RCA is an American multinational trademark brand owned by Talisman Brands, Inc. which is used on products made by that company as well as

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainmen ...

Voxx International Voxx International is an American consumer electronics company founded as Audiovox Corporation in 1960, and renamed Voxx in 2012. It is headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company specializes in four areas: OEM and after-market automotive ...

and ON Corporation. 'RCA' is an abbreviation for the Radio Corporation of America, founded in 1919. The company became known as the

RCA Corporation The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

in 1969. RCA was purchased by

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...

in 1986 and its various divisions and assets were then liquidated.

Current users

At present, the RCA trademark is owned by Talisman Brand, Inc. d/b/a Established. since 2022, Though it generally no longer uses the brand directly, Talisman Brand, Inc. d/b/a Established. licenses the RCA trademark to other companies for use on various products along 10 different product lines: *

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

( RCA Victor): now licensed to

, which acquired the

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

through their former joint venture Sony BMG (2004–08). In 1987, BMG purchased RCA Records and several subsidiary and associated record labels directly from GE following the acquisition of the RCA Corporation, together with a perpetual license to use the various RCA brands and trademarks (including RCA's interest in the famous

Nipper Nipper (1884 – September 1895) was a dog from Bristol, England, who served as the model for an 1898 painting by Francis Barraud titled ''His Master's Voice''. This image became one of the world's best known trademarks, the famous dog-and-gr ...

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice (HMV) was the name of a major British record label created in 1901 by The Gramophone Co. Ltd. The phrase was coined in the late 1890s from the title of a painting by English artist Francis Barraud, which depicted a Jack Russ ...

trademark). As a perpetual license, it has survived both GE's sale of the brand name to Thomson and BMG's transfer of RCA Records and associated labels to Sony BMG and Sony Music. * RCA Telephones: Formerly manufactured by Thomson SA, sold in 2009 to Telefield North America * RCA Audio/Video: Manufactured by Voxx, produces RCA

DVD player A DVD player is a device that plays DVDs produced under both the DVD-Video and DVD-Audio technical standards, two different and incompatible standards. Some DVD players will also play audio CDs. DVD players are connected to a television to ...

video cassette recorder A videocassette recorder (VCR) or video recorder is an electromechanical device that records analog audio and analog video from broadcast television or other source on a removable, magnetic tape videocassette, and can play back the recordin ...

direct broadcast satellite Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location. The signals are received via an outdoor parabolic antenna comm ...

decoders,

camcorder A camcorder is a self-contained portable electronic device with video and recording as its primary function. It is typically equipped with an articulating screen mounted on the left side, a belt to facilitate holding on the right side, hot-swa ...

s, and audio equipment. (link on Voxx website) * RCA Accessories: Manufactured by Voxx, produces

Audio and video connector Audio connectors and video connectors are electrical or optical connectors for carrying audio or video signals. Audio interfaces or video interfaces define physical parameters and interpretation of signals. For digital audio and digital vide ...

remote control In electronics, a remote control (also known as a remote or clicker) is an electronic device used to operate another device from a distance, usually wirelessly. In consumer electronics, a remote control can be used to operate devices such a ...

s, keyboards,

Computer mice A computer mouse (plural mice, sometimes mouses) is a hand-held pointing device that detects two-dimensional space, two-dimensional motion relative to a surface. This motion is typically translated into the motion of a pointer (user interface ...

and television antennas. * RCA Televisions: Manufactured by Curtis International Ltd. (Canada) (Was ON Corporation) * RCA Car Stereo: Also known as RCA Mobile * RCA Appliances: Produces RCA brand Microwaves, refrigerators, and ranges marketed by Curtis International Ltd. (Canada) * RCA Computers: Produces RCA Computers marketed by American Future Technology Corporation * RCA Computer Tablets: RCA tablets manufactured by Alco Electronics Ltd. * RCA Projectors: Manufactured by Telefield * RCA Digital TV Box: Produces RCA Set-top Boxes marketed by Search Commercial Inc. (Philippines). * RCA Communication Systems:

Two-way radio A two-way radio is a radio that can both transmit and receive radio waves (a transceiver), unlike a broadcast receiver which only receives content. It is an audio (sound) transceiver, a transmitter and receiver in one unit, used for bidirection ...

sRCA Communication Systems
/ref> BMG (for the record labels) and Thomson (for the remaining businesses) bought those assets from

, which took over the RCA Corporation in 1986 and kept RCA's

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

broadcast television interests (GE sold off the NBC Radio Network and the NBC-owned radio stations). Initially, GE continued to own the RCA trademarks (including the

and Victor/Victrola trademarks which were then licensed to Thomson and Bertelsmann Music Group. Thomson eventually purchased the rights to the RCA trademarks from GE in 2003 subject to the perpetual license GE had issued to BMG. In December 2006, Thomson SA agreed to sell its consumer electronics accessory business, including rights to use the RCA name for consumer electronic accessories, to Audiovox On October 16, 2007, Thomson SA agreed to sell its consumer electronics audio video business outside Europe including the worldwide rights to the RCA Brand for consumer electronics audio video products In April 2010, ON Corporation took over distribution of RCA branded TVs. Bertelsmann AG was new to the RCA family (though the creation of Sony BMG is similar to that of

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...

more than 70 years earlier). Sony took full ownership of Sony BMG in 2008 and the record company was renamed Sony Music. Thomson started as the French subsidiary of Thomson-Houston Electric, a company which later evolved into General Electric. In 2022, Technicolor sold the trademark and licensing rights to the RCA brand and logos to Talisman Brands, Inc.

Sponsorship

RCA sponsored the

Argentinian Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish ( masculine) or ( feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, ...

football club

San Lorenzo de Almagro Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro, commonly known as San Lorenzo de Almagro or simply San Lorenzo (in English: ''Saint Lawrence''), is a sports club of Argentina in the Boedo district of Buenos Aires. It is best known for its football team ...

from 2005 until 2007, and the

football club Estudiantes de La Plata from 2008 to mid-2011. It currently sponsors Racing, another first division Argentinean football club. In the mid-1990s, RCA bought the naming rights to the Hoosier Dome (the original home of the Indianapolis Colts). The stadium became the RCA Dome and was known as such until it was demolished in December 2008 when the Colts departed for the new Lucas Oil Stadium and the

Indiana Convention Center The Indiana Convention Center is a major convention center located in Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. The original structure was completed in 1972 and has undergone five expansions. In total, there are 71 meeting rooms, 11 exhibit halls, and th ...

was expanded onto the RCA Dome footprint. RCA was the main sponsor for the #98 Cale Yarborough Racing

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

team between 1995 and 1997.

References

{{Reflist

External links

RCA website

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

2022 mergers and acquisitions