Packard Bell

The Packard Bell logo in the 1990s

In 1986, Beny Alagem, Larry Metz and a group of other Israeli investors bought the American former radio and television set brand from Teledyne[1][2] and resurrected it as a manufacturer of low-cost personal computers. Their computers were among the first IBM PC compatibles sold in retail chains such as Sears.[3]

According to Fortune magazine, Packard Bell sometimes benefited from misplaced name recognition, with consumers (especially first-time computer buyers) and even some salespeople erroneously associating the company with others of a similar name, such as Hewlett-Packard, Pacific Bell, and Bell Laboratories. The confusion was further facilitated by Packard Bell's then-current slogan, "America grew up listening to us. It still does."[3] The company also sold nearly identical systems under different names, making comparison difficult.

A 1996 Packard Bell Multimedia D160, which ran Windows 95

Aside from low price and brand confusion, Packard Bell's success in number of units sold may have come from two areas of innovation: 1) branding and industrial design, provided by the San Francisco offices of frog design; and 2) its boot-up shell Packard Bell Navigator, created by The Pixel Company in Seattle. They targeted a huge section of consumers who were inexperienced using computers. Frog design gave the look of quality and utilized innovations such as color-coding cable connectors, while Navigator provided the ability for users to launch installed programs by clicking on-screen buttons, and then later a house metaphor.[4] During this phase, returns dropped from 19% to 10%, and sales grew exponentially.

In late 1995 to early 1996 Microsoft forced boot-up shells off OEM computers by updating its Microsoft Windows distribution agreement (OPK 2) and Packard Bell, without a clear on-shelf differentiator, saw sales begin to decrease. Also in 1995, Compaq sued Packard Bell for not disclosing that Packard Bell computers incorporated used parts. This practice was, in fact, widespread in the computer industry, including Compaq itself. However, unlike its rival companies, Packard Bell was judged not to have advertised the practice sufficiently in its warranties (Compaq, for instance, disclosed it in the warranty statement).[5]

In 1995, Packard Bell acquired Zenith Data Systems from Groupe Bull in a deal which saw Groupe Bull and NEC taking a larger stake in Packard Bell[6] to create a $4.5 billion company. The company then became integrated with NEC Computers. Its 15% market share made it the largest PC manufacturer, in terms of units shipped, in the United States. However, Compaq overtook it in retail sales in mid-1996, and cemented its lead the next year with the release of a $999 PC in March 1997.

Packard Bell posted losses totaling more than $1 billion in 1997 and 1998. In the U.S., price pressure from Compaq and, later, eMachines, along with continued poor showings in consumer satisfaction surveys made it difficult for the company to remain profitable and led to Alagem's departure in 1998. In 1999, NEC began withdrawing the Packard Bell name from the U.S. market, while keeping it in Europe, where the brand was untainted by allegations of sub-standard quality.[7]

From 1996 until 2000, when Strongbow took over the contract, Packard Bell sponsored English football club Leeds United.

From 2009 to 2010, the name Packard Bell has been seen on the FIAT Yamaha MotoGP racebike of World Champion Valentino Rossi of Italy.[8] Packard Bell also dropped their sponsorship from the 4Kings professional electronic sports team.

In August 2015, JMM Lee Properties purchased the North American trademark for Packard Bell from Acer with plans to reintroduce the brand.[9][10] Later in January 2018, Southern Telecom purchased the trademark from JMM Lee Properties to relaunch the brand.[10]

On October 14, 2016, PBX Holdings acquired the United States Packard Bell trademark and began manufacturing Packard Bell products in 2017. In June 2017, JCPenney revealed that they would begin selling a line of Packard Bell laptops as part of their expansion into the dormitory market.[11] PBX is set to expand the brand into home automation and gaming accessories with product launches set for the holiday 2018 season.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Packard Bell.

• Official site
• Support information for old Packard Bell motherboards