NORDMENDE PRESTIGE 72 IMC YEAR 1989

The The  NORDMENDE PRESTIGE 72 IMC series was offering the best of the features needed by such class of TV in 1989.

  First time with following features:

• A 29 (30) inches PLANAR type screen with black matrix and superb bright picture.

 

A cathode-ray tube includes a rectangular faceplate which has an exterior surface having curvature along both the minor and major axes. The exterior surface of the faceplate includes a rectangular contour near its periphery which substantially lies in a plane which is perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis of the tube. 

 

 In the prior art, the aesthetic quality of television tubes is gradually tending towards increasingly flat screens. One type of currently used "plane" front panel is called a "planar" front panel and is described in particular, in the U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,786,840 and 4,839,556. Tubes such as this work properly but require corrections to obtain good image geometry; these corrections cannot be obtained by the deflector alone.

Furthermore, the planeity of the screen has repercussions on the geometry of the mask and induces problems of thermomechanical behavior which take the form of doming and blister flaws.

A first object of the present invention is a method for the fabrication, for high-definition television, of a "wide" screen trichromatic tube  capable of having the standard ratio 4/3, the screen of which is as flat as possible and requires the fewest possible geometrical corrections, a method that enables the making of a very wide range of tubes of very diverse dimensions and planeities, with the fabrication being done in the simplest possible way without using any cylindrical element in the illumination light box of the front panel.

 There are two basic faceplate panel contours utilized commercially for rectangular CRT's of screen sizes greater than about a 9-inch (22.9 cm) diagonal: spherical, and cylindrical. Although flat contours are possible, the added thickness and weight of the faceplate panel required to maintain the same envelope strength are undesirable. Furthermore, if a flat faceplate CRT is a shadow mask color picture tube, the additional weight and complexity of an appropriate shadow mask also are undesirable.

The present invention provides a novel curved faceplate panel contour that is neither spherical nor cylindrical, but that can create an illusion to a viewer of being flat.

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.


 The VIDEOCOLOR PLANAR here 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.

• 50 programs with PLL synthesizer tuning with autosearch.
  

The system employed in the tv permits utilization of a frequency synthesizer tuning system which correctly tunes to a desired television station or channel even if the transmitted signals from that station are not precisely maintained at the proper frequencies even in combination of a fine tuning adjustable by the user.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved tuning system for a television receiver.
It is an additional object of this invention to provide an improved frequency synthesizer tuning system for a television receiver.

PLL SYNTHESIZED TUNING System Concepts:

INTRODUCTION Digital tuning systems are fast replacing the conventional mechanical systems in AM FM and television receivers The desirability of the digital approach is mainly due to the following features * Precise tuning of station frequencies
* Exact digital frequency display
* Keyboard entry of desired frequency
* Virtually unlimited station memory
* Up down scanning through the band
* Station ‘‘search’’ (stop on next active station)
* Power on to the last station
* Easy option for time-of-day clock In addition
" recent "developments in large scale integrated circuit technology and new varactor diodes for the AM band have made the cost-benefit picture for digital tuning very attractive System partitioning is extremely important in optimizing this cost-benefit picture as will be discussed.

SYSTEM DESCRIPTION
A simplified block diagram of a typical digitally tuned receiver is shown in Figure 1 Notice this receiver could be one for AM FM marine radio or television it makes no difference The frequency synthesizer block generates the local oscillator frequency for the receiver just as a conventional mechanical tuner would However the phase-locked-loop (PLL) acts as an integral frequency multiplier of an accurate crystal controlled reference frequency while the mechanical type provides a continuously variable frequency output with no reference Some method of controlling the value of the multiplier for channel tuning must be provided The other RF IF and audio video circuitry will be the same as in the mechanical tuning method There are many different ways to partition the frequency synthesizer system to perform the digital tuning function................

 

• 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.

Control of modern television receivers has become increasingly complicated in recent years, as more and more user-controllable features have been implemented by manufacturers in television receivers of ever-greater complexity. For example, in addition to the normal television receiver controls, some user-controllable features which were unheard-of just a few years ago are now commonly available to consumers, such as, COLOR TEMPERATURE, VIDEO NOISE REDUCTION, SURROUND SOUND, and SLEEP TIMER, just to name a few.

In an attempt to present an orderly array of these controllable functions, manufacturers introduced the concept of function control menus. In such well-known schemes, a menu is called up to the screen, and a particular function to be controlled, such as COLOR, is selected by the viewer for adjustment. Unfortunately, the menus soon grew too long for convenient screen display, and were expanded to include sub-menus allowing selection of related items. For example, selecting the menu item entitled VIDEO brings up yet another menu listing such related items as, BRIGHTNESS, CONTRAST, COLOR, TINT, SHARPNESS, COLOR TEMPERATURE, and VIDEO NOISE REDUCTION. While such an arrangement may seem straight-forward to a computer programmer, it may be extremely confusing, and even intimidating, to the average nontechnical user, who was quite happy to adjust the brightness of his receiver by turning a knob on the front panel, without having to wade through a mire of menus and submenus to accomplish that simple task. In many cases, complex hierarchical menus found on today's receivers must be searched from top to bottom in order to locate the desired function to be executed. It is noted that the location of commands within the hierarchy may have seemed "intuitively obvious" to the programmer, but may be confusing to the nontechnical user.

