Videokarma.org

Go Back   Videokarma.org TV - Video - Vintage Television & Radio Forums > Solid State CRT Televisions

We appreciate your help

in keeping this site going.
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #16  
Old 01-15-2019, 06:59 PM
davet753's Avatar
davet753 davet753 is offline
David Thomas
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Knoxville, TN
Posts: 443
Quote:
Originally Posted by Telecolor 3007 View Post
Well, then what where the reasons for U.S.A. tv industry (and generally electronic consumer industry) went down?
Our conversation has drifted from the OP, but that's all right, it's been interesting.

I think the TV industry decline was multi-faceted. In the 1970's, the American brands focused on gaudy, plastic-filled, pressboard console televisions and entertainment centers while the foreign brands tended towards modern styled table models and portables. By the 1980's, consumer tastes moved away from the cheap furniture models the American brands were pushing towards the sleek styling of the imports.

In the 1980's, the import brands started innovating and were neck-and-neck with their American counterparts. Dumping hurt the small American players by the 70's, and we saw once proud brands like Motorola, Westinghouse, Admiral, and the like shrinking or selling out.

Several import TV manufacturers also done a good job of improving their quality and dependability in the 1970's, which surely helped their sales improve.

I also think evolving views on buying imported goods came about in the 60's and 70's. A good many of the older generation wouldn't have bought anything Japanese as long as there was an American made option. Lots of families who lost loved ones in WW2 would have never consider driving a Japanese or German car, but as they say, time heals all wounds.

Somebody posted a youtube link about what part Nixon's trade policies played. That's an interesting angle I hadn't considered before, so I'll watch that.
Reply With Quote
  #17  
Old 01-16-2019, 09:01 PM
bgadow's Avatar
bgadow bgadow is offline
VideoKarma Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Federalsburg, MD
Posts: 5,814
I think quite a few factors added up to kill the industry in the US. Some others: once, independent TV shops were where most folks would go to by a set, and they stuck to the domestic brands. (Something they could service easily.) As time went on more and more people would buy from department stores, especially discounters like Kmart. It was one thing if the price difference was small, or the quality gap was wide, but in time it became more difficult to justify the cost. I was given a 19" Midland from about '77 that I think was from Korea (Gold Star? Can't remember for sure) I recall thinking that, while it might not have put out quite as good a picture as a new Zenith CC or System III, for the cost savings it would have been worthwhile. By that time pretty much anybody could crank out a color set with a decent picture.

The American electronics industry really needed a "next big thing" to stay alive once solid state color TV became a commodity in late 70's. That should have been the VCR but RCA/Ampex sold the technology to Japan. RCA tried to make the next big thing the CED and Zenith tried home computers & HDTV but the world had passed them by.
__________________
Bryan
Reply With Quote
  #18  
Old 01-16-2019, 10:57 PM
Electronic M's Avatar
Electronic M Electronic M is offline
M is for Memory
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Pewaukee/Delafield Wi
Posts: 14,743
Quote:
Originally Posted by bgadow View Post
I think quite a few factors added up to kill the industry in the US. Some others: once, independent TV shops were where most folks would go to by a set, and they stuck to the domestic brands. (Something they could service easily.) As time went on more and more people would buy from department stores, especially discounters like Kmart. It was one thing if the price difference was small, or the quality gap was wide, but in time it became more difficult to justify the cost. I was given a 19" Midland from about '77 that I think was from Korea (Gold Star? Can't remember for sure) I recall thinking that, while it might not have put out quite as good a picture as a new Zenith CC or System III, for the cost savings it would have been worthwhile. By that time pretty much anybody could crank out a color set with a decent picture.

The American electronics industry really needed a "next big thing" to stay alive once solid state color TV became a commodity in late 70's. That should have been the VCR but RCA/Ampex sold the technology to Japan. RCA tried to make the next big thing the CED and Zenith tried home computers & HDTV but the world had passed them by.
We had cartrivision and some other formats, but without Japan we never would have had the VCR as we knew it. Hollywood and big networks would have bullied any domestic builder out of the market or made them make a product no consumer would have particularly wanted: a VCR that could not record TV.
We threw a decent amount of shit at the wall on video recording tech, and so did the Japanese, but they made it stick.
__________________
Tom C.

Zenith: The quality stays in EVEN after the name falls off!
What I want. --> http://www.videokarma.org/showpost.p...62&postcount=4
Reply With Quote
  #19  
Old 01-17-2019, 12:11 PM
dieseljeep dieseljeep is offline
VideoKarma Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 7,562
Quote:
Originally Posted by bgadow View Post
I think quite a few factors added up to kill the industry in the US. Some others: once, independent TV shops were where most folks would go to by a set, and they stuck to the domestic brands. (Something they could service easily.) As time went on more and more people would buy from department stores, especially discounters like Kmart. It was one thing if the price difference was small, or the quality gap was wide, but in time it became more difficult to justify the cost. I was given a 19" Midland from about '77 that I think was from Korea (Gold Star? Can't remember for sure) I recall thinking that, while it might not have put out quite as good a picture as a new Zenith CC or System III, for the cost savings it would have been worthwhile. By that time pretty much anybody could crank out a color set with a decent picture.

The American electronics industry really needed a "next big thing" to stay alive once solid state color TV became a commodity in late 70's. That should have been the VCR but RCA/Ampex sold the technology to Japan. RCA tried to make the next big thing the CED and Zenith tried home computers & HDTV but the world had passed them by.
In the fall of 1967 Allied Radio advertised a 15" Midland color portable, Built by Sharp for the price of $177.00. The paper where the ad was posted came out about 3:00Pm. All the stores in our area were sold out by 7:00 PM.
The picture was better than the PortaColor , larger and less expensive.
They were rather trouble-prone as they got older.
Reply With Quote
  #20  
Old 01-17-2019, 03:21 PM
Sandy G's Avatar
Sandy G Sandy G is offline
Spiteful Old Cuss
 
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Rogersville, Tennessee
Posts: 9,571
One of the few things the Porta Potty had going for it was that you couldn't kill one. I'm sure the parts WEREN'T Mil-Spec, but my dad got ours the 1st year they were out it lasted til '72 or '73 & had been to the local TV shop ONCE, after being on virtually 18 hours a day, 7 days a week.
__________________
Benevolent Despot
Reply With Quote
Audiokarma
Reply


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 02:32 AM.



Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
©Copyright 2012 VideoKarma.org, All rights reserved.