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February 1939 Radio-Craft
 [Table
of Contents]
Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics.
See articles from Radio-Craft,
published 1929 - 1953. All copyrights are hereby acknowledged.
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"The situation is one that is
difficult, if not wholly impossible to eradicate, because of all modern, 20th Century
machine age products, the radio receiver of today undergoes more violent and more
radical changes than almost any other single item we can think of." That was the
lament of electronics inventor, publisher, and industry visionary Hugo Gernsback
in 1939! He wrote in the February issue of Radio-Craft magazine of the
practice of electronics component manufacturers vastly overproducing products and
then, when they are quickly obsoleted due to newer better ones entering the market
space, selling at below cost in hopes of recovering at least some of their investment.
For a man who otherwise encouraged, welcomed, and participated in the pushing forward
of technological frontiers, the attitude seem strangely at odds with his raison
d'être. "This 'dog eat dog' process has gone on ever since and will probably go
on for a long time to come." He had no idea ... or maybe he did.
Radio Dumping
 By the Editor - Hugo Gernsback
Ever since Radio started, long before we had radio receivers and when the only
radio business was the parts business, the radio industry was beset by the "dumping"
problem. It has been with us ever since. In those days, particularly when the radio
boom started in the early '20's a radio parts manufacturer would get a bright idea,
let us say for a new type of radio condenser. He would manufacture 50,000 or 100,000
of them and sell a good many during the Season. Then suddenly someone else would
come along and make a different condenser that was thought to be more up-to-date.
Immediately the first condenser became obsolete and sales through normal channels
and at popular prices rapidly declined; so in order to get at least part of his
investment back, the manufacturer would dump the condenser, often below cost price,
to get rid of it and salvage at least part of his investment. This sort of thing
has kept up ever since and the evil is still with us.
There are few parallels in modern industry that can show such a record where
year after year an industry throws upon the market its product to be sacrificed
at whatever it may bring. The situation is one that is difficult, if not wholly
impossible to eradicate, because of all modern, 20th Century machine age products,
the radio receiver of today undergoes more violent and more radical changes than
almost any other single item we can think of.
Perhaps the nearest parallel product is the automobile which also undergoes many
changes year by year, but for some reason or other the automobile industry as a
whole is not so much concerned with the dumping problem as is the radio industry.
For one thing, an automobile is a much more expensive item, secondly prices are
not openly slaughtered as are radio prices and if any so-called "dumping" is attempted
at all it is usually accomplished by allowing the purchaser of a new, but last year's
model car, a larger trade-in value on his present car.
Many manufacturers in the radio set industry today do not resort to such subtleties,
but when they become convinced that their radio receiver is no longer saleable through
regular channels the surplus is simply dumped on the market through the jobbing
and retail trade for whatever prices they will bring.
This condition particularly becomes aggravated when a number of manufacturers
attempt drastic changes. Years ago the radio receiver had as many as 10 controls
on the front panel - all of which you had to manipulate in order to get your station.
Everyone was happy, until one manufacturer came out with a set that had only 2 or
3 controls. Naturally the public took kindly to this type of set, which immediately
sounded the death knell of the other sets not so equipped. This "dog eat dog" process
has gone on ever since and will probably go on for a long time to come. When, for
instance, the radio sets last year came out with pushbutton control there was a
stampede by practically all manufacturers for pushbutton control. This immediately
made the other sets that had no such control obsolete and they in turn had to be
dumped for whatever they could bring. If the trend for the coming year will be remote
"wireless" control then the pushbutton control sets in turn will become obsolete.
Of course, in many quarters the radio industry tries to emulate the automobile
industry by doing away with the price slaughtering and making larger allowances
for traded-in sets but this procedure has not been wholly satisfactory for the reason
that the radio sets, unlike automobiles, do not wear out as rapidly and hence a
radio receiver will give excellent results - at least to its owners - even if it
is 5, 6 and even 10 years old.
While the owner's present set may sound "tinny" with its old rattling speaker,
he does not appreciate this unless a new set were demonstrated alongside his present
one to make him understand how far radio has traveled in the short space of a few
years. Moreover, many radio set owners have a good investment in their old sets
which may be anything from $50 to $250; meanwhile he has become used to his set
and thinks there is nothing like it and is loathe to part with it. There is, therefore,
a strong. buyers' resistance in radio sets, which is not so much the case in automobiles.
It is certain that the average radio set in the homes of America is considerably
older by many years than the average automobile on the road today.
It is, of course, also true that the public at large benefits by the "dumping"
policy of the radio manufacturers and it enables the public to buy really first-class
radio receivers at often unheard-of prices - and in a good brand, to boot.
Having become educated to this price-cutting policy, only the well-to-do buy
the latest sets, whereas the average man waits until the price comes down, which
it usually does by the end of the season. Then he picks up the set on which he has
had his eye at a price that he can afford to pay; meanwhile, and for several years,
he will have a real good receiver, even if it is not equipped with the latest gadgets,
and he will be happy with his purchase.
The real loser in the transaction is, of course, as usual the Radio Industry
and this is the reason why today there are not many manufacturers in the ranks of
the radio set industry that can show the yearly profit to which they are clearly
entitled. It is also the reason that whereas during the radio boom, when we had
several hundred radio set manufacturers, today we have only a mere handful of the
larger manufacturers who have been able to stand their own destructive "dumping"
policy.
What is the answer to the problem? To me it seems that the radio set manufacturers,
with only a few notable exceptions, have not made the most of their obvious means
of propaganda for their own product and that is, most astonishingly, the thing that
should be most dear to their hearts. I refer to Radio Broadcasting. The public,
who by the millions is listening-in today on obsolete receivers, is not made sufficiently
aware of this fact through specialized programs that would show up the defects of
their radio sets - immediately. The printed advertisement can only go so far but
when radio receiver technicians get together with broadcast engineers, they can
in turn provide special programs of the type to show up immediately the obvious
defects in a large percentage of radio sets - and right in the set-owner's own home.
This to me seems to be the best solution because it will educate the public to
buy more and better receivers, and cure a great deal of the Dumping Evil.
Posted December 28, 2023
(updated from original
post on 1/15/2015)
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