An on-screen User interface display, incorporates a means for generating a display of a plurality of hierarchically ordered menus. The menus include a current menu) and a preceding parent menu showing a selection path from the parent menu to the current menu. Also a menu selection item within the hierarchical menu display provides a User at least one of, a) a display of control information for the device, and b) control parameter data entry capability. The processing device also incorporates a means for updating the on-screen display in response to User menu item selection. The processing device may also include a means for altering the device operation in response to an updated operating parameter value. Also, the selection path may indicate menu entry and exit points separated by at least one intervening menu item.

 A control window for navigating and implementing menu selections in a multiple level hierarchical menu is provided having a first zone displaying a list of the selection levels and a second zone displaying a list of the selection options within a selection level. The second zone is refreshed with selections for another selection level in the menu hierarchy in response to a user implementation or registration of a selection option at the originally displayed selection level. Preset default settings in all selection levels permit the user to implement a "fast path" hierarchical menu selection.

Other tasks include operating Application programs, selecting audio/visual characteristics, selecting communication functions and obtaining help or User instructions from a manual, for example. A problem is presented by the need to devise a User interface for such devices that supports these complex User interactive tasks whilst providing a simple command interface suitable for the general public.

 

• Full multistandard for video and sound.

 The invention relates to a multi-standard television receiver in which a picture signal, contained in a television signal and modulated on a picture carrier, is converted to a picture signal intermediate frequency, and a stereo sound signal, or two-tone signal, contained in the television signal and modulated on two sound carriers, is converted to two first sound signal intermediate frequencies.

A picture signal converted to the IF position in a television receiver generally contains picture information components which are modulated on a picture carrier, as well as sound information components which are modulated on one or two sound carriers. Dependent on the transmission standard of the television signal, the frequency spacing between the picture carrier, on the one hand and the sound carrier(s), on the other hand, is chosen to be different. Known television receivers therefore comprise, after forming a second sound-IF, a plurality of filters at different central frequencies which filter the sound signals. For a multi-standard television receiver which, for example, is suitable for processing television signals of all known television standards, seven sound signal filters of this type are required. Dependent on the transmitted television standard and the frequency spacing between the sound carriers, one or more of these several filters are used.

In a multi-standard television receiver in which a picture signal contained in a television signal and modulated on a picture carrier is converted to a picture signal intermediate frequency, and a stereo sound signal or two-tone signal contained in the television signal and modulated on two sound carriers is converted to two first sound signal intermediate frequencies, it is ensured for possibly simple filtering of the sound signals, also at different frequency spacings between the picture carrier and the sound carriers, that two sound signal filters (8, 9) having a fixed, predetermined filter central frequency are provided for filtering the stereo sound signal, and that frequency shift circuitry (6) is provided which, in dependence upon the frequency spacing between the picture carrier of the television signal and its sound carriers, shifts the picture carrier contained in the picture signal converted to the IF position to such a frequency that the sound IF signals of the first sound intermediate frequencies mixed with this shifted picture carrier occur at two second sound signal intermediate frequencies which are filtered by the sound IF filters.

The NORDMENDE PRESTIGE 72 IMC 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.

At the time, the most commonly used color TV standards were 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.

 

• Stereo HIFI sound with high power output. (6 Speakers  internal system) and external connectorrs too.
  

 

• Color transient improvement.

 The NORDMENDE PRESTIGE 72 IMC   has CTI Picture Improvements circuitry with CTI (color transient Improvement describes the color transient improvement (CTI) involving the detection and sharpening the edges in chrominance.) 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.The present invention relates to a circuit for enhancing chrominance transitions in real-time video reception.

In the past analog commercial TV transmission standards, the limited bandwidth of the transmitted chrominance (or chrominance difference) signals causes the received images to have perceptibly blurred colour transition edges. This is especially evident if the received image contains geometrical patterns, e.g. test-colour bars, and results in the loss of detail detectable in complex multicoloured fine patterns.

In order to improve the quality of the received images, it is necessary to provide the receiver end with circuits capable of restoring, as far as possible, the frequency components in the chrominance signals which have been filtered away by the requirements of the reduced transmission bandwidth: in this way, the temporal duration of the chrominance transition edges, and thus the spatial extent of the chrominance transitions on the TV screen, can be reduced, and the edge definition improved. Circuits of this type are called "Color Transient Improvement" ("CTI") or Chrominance Transition Enhancement circuits.

An important constraint on chrominance transition enhancement circuits is the need to ensure that the center of the chrominance transition is unaffected by the enhancement process, so that the center of the chrominance transition after the enhancement process is still aligned with the center of the associated transition in the luminance signal. Also, it is necessary to leave gradual transitions in time unaltered; preserve, and possibly enhance, fine patterns; prevent the introduction in the image of additional distortions; and ensure that the existing noise components are not accentuated.

The picture resolution in contemporary television transmission systems is limited by the prescribed transmission bandwidth. The color difference signals are transmitted with a bandwidth which amounts to only approximately one fifth of the bandwidth of the luminance signal. The color resolution in the television picture is correspondingly low. This is more specifically noticeable at contours. The color transitions are even approximately five times longer than the associated luminance transitions corresponding to the smaller transmission bandwidth of the color difference signals.

• Video teletext with preferred pages off line storage programming feature.

