Philips DS9/37 Product brochure - Page 5

Speech by Dutch Queen Wihelmina and Princess Juliana via a Philips short-wave transmitter, 1927. The radio goes global A radio valve featuring five electrodes - the pentode - was the next major development by Philips, introduced in 1927. It was an invention which was to stay at the forefront of electronics for a number of years - this was an electron tube with high output power which could be controlled in such a way as to minimize signal distortion - a step towards the purest sound Philips has always strived for. In 1927 the Dutch Queen Wilhelmina and Princess Juliana were able to speak to their compatriots in the East and West Indies via a Philips short-wave transmitter which had been set up in a laboratory.The first ever of its kind, it was greeted with national excitement. Encouraged by this, Philips set up a world broadcasting service - the N.V. Philips Omroep Holland-Indie. To demonstrate the sensation of radio sound on a large scale, Philips set up amplifiers with a large number of loudspeakers at public events. What became known as the 'Voice of the Giant' caused a tremendous stir. Philips continued to enrich the everyday lives of people when it developed and brought to market a small domestic radio set in 1928.This was released at the same time as the most powerful transmitter in the world, also built by Philips.These radio sets would soon be found in homes all around the world, as Philips brought quality sound to the masses.The one millionth Philips radio set was produced in 1932 and the hundred millionth radio valve, produced in 1933, meant Philips was now Europe's biggest manufacturer of radio valves, and the world leader in radio sets. 5 A legend of the recording industry Philips has a strong heritage in recording which began with the acquisition of Hollandsche Decca Distributie (HDD), the exclusive Dutch distributor of Decca Records in 1942. Whilst Philips had produced gramophones for some time, the management wanted to ensure that the company also had an interest in recording and record manufacture and so in 1950 Philips Phonografische Industrie (PPI) was formed. PPI played an important role in introducing the long-playing vinyl (LP) record to Europe and it had a worldwide distribution deal with Mercury Records. With the goal of becoming the largest record company in Europe, PPI focused on alliances, and in 1962 merged with Deutsche Grammophone Gesellschaft (DGG), famed for its classical repertoire and owner of Polydor Records. By 1972, the merged company GPG would reinvent itself as PolyGram and Polydor Records in the US, acquiring a range of famous American and British labels such as MGM Records,Verve, Casablanca, Pickwick and Decca.The height of Polygram's success was during the disco craze of the 1970s, thanks to multi-million selling LPs and 45s from artists such as The Bee Gees, Donna Summer,The Village People, Kool & the Gang and soundtracks for blockbuster films Grease and Saturday Night Fever. For a short while it was the world's biggest record company bolstered by acquisitions of other famous labels such as Motown, Def Jam and Polar, which held rights to the ABBA catalogue. Sadly, the company's fortunes dwindled and it was sold to Seagram in 1998 to become Universal Music. It survives to this day thanks to the reissue of music under the Polydor Records label. Philips Phonografische Industrie (PPI) and gramophone records, 1950s. 6