Tandberg

Company profile[edit]

Norwegian manufacturer founded in Oslo in 1933 by Vebjørn Tandberg (founder and namesake of the Tandberg Radio Factory, 1904 -1978). He started in Oslo in January 1933 in a room of only 40 square meters. The business initially involved the development, production and sale of loudspeakers and radios. He started with three employees. In the same year he moves to Grünerløkka. The premises there were 120 square meters. The first products are loudspeakers, but already in the first year the first battery-powered radio is produced. 1934 Huldra 1 goes into production, the world's first mass-produced radio. 1936 Super Silver 1 and Super Akku 1 follow. The company moves to Rodeløkka in 1937. The size of the company was now 600 m² and was expanded to 2,000 m² in 1939. In 1941 the German occupation forces banned radio listening in Norway and the production of radio receivers stagnated. The ban was lifted on August 1941, and production was thus able to continue as far as possible during the following years of the war. In 1945 Tandberg Radio was transformed into a joint-stock company. The post-war economic situation caused a further decline in sales of radio receivers and the company worked on a new product, a tape recorder for the general public. In 1950 the first export order for battery radios came to Turkey. In 1952 Tandberg produced the first tape recorder. The model 12 (below), at that time for 1570, - DM to buy. An outrageous price at that time and rather intended for professional use. 4000 units were sold in the course of the year. 1954 the first FM (frequency modulated) radio receiver, Silver Super 6 FM, is launched in conjunction with Norway's first VHF transmitter. 1956 The Hi-Fi receiver Huldra 5 is launched. Vebjørn Tandberg decided to develop TV receivers. 1957 the first stereo tape decks are manufactured and exported. 1958 the first TV receivers are manufactured and marketed. 1960 the first subsidiary outside Norway is established in Sweden. In 1963 a subsidiary follows in Finland, in 1964 in Denmark and later, in 1966, in the Netherlands. In 1965 the stereo receiver Huldra 8 was launched. Huldra 8 was the first receiver from Tandberg to use transistors (germanium transistors) in addition to tubes. In 1967 the export share of Tandberg products was already 50%. The successor of the Huldra 8, Huldra 9 (1969) had a flatter housing. It was the first receiver to feature the design of a new generation of receivers. 1969 Tandberg Management Company of America Inc. is founded with its own production facility for the manufacture of printed circuit boards. 1970 The first CTV receiver developed in Norway is produced. The company works on the first computer product. The Nette Radio Company, the oldest radio factory founded in 1927, acquires shares in Tandberg for financial support. In 1971 a subsidiary is established in Austria. The first digital tape drive for connection to larger computer systems is introduced. 1972 Tandberg Radio acquires Radio Nette. Radio Nette had suffered a substantial financial loss since 1969, DM 3.7 million in 1972 alone. Tandberg receives the Norwegian Export Award in 1971. 1975 The Production Company is founded in Haddington, Scotland for the production of CTV. In 1976 a subsidiary is established in San Diego, USA for the development, production and distribution of computer products. 1977 The sales companies in Norway, Sweden and Denmark are merged. The sales company in Norway becomes Tandberg Nette Radio A/S. The sales companies Tandberg Radio A/S and Radio Nette Radio Factory are merged. Due to constant expansion and investments, Tandberg slowly got into financial difficulties. The board of directors at the time was responsible. At the annual general meeting in 1978, the board of directors determined that the company was insolvent. A call for help from the government to contribute financially to save the company was unsuccessful. On 13.12.1978, the General Assembly unanimously decides to instruct the Board of Directors to file for bankruptcy of the company. The radios and later receivers, until the end of the 60s, were called Huldra (Nymph). From the beginning of the 70s, the abbreviations: TR, e.g. for receiver, TD: deck (tape recorder), TCD, cassette deck, etc. were introduced.

Products[edit]

Weblinks[edit]

Retrieved from "https://hifi-wiki.com/index.php?title=Tandberg&oldid=172704"