 A television receiver which is suitable for displaying teletext pages comprises a control system including a microcomputer. The microcomputer is coupled to a volatile memory which comprises a plurality of page number registers. A page number can be temporarily stored in each of these registers. With the aid of a keyboard the user makes known which page numbers he wants to have stored in the different registers and the stored page numbers represent a first series of pages. One single read key (RCL) is provided for the display of such a page. Each time this key is depressed once, a different page belonging to the first series appears on the picture screen. The sequence in which the pages appear is the same as the sequence in which the user has keyed-in the relevant page numbers. This sequence can be interrupted by the occurrence of a preselected operating instruction in response to which a number of teletext pages not associated with said first series can be displayed on the picture screen. Thereafter, the display of the teletext pages of the first series can be continued.

The Teletext is a television-based communication technique in which a given horizontal video line is utilized for broadcasting textual and graphical information encoded in a digital binary representation. Such horizontal video line signal that contains teletext data is referred to herein as a Data-line. It is assumed herein, for explanation purposes, that teletext is sent by the broadcaster only during the vertical blanking interval (VBI), when no other picture information is sent. The organization of the binary information in the broadcast signal is determined by the standard employed by the broadcaster. By way of an example only, references are made herein to a teletext based on a standard referred to by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) as CEEFAX.

Each Data-line carries data synchronizing and address information and the codes for a Row of 40 characters. The synchronizing information includes a clock run-in sequence followed by an 8-bit framing code sequence. Each Data-line contains a 3 bit code referred to as the Magazine number. A teletext Page includes 24 Rows of 40 characters, including a special top Row called the Page-Header. Each ROW is contained in a corresponding Data-line. A user selected Page is intended to be displayed in place of, or added to a corresponding television picture frame. A Magazine is defined to include Pages having Data-lines containing a corresponding Magazine number. The transmission of a selected Page begins with, and includes its Page Header and ends with and excludes the next Page Header of the selected Magazine number. All intermediate Data lines carrying the selected Magazine number relate to the selected Page. 

• 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 !

• Headphone jack under a  lid accessible
  

 

• NORDMENDE PRESTIGE 72 IMC  Features the  THOMSON ICC5 chassis with many enhancements.
  

The THOMSON  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.

 

The set is build with a semi  Modular chassis design because as modern television receivers become more complex the problem of repairing the receiver becomes more difficult. As the number of components used in the television receiver increases the susceptibility to breakdown increases and it becomes more difficult to replace defective components as they are more closely spaced. The problem has become even more complicated with the increasing number of color television receivers in use. A color television receiver has a larger number of circuits of a higher degree of complexity than the black and white receiver and further a more highly trained serviceman is required to properly service the color television receiver.
Fortunately for the service problem to date, most failures occur in the vacuum tubes used in the television receivers. A faulty or inoperative vacuum tube is relatively easy to find and replace. However, where the television receiver malfunction is caused by the failure of other components, such as resistors, capacitors or inductors, it is harder to isolate the defective component and a higher degree of skill on the part of the serviceman is required.
Even with the great majority of the color television receiver malfunctions being of the "easy to find and repair" type proper servicing of color sets has been difficult to obtain due to the shortage of trained serviceman.
At the present time advances in the state of the semiconductor art have led to the increasing use of transistors in color television receivers. The receiver described in this application has only two tubes, the picture tube and the high voltage rectifier tube, all the other active components in the receiver being semiconductors.
One important characteristic of a semiconductor device is its extreme reliability in comparison with the vacuum tube. The number of transistor and integrated circuit failures in the television receiver will be very low in comparison with the failures of other components, the reverse of what is true in present day color television receivers. Thus most failures in future television receivers will be of the hard to service type and will require more highly qualified servicemen.
The primary symptoms of a television receiver malfunction are shown on the picture tube of the television receiver while the components causing the malfunction are located within the cabinet. Also many adjustments to the receiver require the serviceman to observe the screen. Thus the serviceman must use unsatisfactory mirror arrangements to remove the electronic chassis from the cabinet, usually a very difficult task. Further many components are "buried" in a maze of circuitry and other components so that they are difficult to remove and replace without damage to other components in the receiver.
Repairing a modern color television receiver often requires that the receiver be removed from the home and carried to a repair shop where it may remain for many weeks. This is an expensive undertaking since most receivers are bulky and heavy enough to require at least two persons to carry them. Further, two trips must be made to the home, one to pick up the receiver and one to deliver it. For these reasons, the cost of maintaining the color television receiver in operating condition often exceeds the initial cost of the receiver and is an important factor in determining whether a receiver will be purchased.
Therefore, the object of this invention is to provide a transistorized color television receiver in which the main electronic chassis is easily accessible for maintenance and adjustment. Another object of this invention is to provide a transistorized color television receiver in which the electronic circuits are divided into a plurality of modules with the modules easily removable for service and maintenance. The main electronic chassis is slidably mounted within the cabinet so that it may be withdrawn, in the same manner as a drawer, to expose the electronic circuitry therein for maintenance and adjustment from the rear closure panel after easy removal. Another aspect is the capability to be serviced at eventually the home of the owner.

 

• (To see the Internal Chassis Just click on Older Post Button on bottom page, that's simple !)
  
  
  
  
  NORDMENDE HISTORY

    Nordmende was a manufacturer of entertainment electronics based in Bremen, Germany.
  The original company, Radio H. Mende & Co, was founded in 1923 by Otto Hermann Mende (1885-1940) in Dresden. Following the destruction of the plant during the bombing raids in 1945, Martin Mende (the founder's son) created a new company in Bremen in 1947, in a former Focke-Wulf plant, under the name North German Mende Broadcast GmbH. The name was subsequently changed to Nordmende: subsequently the company became one of the prominent German manufacturers of radios, televisions, tape recorders and record players in the 1950s and 1960s.
  

