RCA-Brunswick question

[AmberolaAndy]

Just a question I’ve been wondering about. I know some RCA Radiolas were in some Brunswick machines. What made RCA to leave Brunswick and pair up with Victor instead? Contract agreements? And how many Brunswick models had RCA radios paired with them?

[Governor Flyball]

Victor and Brunswick relied upon RCA for their radio components during the radio boom from about 1924. It was a time, prior to the advent of electrical recording, when the sales of talking machines and records dropping.

RCA made the same components supplied to both Victor and Brunswick for their first electronic record players at the same time in late 1925 e.g. the Brunswick Panatrope and the Victor Cromwell. Brunswick marketed the electronic Panatrope before Victor the Cromwell likely because of Victor's reluctance to advertise the process so as to not jeopardize the sale of acoustic records.

So I see RCA nurtured the relationships with both Victor and Brunswick simultaneously. I would be interested in others thoughts.

[msherman]

From Talking Machine World, June 15, 1925