U.S. company appoints RCA distributor

JAKARTA (JP): General Electric of the United States, yesterday, appointed PT Mahameru Antarnusa Niaga of the Artha Graha Group, as the distributor of RCA electronic appliances in Indonesia.

"We will strive to gain at least 2 percent of the appliance market in Indonesia by next year," Mahameru's president Hendra Priatna said.

He said the company would market appliances such as microwaves, refrigerators, and washing machines.

Mahameru is also the distributor of RCA audio-video products under an agreement with Thomson Consumer Electronics of France, signed in the middle of last year.

Mahameru is owned by PT Artha Graha Wahana, a subsidiary of PT Telagamas Pertiwi. The three companies are members of Artha Graha which is controlled by businessman, Tomy Winata.

In addition to RCA, Artha Graha, through its separate subsidiaries, also distributes Sony audio-video products, Nokia hand-phones and Compact computers. The company also operates two retail shops which specialize in electronics.

General Electric has control over RCA appliances while Thomson manages audio-video products.

RCA, previously known as Radio Corporation of America, was set up in October 1919 as the patent holder of General Electric and Marconi. Since then, RCA has made numerous technological inventions.

Last year, Mahameru began marketing RCA audio-video products such as televisions, VHS players and recorders, video CDs, CD players, tape recorders, radios and digital integrated receiver decoders.

Thomson's general marketing manager, Daniel Seow, said that his company owned a manufacturing plant in Batam, Riau, with a monthly capacity of 8,000 to 10,000 TV sets.

He said that the facility would also produce satellite decoders for Indovision, the country's cable television provider. (icn)