  In the 1970s, Nordmende televisions were renowned for their innovative chassis, and for the rigorous testing and quality control of their finished products. Both created high costs, however, which soon proved a competitive disadvantage when the price of colour televisions began to plunge.
  In 1969, Mende's sons took over the company, and in 1977 a majority shareholding was sold to the French Thomson Brandt company and the chassis remains the original NordMende until CHASSIS F9. The following year, the family sold their remaining shares to Thomson. In the 1980s, the factories in Bremen were closed, Nordmende becoming purely a Thomson trademark (Starting from chassis F10 F11 they're all THOMSON).
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  In the 1990s, the name Nordmende was used with decreasing frequency, and it eventually disappeared in favour of the Thomson name. In 2005 Videocon Group acquired all cathode ray tube activities from Thomson. This led to the creation of VDC Technologies, which manufactures TV sets using the Nordmende brand under licence from Thomson.
  The Nordmende brand name was relaunched in Ireland in September 2008 by the KAL Group. Although Nordmende was well known for its televisions throughout Ireland during the 1970s and 1980s, the company bought the rights to the name and launched a range of white goods including fridges, freezers, washing machines, and dishwashers, alongside a revamped range of flat-screen TVs and stereos.
  
  
  
  
  

  The pre-war history can be found under Mende. After the total loss in Dresden, Martin Mende (Dec. 30, 1898-1982) founds Norddeutsche Mende-Rundfunk GmbH in Bremen-Hemelingen on August 26, 1947, with the assistance of Hermann Weber.
  
  

  • The first housings are supplied by a carpenter in Achim in exchange for five housings to make one radio set. The former Mende designer, Obering. Heer is again responsible for the equipment.
  • From July 27, 1948, the new company, first 18 and soon 60 people, supplies the new radio production on the basis of currency reform, loans and subcontracts.
  • The regime in East Germany does not allow the name Mende, so Martin Mende continues his pre-war success with graphic designs in connection with "Nord".
  • The hangars of the former Focke-Wulf AG near Seebaldsbrück station serve as workshops. In 1950, the company employs 700 people, in 1959 already 3500 and at its zenith 6300.
  • In 1950, the company starts with VHF, in 1953 with television and in 1954 with measuring and testing equipment. Towards the end of the 1950s, the company is called Norddeutsche Mende Rundfunk KG .

  
  Having not previously been involved with magnetic sound equipment, Nordmende launches the first German home tape recorder with three motors in 1958. However, other companies such as AEG/Telefunken and Grundig clearly dominate this sector. From Nordmende, only one or two devices (none in 1960) appear in the catalogs. But the company is successful with another new entry:
  
  
  In 1958, Nordmende introduces its first travel set, "Mambo" - but not "the first German, mass-produced and fully transistorized portable set," according to one source. After that, Nordmende becomes particularly strong in Germany in the travel set sector, although they did not build tube suitcases. After all, the 8 semiconductors used in "Mambo" then cost DM 98.70 at retail, while for the four D-tubes of the 90 series - even at the catalog price - about DM 35 would have to be spent. Price of the whole unit: DM 189.- plus two flat batteries of 4.5 V.
  
  Until 1969, there are about 92 models of portable radios (suitcase radios or "hand held radios"). For example, in the 1961/62 catalog, there are 11 table radios and radio furniture as well as 8 models of travel radios. 17 different television models, on the other hand, show where success was to be found in those days.
  
  According to ], Nordmende was even technically ahead for a short time with the so-called "Tippomatik operation". See also Philips etc.
  
  Also concert cabinets seem to be a mainstay for Nordmende in the late 50s to early 60s. The company repeatedly uses the same names like "Cabinet", "Caruso", "Casino", "Cosima" as well as "Arabella" and "Isobella" with changing additional numbers or the addition "Stereo", e.g. in 1959 and 1960/61.
  
  

  • In March 1967, the plant started production of color TV sets. For the company's anniversary, a series of sets called 'Golden 20' is published. In 1969, the Mende sons Karl and Hermann take over the management.
  • In 1977, increased competition leads to the sale of a majority stake to the French group Thomson-Brandt; the Mende family then withdraws completely from the company. Martin Mende dies in 1982.
  • In 1977, shares in the company were sold to the French Thomson-Brandt Group. A year later, the family also sold its remaining share in Thomson-Brandt.

  The Bremen-based company always consisted of two companies. Production was handled by Norddeutsche Mende Rundfunk KG; sales and advertising were handled by Nordmende Vertriebs GmbH & Co. oHG.
  
  
  

  • During Thomson's control, the production company changed its name several times: Norddeutsche AG für Unterhaltungselektronik & Co. oHG (NAGFU), later Deutsche AG für Unterhaltungselektronik & Co. oHG (DAGFU). DAGFU became the holding company for the German Thomson companies.
    

  • Production was transferred to Deutsche Elektronik-Werke GmbH (DEWEK), which was formed from Süddeutsche Elektronikwerke GmbH (SEWEK), the former SABA production company. In the late 1980s, DEWEK was merged with Norddeutsche Elektronikwerke GmbH (NEWEK), the Telefunken production company, to form Elektronik-Werke Deutschland GmbH (EWD). EWD later operated under the name Thomson Television Germany GmbH (TTG).

  • The sales company (oHG) was dissolved in the mid-1980s. Distribution in Germany was continued by Nordmende Vertriebs GmbH, which changed its name to Nordmende GmbH. Nordmende GmbH was merged with Telefunken Fernseh und Rundfunk GmbH with plants in Hanover and Celle, SABA GmbH, TTG and other companies in the mid-1990s to form Thomson Multimedia Sales GmbH.

