Wireless Telegraphy. Telefunken was the company's telegraph address. The first technical director of Telefunken was George Graf von Arco.

Starting in 1923, Telefunken built broadcast transmitters and radio sets.

In 1928, Telefunken made history by designing the V-41 amplifier for the German Radio Network. This was the very first two stage, "Hi-Fi" amplifier which began a chapter in recording history. Over time, Telefunken perfected their designs and in 1950 the V-72 amplifier was born. The TAB (a manufacturing subcontractor to Telefunken) V-72 soon became popular with other radio stations and recording facilities and would eventually come to help define the sound of most European recordings. The V-72S was the only type of amplifier found in the legendary REDD-37 console used by the Beatles at Abbey Road Studios on every recording prior to Rubber Soul. Today the V-72 is still the most sought after example of Telefunken's design and over 50 years later continues to be the benchmark by which all other tube based microphone preamplifiers are measured. In 1932, record players were added to the product line.

In 1941 Siemens transferred its Telefunken shares to AEG as part of the agreements known as the "Telefunken settlement", and AEG thus became the sole owner and continued to lead Telefunken as a subsidiary (starting in 1955 as "Telefunken GmbH" and from 1963 as "Telefunken AG").

During the Second World War Telefunken was a supplier of vacuum tubes, transmitters and radio relay systems, and developed radar facilities and directional finders, aiding extensively to the German air defense against British-American Aerial Bombing. During the war, manufacturing plants were shifted to and developed in West Germany or relocated. Thus, Telefunken, under AEG, turned into the smaller subsidiary, with the three divisions realigning and data processing technology, elements as well as broadcast, television and phono. Telefunken had substantial successes in these markets during the time of self-sufficiency and also later in the AEG company. Telefunken was also the originator of the FM radio broadcast system. Telefunken, through the subsidiary company Teldec (a joint venture with Decca Records), was for many decades one of the largest German record companies, until Teldec was sold to WEA in 1988.

In 1959, Telefunken established a modern semiconductor works in Heilbronn, where in April 1960 production began. The works was expanded several times, and in 1970 a new 6-storey building was built at the northern edge of the area. At the beginning of the 1970s it housed approximately 2,500 employees.

In 1967, Telefunken was merged with AEG, which was then renamed to AEG-Telefunken. During this era, Walter Bruch developed the PAL color television for the company, in use by most countries outside the Americas today (i.e. United Kingdom - PAL-I), and by Brazil (PAL-M) and Argentina (PAL-N) in South America.

The mainframe computer TR 4 was developed at Telefunken in Backnang, and the TR 440 model was developed at Telefunken in Konstanz. They were in use at many German university computing centres from the 1970s to around 1985. The development and manufacture of large computers was separated in 1974 to the Konstanz Computer Company (CGK). The production of mini- and process computers was integrated into the automatic control engineering division of AEG. When AEG was bought by Daimler in 1985, "Telefunken" was dropped from the company name.

In 2005, Telefunken Sender Systeme Berlin changed its name to Transradio SenderSysteme Berlin AG. The name "Transradio" dates back to 1918, when Transradio was founded as a subsidiary of Telefunken. A year later, in 1919, Transradio made history by introducing duplex transmission. Transradio has specialized in research, development and design of modern AM, VHF/FM and DRM broadcasting systems.

In August 2006, it acquired the Turkish company Profilo Telra, one of the largest European manufacturers of TV-devices, with Telefunken GmbH granting a license for the Telefunken trademark rights and producing televisions under that name. In 2000, Toni Roger Fishman acquired The Diamond Shaped Logo & The Telefunken Brand Name for use in North America. The company "Telefunken USA" [2] was incorporated in early 2001 to provide restoration services and build reproductions of vintage Telefunken microphones. In 2003, Telefunken USA won a TEC Award for Studio Microphone Technology for their exact reproduction of the original Ela M 250 / 251 Microphone system. Telefunken USA has since received several TEC Awards nominations for the following microphone systems: the Telefunken USA M12 or C12 (originally developed by AKG), the R-F-T M16 MkII, and the AK47. The Historic Telefunken Ela M251 microphone system entered the MIX foundation's Hall of fame in 2006. In 2008, Telefunken USA won a second TEC Award for its new Ela M 260 microphone.

