Polygram, Decca and DG: Chronology

Landmarks

This chronology is indicative only. It covers -

Beginnings

1847 Werner Siemens and Johann Halske form Telegraphen-Bau-Anstalt Von Siemens & Halske, foundation of Siemens group

1879 Mix & Genest founded

1883 Deutsche Edison Gesellschaft (DEG) founded by Emil Rathenau, licences Edison's electrical patents

1885 launches gramophone and record operations

1887 DEG becomes Allgemeine Elektrizitäts Gesellschaft (AEG)

1889 Gerard Philips becomes AEG representative in The Netherlands

1891 founds Koninklijke Philips (Philips) as light globe manufacturer

1893 AEG forms Elektrochemische Werke

1894 Columbia Graphophone (later Columbia Gramophone) founded in US

1895 Deutsche Edison Phonographen Gesellschaft founded in Berlin

1895 AEG forms Bank für Elektrische Unternehmungen in Switzerland

1896 Siemens forms Schweizerische Gesellschaft für Elektrische Industrie in Switzerland

1897 Siemens electrical and engineering interests consolidated as Siemens & Halske AG

1898 AEG's Chemische Fabrik Elektron merges with Chemische Fabrik Griesheim to form Griesheim Elektron

1898 AEG forms Aluminium Industrie Neuhausen

1898 Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft (DG) founded by Emile Berliner as offshoot of New York-based Berliner Gramophone Company (later The Gramophone Company)

1899 AEG and Siemens form Accumulatoren-Fabrik AG (AFA)

1901 Victor Talking Machine Co founded

1903 Siemens and AEG found Telefunken

1903 Siemens takes over Schuckert & Co

1904 AEG absorbs Union Elektrizitäts Gesellschaft, makes patent-sharing agreement with GE

1910 AEG becomes aircraft manufacturer

1910 buys Lahmeyer dynamo works

1912 Siemens buys S Bergmann electrical group

1914 Barnett Samuel & Sons Ltd launches Decca Dulcephone gramophone

1915 AEG sells Berlin generating operations (BEW) to city

1917 DG expropriated from The Gramophone Company, comes under control of Polyphon Musikwerke

1919 Siemens, AEG and Auer form Osram joint venture

1920 Siemens and Stinnes form Siemens-Rheinelbe-Schuckert-Union (SRSU) joint venture

1922 assassination of Walther Rathenau

1923 AEG renews strategic alliance with GE

1923 Siemens-Schuckertwerke and Japan's Furukawa group form Fuji Denki Seizo KK joint venture

1924 Siemens renews alliance with Westinghouse, abandons SRSU

1924 Music Corporation of America (MCA) talent agency founded

1924 Philips buys radio manufacturer Nederlandsche Seintoestellen Fabriek, establishes recording studio

1925 Griesheim becomes part of IG Farben

1927 GE takes 20% stake in Philips

1927 AEG and Siemens form Vereinigte Eisenbah-Signal Werke (VES)

1929 Decca records founded in UK

1929 licenses H.W. van Zoelen as distributor in the Netherlands

1929 GE buys 16.66% of Osram for US$8.8m

1929 increases stake in AEG to 25%

1929 AEG and Siemens form Klangfilm joint venture to compete with AT&T's Western Electric film interests

1929 Radio Corporation of America (RCA) merges with Victor Talking Machine Company

1931 van Zoelen forms Hollandsche Decca Distributie (HDD) as exclusive Decca distributor for Netherlands and Dutch colonies, later expands into recording and manufacture

1933 Philips establishes record manufacturing

1935 DG becomes German licensee for Decca

1935 Fuji Denki establishes Fuji Telecommunications (later Fujitsu)

1935 AEG absorbs Borsig locomotive operations

1940 Flugmotorenwerks der Siemens & Halske A spun off to Luftfahrtgerätewerk Hakenfelde

1941 AEG stakes in DG, Klangfilm, Bergmann and VES acquired by Siemens

1941 Siemens sells Telefunken stake to AEG, AEG gains control of Telefunken-Schallplatte record company

1942 Philips buys HDD for 300,000 guilders

1945 Siemens stake in Fuji Electric and Fuji Telecommunications confiscated

1945 Irving Green, Berle Adams and Arthur Talmadge found Mercury Records

1948 Columbia introduces LP record

1950 Philips consolidates recording interests as Philips Phonografische Industrie (PPI)

1951 Columbia ends international distribution agreement with EMI

1951 Columbia licenses PPI as distributor outside the US, PPI licenses Columbia as its distributor within US

1952 Philips buys back GE's 20% stake

1952 Philips develops prototype computer

1952 Heinz Nixdorf founds Nixdorf Computer

1952 Universal International film group acquired by Decca Records

1959 Fuji Telecommunications becomes Fujitsu

1960 PPI buys Mercury records

1961 Columbia ends PPI alliance, establishes own European network

1961 PPI buys Melodica records of Italy

1962 Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss form A&M Records

1962 Decca sells Universal to MCA

GPG

1962 Philips and Siemens form Gramophon-Philips Group (GPG) joint venture - Philips takes 50% stake in DG, Siemens takes 50% stake in PPI