  
  
  The other company involved in Nordmende Vertriebs GmbH & Co. oHG, Nordmende Verkaufs GmbH, changed its name to Nordmende International GmbH and, under the umbrella of European Consumer Electronics GmbH (ECE), held the trademark rights to Nordmende for the export business, while the export business itself was handled by ECE. Nordmende International GmbH was sold to Thomson Consumer Electronics S.A. in Paris in the mid-1990s, changed its name to Thomson Consumer Electronics GmbH and acquired a share in DAGFU, as a result of which DAGFU changed its name to Thomson Consumer Electronics GmbH & Co. oHG.
  
  
  Thomson's acquisition of Telefunken Fernseh und Rundfunk GmbH in Hanover in 1983 meant that all German Thomson production facilities now continued to operate under the name Elektronik Werke Deutschland (EWD).
  
  While at the Villingen-Schwenningen site of SABA (SEWEK), Thomson's complete television set development and chassis production (printed circuit boards) were combined and television production was discontinued, the Bremen plant advanced to become the headquarters of color television set assembly for Thomson's German and European subsidiary brands. Only Telefunken was still allowed to build its own sets with its own chassis at the Celle plant (closed in 1997) because of its strong position in the German market.
  
  Originally, Thomson had planned to close the Bremen site and abandon it completely. However, the company had not counted on the resistance of the employees and the support of the Bremen Senate and the great media response. Since Thomson already had a reputation in Germany as a "job killer" and did not want to put itself in a bad light again, the company backed down. Instead, production in Villingen-Schwenningen was closed and relocated to Bremen.
  
  Then, in the mid-1980s, the Bremen Thomson plant was also on the verge of going out of business. In 1987, the managing directors took over the company in a management buy-out. With the social plan funds from Thomson, an investment from the state-owned Hanseatische Industrie-Beteiligungen GmbH (HIBEG) and loans from leading Bremen banks, the television set and plastic parts production was continued with a greatly reduced workforce under the name Europart (the planned name was initially Eurotec).
  End of production
  
  At the end of the 1980s, after Thomson had stopped purchasing plastic parts from Europart for its television set production, which had been relocated in the meantime, the company plunged into a crisis from which it never recovered. The company's own developments were unable to establish themselves on the market in parallel with supplier production, so that despite rescue attempts by the Bremen Senate and a plant occupation lasting several weeks, the company went into insolvency because the banks had cancelled their credit lines.
  
  Nordmende brand under Thomson
  
  Immediately after acquiring the company, Thomson separated production and sales into two companies. While production was controlled directly from the headquarters in Paris, sales initially remained independent. The production of audio equipment was discontinued in Germany and relocated to France. After the closure of several factories in the Bremen area, the television production in Bremen and the Kit Center in Bremerhaven remained. At the Kit Center, kits were assembled for countries that required a domestic production content (local content).
  
  The main markets for Nordmende were Germany and Italy. Qualified specialist retailers were used as the sales channel in Germany and general importers for the export markets. After the export activities of the group brands Nordmende, Telefunken and SABA were combined under the umbrella of ECE GmbH in Hanover in 1987, domestic sales continued to operate independently from Bremen for several years.
  
  In the early 1990s, Thomson was forced to reorganize its domestic sales operations as a result of the cut-throat competition from low-cost large-scale sales organizations. The distribution of the Nordmende, Telefunken and SABA brands was centralized in Hanover. Brand families were established: SABA and Brandt (France) as price-oriented brands for the large-scale distribution forms, Telefunken as a quality brand for the retail trade, and Nordmende and Thomson (France) as design-oriented brands for the upper price segment.
  
  When the Thomson Group became involved in Germany, it avoided using the Thomson name for a long time, which was also expressed in company names such as SEWEK, EWD or DAGFU. In the 1990s, a change occurred. Various companies were rebranded with the Thomson name. As a final consequence, the Nordmende brand was also taken off the market and replaced by Thomson, which led to an even faster decline in Germany.
  Nordmende today
  
  Since the end of 2007, the Nordmende brand name has again appeared sporadically in connection with LCD televisions. The Indian consumer electronics group Videocon took over a television tube factory in Anagni, Italy, from the French Thomson Group, acquiring the trademark rights of the formerly traditional German brand Nordmende. The Phillar Group has been using the Nordmende name since 2008.
  
  In Italy in particular, design-oriented flat-screen televisions are sold under the Nordmende brand. Since 2014, the Nordmende brand name has also been used in connection with electronic hearing aid-like devices.
  
  In April 2017, TechniSat acquired the license to use the Nordmende brand for Germany, Austria, Switzerland as well as Poland from the brand owner Technicolor S.A.. The first Nordmende devices from the TV sets and DAB+ digital radios segments were presented at IFA 2017.

       
  
  NORDMENDE HISTORY IN GERMAN:
  
  Die Vorkriegsgeschichte findet sich unter Mende. Nach dem Totalverlust in Dresden gründet Martin Mende (30.12.1898-1982) unter Mitwirkung von Hermann Weber am 26. August 1947  in Bremen-Hemelingen die Norddeutsche Mende-Rundfunk GmbH.
  
  Die ersten Gehäuse liefert ein Tischler in Achim gegen Kompensation von fünf Gehäusen zu einem Rundfunkgerät. Der frühere Mende-Konstrukteur, Obering. Heer zeichnet wieder für die Geräte verantwortlich .
  