As a result of a conference held in Frankfurt in May 2009, Telefunken USA has been renamed Telefunken Elektroakustik ("Electrical Acoustics") Division of Telefunken and awarded the exclusive rights to manufacture a wide variety of professional audio products and vacuum tubes bearing the Telefunken Trade Mark, in over 27 countries worldwide. Telefunken Elektroakustik now uses the Telefunken trademark for Professional Audio Equipment & Component Based Electronics, such as Capacitors, Transformers, Vacuum Tubes in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Some References:

• M. Friedewald: Telefunken und der deutsche Schiffsfunk 1903–1914. In: Zeitschrift für Unternehmensgeschichte 46. Nr. 1, 2001, S. 27–57
• M. Fuchs: Georg von Arco (1869–1940) – Ingenieur, Pazifist, Technischer Direktor von Telefunken. Eine Erfinderbiographie. Verlag für Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften und der Technik, Berlin & München: Diepholz 2003
• L. U. Scholl: Marconi versus Telefunken: Drahtlose Telegraphie und ihre Bedeutung für die Schiffahrt. In: G. Bayerl, W. Weber (ed.): Sozialgeschichte der Technik. Ulrich Troitzsche zum 60. Geburtstag. Waxmann, Münster 1997 (Cottbuser Studien zur Geschichte von Technik, Arbeit und Umwelt, 7)
• Telefunken Sendertechnik GmbH: 90 Jahre Telefunken. Berlin 1993
• Erdmann Thiele (ed.): Telefunken nach 100 Jahren – Das Erbe einer deutschen Weltmarke. Nicolaische Verlagsbuchhandlung, Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-87584-961-2
•  

Einzelnachweise:

Schreibweise mit c siehe: - AEG-Teilschuldverschreibung von 1962

Marke „Telefunken“ in der Registerauskunft des Deutschen Patent- und Markenamtes (DPMA)

E. Thiele (Hrsg.): Telefunken nach 100 Jahren: Das Erbe einer deutschen Weltmarke. Nicolai, Berlin 2003, S. 19

Kurt Kracheel: Flugführungssysteme (Die Deutsche Luftfahrt, Band 20). Bernard&Graefe Verlag, Bonn 1993, ISBN 3-7637-6105-5, S. 119.

Operette 50W UKW. In: radiomuseum.org. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2016.

Autosuper IA 50. In: radiomuseum.org. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2016.

Farbfernseh-Tischempfänger PALcolor 708T. In: radiomuseum.org. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2016.

Mini Partner 101. In: radiomuseum.org. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2016.

Olympia-Partner. In: radiomuseum.org. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2016.

Magnetophon 3000 hifi. In: radiomuseum.org. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2016.

Fernseh-Tischempfänger FE8T. In: radiomuseum.org. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2016.

Israelischer Konzern Elbit Systems eröffnet Büro in Berlin. In: bundeswehr-journal. 13. April 2018, abgerufen am 18. Januar 2019.

Telefunken Semiconductors Heilbronn: Die Lichter sind für immer aus, swr.de, 27. Februar 2015

LDL Berlin: Geschäftshaus Mehringdamm 32 & 34

LDL Berlin: AEG-Glühlampenfabrik

LDL Berlin: AEG-Telefunken-Gerätewerk

Telefunkenwerk Celle. vergessene-orte.blogspot.com

Ludwig Leisentritt: Die historische Entwicklung von Zeil am Main, hbrech.tripod.com

R.I.P.  TELEFUNKEN 




In 1879 Elihu Thomson and Edwin Houston formed the Thomson-Houston Electric Company in the United States.
On April 15, 1892 Thomson-Houston and the Edison General Electric Company merged to form General Electric (GE). Also in 1892 the company formed a French subsidiary, Thomson Houston International.
In 1893 Compagnie Française Thomson-Houston (CFTH) was set up as a partner to GE. It is from this company that the modern Thomson companies would evolve.
In 1966 CFTH merged with Hotchkiss-Brandt to form Thomson-Houston-Hotchkiss-Brandt (soon renamed Thomson-Brandt). In 1968 the electronics business of Thomson-Brandt merged with Compagnie Générale de Télégraphie Sans Fil (CSF) to form Thomson-CSF. Thomson Brandt maintained a significant shareholding in this company (approximately 40%).
In 1982 both Thomson-Brandt and Thomson-CSF were nationalized by François Mitterrand. Thomson-Brandt was renamed Thomson SA (Société Anonyme) and merged with Thomson-CSF.
From 1983 to 1987 a major reorganisation of Thomson-CSF was undertaken, with divestitures to refocus the group on its core activities (electronics and defence). Thomson-CSF Téléphone and the medical division were sold to Alcatel and GE respectively. The semiconductor businesses of Thomson CSF was merged with Finmeccanica. Thomson acquired General Electric’s RCA and GE consumer electronics business in 1987.
In 1988 Thomson Consumer Electronics was formed, renamed Thomson Multimedia in 1995. The French government split the consumer electronics and defence businesses prior to privatisation in 1999, those companies being Thomson Multimedia (today Technicolor SA) and Thomson-CSF (today Thales Group).



Thomson-CSF was a major electronics and defence contractor. In December 2000 it was renamed Thales Group.