1963 Philips introduces compact cassette

1967 GPG buys RSO (UK)

1967 Siemens transfers appliance operations to joint venture with Bosch

1968 GPG buys Chappell Music Publishing

1969 AEG merges with Telefunken as AEG-Telefunken

1969 Siemens and AEG-Telefunken form Kraftwek Union

1970 Robert Stigwood floats Robert Stigwood Organisation (RSO)

Polygram founded

1972 GPG replaced by Polygram, combining Philips and Siemens interests

1972 Polygram buys MGM Records and Verve from MGM

1972 Philips transfers Mercury to Polygram

1972 Siemens sells Siemens-BauUnion to Dyckerhoff & Widmann

1972 sells Siemens-Planiawerke

1973 buys United Distribution Corporation (UDC)

1976 becomes international distributor for MCA and Twentieth Century Records

1976 buys RSO for US$8m

1976 establishes Polygram Video

1976 Siemens buys AEG stake in Osram

1977 Polygram buys 50% of Casablanca Film & Record Works (US)

1977 Siemens buys AEG stake in Kraftwerk Union

1978 buys GE stake in Osram

1978 Polygram takes stake in France's Barclay records

1978 Philips launches laser video disk

1979 Polygram acquires Decca

1979 buys London Records

1979 AEG-Telefunken declares bankruptcy, rescued by banks

1980 Polygram buys rest of Casablanca

1981 compact disk launched

1982 AEG acquired by Daimler-Benz

1983 US Federal Trade Commission and German cartel office forbid merger of Polygram and Warner Music

1983 Philips acquires 40% of Polygram from Siemens

1985 MCA buys Chess records

1987 Philips buys Siemens' remaining 10% in Polygram

1987 Polygram Pictures closed

1987 Polygram buys 49% of Go!Discs

1987 Chappell Music sold to Warner for US$275m

1989 Philips floats 16% of PolyGram on Amsterdam bourse (valuing Polygram at US$5.6bn)

1989 PolyGram buys A&M Records from Alpert & Moss for US$500m

1989 buys Dick vs James music publishing

1989 buys Cedarwood music publishing

1989 buys Welk music publishing

1989 buys Sweden Music publishing

1989 buys Island Records for £272m

1989 takes stake in Working Title Films

1990 Sony rival Matsushita buys MCA for US$6.1bn

1990 MCA buys Geffen records

1990 Nixdorf acquired by Siemens

1991 Polygram buys Sonet and Polar

1991 takes 30% stake in Andrew Lloyd-Webber's Really Useful group

1992 MCA buys Uptown Records for US$50m

1992 Polygram buys Kitty Music publishing

1992 takes 51% stake in Interscope Communications

1992 forms Gramercy Pictures joint venture with Universal

1992 buys 50% of Teddy Polly Films, Hong Kong

1993 MCA buys Motown records

1993 Philips floats further 9% of Polygram

1993 Polygram buys out Matsushita from Nippon Phonogram and Polydor Japan joint ventures

1993 buys remaining shares in Working Title Films

1994 MCA buys Def Jam

1994 Seagram buys 14.5% stake in Time Warner

1995 MCA buys Rodven (Venezuela)

1995 Seagram sells Du Pont stake, buys MCA from Matsushita for US$5.7bn and renames it Universal Studios

1995 Polygram buys remaining Interscope shares

1995 buys Vision Video, Abbey Home Entertainment and ITC Entertainment Group

1996 buys Universal's stake in Gramercy Pictures

1996 forms Sundance Channel with Robert Redford and Showtime

1998 CGE group renamed Vivendi

1998 Daimler-Benz takes over Chrysler as DaimlerChrysler

Acquired by Seagram

1998 Philips sells PolyGram to Seagram for US$10.4bn. Seagram consolidates its recording interests in Universal Music Group

1999 Siemens spins off Nixdorf

Vivendi and beyond

2000 Vivendi acquires Seagram for US$34bn, becomes Vivendi Universal

2004 Siemens buys BBC Technology

2006 Philips buys Lifeline Systems for US$690m