  Ab 27. Juli 1948 liefert die neue, zuerst 18 und bald 60 Personen umfassende Firma auf Grund von Währungsreform, Krediten und Zulieferverträgen die neue Radioproduktion.
  
  Das Regime in Ostdeutschland lässt den Namen Mende nicht zu, so dass Martin Mende mit grafischen Konstruktionen im Zusammenhang mit «Nord» an seinen Vorkriegserfolg anschliesst.
  
  Die Hallen der ehemaligen Focke-Wulf AG beim Bahnhof Seebaldsbrück dienen als Werkstätten. 1950 beschäftigt das Unternehmen 700, 1959 schon 3500 und im Zenit 6300 Personen.
  
  1950 beginnt die Firma mit UKW-, 1953 mit Fernseh- und 1954 mit Mess- und Prüfgeräten. Gegen Ende der 50er Jahre heisst die Firma Norddeutsche Mende Rundfunk KG .
  
  Nachdem sich Nordmende bislang nicht mit Magnettongeräten befasst hat, bringt das Werk 1958 das erste deutsche Heim-Tonbandgerät mit drei Motoren auf den Markt. Allerdings dominieren auf diesem Sektor eindeutig andere Firmen wie AEG/Telefunken und Grundig. Von Nordmende kommen jeweils nur ein bis zwei Geräte (1960 keines) in die Kataloge. Dafür hat die Firma Erfolg mit einem anderen Neueinstieg:
  
  
  1958 stellt Nordmende mit «Mambo» ihr erstes Reisegerät vor - aber nicht «das erste deutsche, serienmässig hergestellte und volltransistorisierte Koffergerät», wie man aus einer Quelle nachlesen kann. Danach wird Nordmende in Deutschland auf dem Sektor Reisegeräte besonders stark, obwohl sie keine Röhren-Koffer baute. Immerhin kosten die in «Mambo» verwendeten 8 Halbleiter dann im Einzelhandel DM 98.70, während für die vier D-Röhren der 90er-Serie - auch zum Katalogpreis - etwa DM 35.- auszugeben wären. Preis des ganzen Gerätes: DM 189.- plus zwei Flachbatterien von 4,5 V.
  
  Bis 1969 gibt es ca. 92 Modelle der tragbaren Radios (Koffer- bzw. «Handradios», d.h. «Hand held radios»). Beispielsweise finden sich im Katalog 1961/62  je 11 Tischradios und Radiomöbel sowie 8 Modelle von Reiseradios. 17 verschiedene Fernsehmodelle zeigen dagegen, wo in jener Zeit der Erfolg zu holen war.
  
  Gemäss ] liegt Nordmende während kurzer Zeit mit der sogenannten «Tippomatik-Bedienung» sogar technisch vorne. Siehe auch Philips etc.
  
  Auch Konzertschränke scheinen Ende der 50er bis Anfang 60er Jahre eine tragende Säule für Nordmende zu sein. Dabei verwendet die Firma immer wieder gleiche Namen wie «Cabinet», «Caruso», «Casino», «Cosima» sowie «Arabella» und «Isobella» mit wechselnden Zusatz-Nummern oder den Zusatz «Stereo», z.B. in den Jahren 1959 und 1960/61.
  
  Im März 1967 nimmt das Werk die Produktion von Farbfernsehgeräten auf. Zum Firmenjubiläum erscheint eine Gerätereihe mit der Bezeichnung 'Goldene 20'. 1969 übernehmen die Mende-Söhne Karl und Hermann die Geschäftsführung.
  
  1977 führt der verschärfte Wettbewerb zum Verkauf der Mehrheit an den französischen Konzern Thomson-Brandt; die Familie Mende zieht sich anschliessend ganz aus dem Unternehmen zurück. Martin Mende stirbt 1982.
  
  1977 wurden Anteile des Unternehmens an den französischen Thomson-Brandt-Konzern verkauft. Ein Jahr später veräußerte die Familie auch ihren verbliebenen Anteil an Thomson-Brandt.
  Das Bremer Unternehmen bestand stets aus zwei Gesellschaften. Die Produktion erfolgte bei der Norddeutsche Mende Rundfunk KG; den Vertrieb und die Werbung übernahm die Nordmende Vertriebs GmbH & Co. oHG.

  
  Während der Beherrschung durch Thomson änderte die Produktionsgesellschaft mehrfach ihren Namen: Norddeutsche AG für Unterhaltungselektronik & Co. oHG (NAGFU), später Deutsche AG für Unterhaltungselektronik & Co. oHG (DAGFU). Die DAGFU wurde zur Holding der deutschen Thomson-Gesellschaften.

  
  Die Produktion ging auf die Deutschen Elektronik-Werke GmbH (DEWEK) über, die aus der Süddeutschen Elektronikwerke GmbH (SEWEK), der ehemaligen SABA-Produktionsgesellschaft, entstanden ist. Ende der 1980er Jahre wurde die DEWEK mit der Norddeutschen Elektronikwerke GmbH (NEWEK), der Telefunken-Produktionsgesellschaft, zur Elektronik-Werke Deutschland GmbH (EWD) fusioniert. Die EWD firmierte später als Thomson Television Germany GmbH (TTG).