Further reading

• Jean-Pierre, Thierry (16 October 2003). Taïwan Connection : Scandales et meurtres au cœur de la République [Taiwan Connection – Scandals and Murders at the Heart of the Republic] (in French). Robert Laffont. ISBN 978-2221100820.
• L'entreprise partagée ? Une pratique différente des relations sociales : l'expérience Thomson-CSF, Robert Thomas (pseudonym for a team-work with Pierre Beretti and Jean-Pierre Thiollet), Paris, Maxima-Laurent du Mesnil Ed., 1999

...........1996............there are no stranger foreigners than the first ones you come across, the French. This is borne out by the 1996 Thomson situation. Thomson, was a vast company by any reckoning, is a strange beast. It's state controlled, which means that the government owns most but not quite all of it. and consists of two distinct arms, the defence group Thomson-CFS which is quite profitable, and the consumer electronics group Thomson Multimedia which loses a packet. The government wanted  rid of it, but won't sell the bits separately. It doesn't want to be left with the problem of what to do with Thomson Multimedia. You might think that no one would be interested in helping the French government. But in fact there are two contenders to take over Thomson, the telecommunications and power group Alcatel Alsthom and the defence and media group Lagardere. They have been engaging in quite a battle over the ownership, and as we go to press the French government is due to decide whose bid to accept. Whoever wins will end up with the profitable defence company  and the problem of Thomson Multimedia (TMM).

Lagardere has stated that it would sell TMM to Daewoo of Korea. Alcatel Alsthom has not been quite so specific, but has announced that it would take immediate action to reduce TMM's losses and seek an "Asian partner" that "specialises in consumer electronics". The partner would be expected to take over management of TMM, but Alcatel would like to remain a "minority partner" - it sees prospects in the move to digital TV technology that will occur during the next decade. All this gives one a strange feeling of déjà vu. At the time when Thomson took over Ferguson, in June 1987, it was noticed  that Thomson is "now on the government's privatisation list". It's taken almost a decade to happen.

 It's also said that "Thomson may be big, but has not been all that successful in the past in the consumer electronics field". Right on! What has happened to Ferguson in the UK illustrates the dismal Thomson effect. From being the local brand leader, with over ten per cent of the market, Ferguson has ended up being an also ran. It's only fair however to mention that Ferguson was making substantial losses when Thorn EMI was glad to get £90m for it from Thomson. Thomson has been able to survive in the consumer electronics field because it is part of a larger organisation, with those defence profits. It has nevertheless over the years attempted to play a a major role in the international consumer electronics field, keeping up with Philips and the Japanese corporations. From its French origins, it first expanded by picking up various German companies such as NordMende an SABA. It added Telefunken, a venerable name if ever there was one in this industry, in the early eighties, then took what was to be a big move into the UK market when it bought Ferguson. 

It  used six brand names in Europe. The largest step however occurred when TMM became a major force in the North American market by taking over General Electric's consumer electronics interests. This also gave it the RCA operation. The idea behind all this seems to have been to achieve success simply by getting bigger. There was always government finance to back the policy, which in the event has not been a success. The TMM debacle is a sad one, since Thomson's research and engineering has had many successes.
 It has not stinted on R and D work, with laboratories in Los Angeles, Indianapolis, Strasbourg, Hanover, Villingen, Tokyo and Singapore. Much work has been done on HD -TV, digital signal processing and other developments that have kept it in the forefront of the technology. Now, it seems, TMM is likely to be swallowed up by one of the Oriental corporate giants. 
If there are any lessons to be drawn, they would seem to be that expansion by itself is no guarantee of success, that to spread ones activities and their control across the globe makes management extremely difficult, and that costs are very hard to control in such a context. Alcatel Alsthom's plans to reduce TMM's losses bear this out. It would close down TMM's US factories, transferring production to the company's modern facilities in Mexico, where wages are much lower.

 It would rationalise the large collection of brands, possibly adopting RCA as the main one worldwide. And there is a suggestion that the company should be run from the USA, since this is its largest market. But all this would be just initial steps towards ceding majority control. Venerable brand names such as Telefunken, GE and RCA would pass to oriental ownership. This will happen whoever wins, Alcatel Alsthom or Lagardere, which would leave just Philips to carry on Europe's traditions in the consumer electronics field............. but we all know how it ended.................

Thomson-CSF independence

Following the privatisation of the Thomson Group Thomson-CSF explored the possibility of merging with Marconi Electronic Systems, however British Aerospace was successful in that aim, forming BAE Systems.
In 2000 Thomson-CSF went through a series of transactions, including with Marconi plc. The major acquisition at this time was the £1.3 billion purchase of the British defence electronics firm, Racal. This made Thomson-CSF the second largest participant in the UK defence industry after BAE. Racal was renamed Thomson-CSF Racal plc.
On December 6, 2000 the group was renamed Thales.

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