

It will focus on health and lighting products










Source: The Wall Street Journal

Comments     Threshold


RE: I hate that
By theapparition on 1/30/2013 9:38:29 AM , Rating: 2
RCA as a company was sold to GE who also spun off the consumer branding of RCA to Thompson Electronic.

But the industrial/government side of RCA's business went to GE, then Martin Marietta, then to Lockheed Martin.

Who/where the consumer brand "RCA" is now I have no idea and don't feel like looking it up. It's quite possible some French owned company has the rights to distribute products under the RCA name. But it's sure not RCA anymore, which I hate.

Exactly like the Philips name and countless other brands. You think you are buying a brand with some history and perceived quality when you are not. In reality, the product could be made by a Chinese sweatshop opened last week with zero quality that is contracted by an anonymous company who just so happens to own the rights to the brand name.

RE: I hate that
By Motoman on 1/30/2013 10:46:59 AM , Rating: 2
Welcome to the real world. It's been a long time since many "old" brands made their own products. At least, all of their own products.

Go to Target and see LCD TVs branded Polaroid, Westinghouse, Emerson, whatever...those companies have no facilities at all to actually make such things. I'm not sure they have any facilities of their own at all anymore, come to think of it.

But, there's value in the brand name if nothing else, which is why people will continue to purchase products thusly branded. If you saw 2 identical TVs at the store, one at $400 branded ChongQing and one at $500 branded Polaroid, you're fairly likely to splurge the extra $100 for the Polaroid name - even if both TVs literally rolled off the same assembly line.

Which is why, when shopping for such things, I tell people that if money is an object then just pick out the TV you want based on it's features and price. If you've got unlimited funds, then sure - go buy the super-high-end stuff that Sony etc. are making. Otherwise...don't even pay any attention to the brand name.

RE: I hate that
By theapparition on 1/31/2013 9:47:18 AM , Rating: 2
Agree completely.

You and I both know how these things work. But average consumers don't, and think they are getting something of higher perceived quality than it really is.