  
  Die Vertriebsgesellschaft (oHG) wurde Mitte der 1980er Jahre aufgelöst. Der Vertrieb in Deutschland wurde von der Nordmende Vertriebs GmbH fortgeführt, die sich in Nordmende GmbH umbenannte. Die Nordmende GmbH wurde Mitte der 1990er Jahre zusammen mit der Telefunken Fernseh und Rundfunk GmbH mit Werken in Hannover und Celle, der SABA GmbH, der TTG und anderen Gesellschaften zur Thomson Multimedia Sales GmbH verschmolzen.

  
  Die andere, an der Nordmende Vertriebs GmbH & Co. oHG beteiligte Gesellschaft, die Nordmende Verkaufs GmbH, firmierte in Nordmende International GmbH um und hielt unter dem Dach der European Consumer Electronics GmbH (ECE) die Markenrechte an Nordmende für das Export-Geschäft, während das Export-Geschäft an sich von der ECE wahrgenommen wurde. Die Nordmende International GmbH wurde Mitte der 1990er Jahre an die Thomson Consumer Electronics S.A. in Paris verkauft, firmierte in Thomson Consumer Electronics GmbH um und erwarb einen Anteil an der DAGFU, wodurch die DAGFU in Thomson Consumer Electronics GmbH & Co. oHG umfirmierte.

  
  Durch Thomsons Übernahme der Telefunken Fernseh und Rundfunk GmbH in Hannover im Jahr 1983 wurden nunmehr alle deutschen Thomson-Produktionsstätten unter dem Namen Elektronik Werke Deutschland (EWD) weitergeführt.
  
  Während am Standort Villingen-Schwenningen bei SABA (SEWEK) die komplette Fernsehgeräte-Entwicklung und Chassis-Produktion (Leiterplatten) von Thomson zusammengefasst und die Fernseher-Produktion aufgegeben wurde, avancierte das Bremer Werk zur Zentrale der Farbfernsehgerätemontage der deutschen und europäischen Thomson-Tochtermarken. Lediglich Telefunken durfte im Werk Celle (1997 geschlossen) wegen seiner starken Position am deutschen Markt noch eigene Geräte mit eigenem Chassis bauen.
  
  Ursprünglich hatte Thomson geplant, den Standort Bremen zu schließen und komplett aufzugeben. Der Konzern hatte jedoch nicht mit dem Widerstand der Beschäftigten und der Unterstützung durch den Bremer Senat und dem großen Medienecho gerechnet. Da Thomson in Deutschland bereits einen Ruf als „Jobkiller“ hatte und sich nicht erneut ins schlechte Licht rücken wollte, machte das Unternehmen einen Rückzieher. Stattdessen wurde die Produktion in Villingen-Schwenningen geschlossen und nach Bremen verlagert.
  
  Mitte der 1980er Jahre stand dann auch das Bremer Thomson-Werk vor dem Aus. 1987 übernahmen die Geschäftsführer im Zuge eines Management Buy Outs das Unternehmen. Mit den Sozialplan - Geldern von Thomson, einer Beteiligung der landeseigenen Hanseatischen Industrie-Beteiligungen GmbH (HIBEG) und Krediten führender Bremer Banken wurden die Fernsehgeräte- und Kunststoff teile produktion, mit einer stark reduzierten Belegschaft, unter dem Namen Europart (geplanter Name war zunächst Eurotec) fortgeführt.
  Ende der Produktion
  
  Nachdem Thomson Ende der 1980er Jahre seine Kunststoffteile für die inzwischen verlagerte Fernsehgeräte produktion nicht mehr von Europart bezog, stürzte das Unternehmen in eine Krise, von der es sich nicht mehr erholte. Eigene Entwicklungen konnten sich parallel zur Zulieferproduktion am Markt nicht etablieren, so dass das Unternehmen trotz der Rettungsversuche durch den Bremer Senat und einer mehrwöchigen Werksbesetzung in die Insolvenz ging, da die Banken ihre Kreditlinien gekündigt hatten.
  
  Marke Nordmende unter Thomson
  
  Unverzüglich nach Erwerb des Unternehmens trennte Thomson Produktion und Vertrieb in zwei Gesellschaften auf. Während die Produktion direkt von der Zentrale in Paris gesteuert wurde, blieb der Vertrieb zunächst eigenständig. Die Produktion von Audio-Geräten wurde in Deutschland eingestellt und nach Frankreich verlagert. Nach Schließung mehrerer Fabriken im Bremer Umland blieben die Fernsehproduktion in Bremen und das Kit Center in Bremerhaven übrig. Im Kit Center wurden Bausätze für Länder zusammengestellt, die einen inländischen Produktionsanteil (local content) forderten.
  
  Die Hauptmärkte für Nordmende waren Deutschland und Italien. Als Vertriebskanal in Deutschland wurde der qualifizierte Facheinzelhandel und für die Exportmärkte Generalimporteure genutzt. Nachdem die Exportaktivitäten der Konzernmarken Nordmende, Telefunken und SABA im Jahr 1987 unter dem Dach der ECE GmbH in Hannover zusammengefasst worden waren, agierte der Inlandsvertrieb noch einige Jahre eigenständig von Bremen aus.
  
  Durch den Verdrängungswettbewerb der preisgünstigen Großvertriebsformen sah sich Thomson Anfang der neunziger Jahre gezwungen, den Inlandsvertrieb neuzuordnen. Die Vertriebe der Marken Nordmende, Telefunken und SABA wurden in Hannover zentralisiert. Es wurden Markenfamilien gegründet: SABA und Brandt (Frankreich) als preisorientierte Marken für die Großvertriebsformen, Telefunken als Qualitätsmarke für den Einzelfachhandel sowie Nordmende und Thomson (Frankreich) als designorientierte Marken für das gehobene Preissegment.
  
  Als der Thomson-Konzern sich in Deutschland engagierte, wurde es lange Zeit vermieden, unter dem Namen Thomson aufzutreten, was sich auch in Gesellschaftsbezeichnungen wie SEWEK, EWD oder DAGFU ausdrückte. In den 1990er Jahren trat ein Wandel ein. Verschiedene Gesellschaften wurden mit dem Namensbestandteil Thomson umfirmiert. Als letzte Konsequenz wurde auch die Marke Nordmende vom Markt genommen und durch Thomson ersetzt, was zu einem noch schnelleren Niedergang in Deutschland führte.
  Nordmende heute
  
  Seit Ende 2007 taucht wieder vereinzelt der Markenname Nordmende in Zusammenhang mit LCD-Fernsehgeräten auf. Der indische Unterhaltungselektronik-Konzern Videocon hat von der französischen Thomson-Gruppe ein Fernsehröhrenwerk im italienischen Anagni übernommen und dabei die Markenrechte der ehemals deutschen Traditionsmarke Nordmende erworben. Seit 2008 verwendet die Phillar Group die Bezeichnung Nordmende.
  
  Besonders in Italien werden unter der Marke Nordmende gestaltungsorientierte Flachbild-Fernsehgeräte vertrieben. Seit 2014 wird der Markenname Nordmende auch im Zusammenhang mit elektronischen hörgeräteähnlichen Geräten verwendet.
  
  Im April 2017 erwarb TechniSat vom Markeninhaber Technicolor S.A. die Lizenz zur Nutzung der Marke Nordmende für Deutschland, Österreich, Schweiz sowie Polen. Zur IFA 2017 wurden die ersten Nordmende-Geräte aus den Segmenten TV-Geräte und DAB+-Digitalradios präsentiert.

  
  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.
  
  
  ...........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.
  
  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  
  
  

  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

Tote Marke NORDMENDE – Verblasster Stolz. Artikel im Manager-Magazin

• Ein neues Programm. Artikel in der Zeit
  Fernseher: Inder produzieren neue Nordmende. Artikel bei itespresso.de
  Videocon produziert Plasmaschirme für Nordmende. Artikel im pressetext.de
  Mende/Nordmende-Prospekte von 1938 bis 1985, auf hifi-archiv.info
  Nordmende | Ikonische Produkte
  

  Einzelnachweise:
  

• Spectra Color Studio und Spectra SK2 Color de Luxe Studio auf radiomuseum.org
• Michael Gassmann: Die Marke Nordmende kommt zurück. In: DIE WELT. 28. August 2017 (welt.de [abgerufen am 4. April 2020]). Company profile. Phillar, archiviert vom Original am 6. März 2008; abgerufen am 26. April 2013 (englisch).
• Broschüre – Sprachmanager24. Abgerufen am 5. Januar 2015.
• Marke Nordmende mit Digital- und Internetradios zurück, teltarif.de, Artikel vom 2. September 2017.

«Annual Report 2010». STMicroelectronics. Consultado el 17 de noviembre de 2011.
Castelletto en ST

http://www.st.com/content/st_com/en/contact-us.html#EUROPE

«SGS-Thomson Microelectronics Becomes STMicroelectronics | EE Times». EETimes. Consultado el 6 de julio de 2017.

Peter Robin Morris (1990). A History of the World Semiconductor Industry. The Institution of Engineering and Technology. ISBN 9780863412271.

Okada, Yoshitaka (2006). Struggles for Survival. Institutional and Organizational Changes in Japan's High-Tech Industries. Springer. ISBN 9784431288749.

Franco Malerba (1985). The Semiconductor Business: The Economics of Rapid Growth and Decline (Economics of Technological Change). Madison, University of Wisconsin Press. ISBN 9780299104603.

A., Hart, Jeffrey (1992). Rival capitalists : international competitiveness in the United States, Japan, and Western Europe. Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801499494. OCLC 25915223

• Eintrag im Handelsregister des Kantons Genf
• Volker Briegleb: Chiphersteller STMicroelectronics baut 1400 Jobs ab. In: Heise online. 28. Januar 2016. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2016.

• st.com: Company Information, abgerufen 24. Januar 2020 (englisch)
• Who We Are. STMicroelectronics, Januar 2017, abgerufen am 14. Oktober 2017 (englisch).
• STMicroelectronics Outlines Next Steps to Improve Cost Structure. (Nicht mehr online verfügbar.) 10. Juli 2007, archiviert vom Original am 13. Juli 2007; abgerufen am 29. Dezember 2015 (Pressemitteilung).
• Intel, STMicroelectronics, and Francisco Partners Establish a new leader in Flash memories. (Nicht mehr online verfügbar.) 22. Mai 2007, archiviert vom Original am 6. März 2008; abgerufen am 22. Mai 2007 (Pressemitteilung).
• STMicroelectronics Completes Acquisition of Genesis Microchip. (Nicht mehr online verfügbar.) 25. Januar 2008, archiviert vom Original am 10. März 2008; abgerufen am 9. Juni 2010 (englisch, Pressemitteilung).
• Gescheiterte Kooperation: Ericsson und STMicro lösen Joint Venture auf. In: www.handelsblatt.com. 18. März 2013, abgerufen am 24. Januar 2020.

 

 «China puts hopes in Loongson CPU». Linux.com | The source for Linux information (en inglés).