Phoenix – The
Consumer Electronics Hall Of Fame inducted its class of 2009, which included
eight individuals and two teams of inductees, during a gala dinner at the
Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) Industry Forum, here.
The inductees (listed in alphabetical order) include
industry luminaries who founded retail chains, helped the development of HDTV
and founded manufacturing operations, as well as a longtime member of the
media.
The CE Hall of Fame Class of 2009 is as
follows:
- The Cohen
Brothers: Maurice, Norman and Philip grew their father’s Cambridge
tire store in Boston into the discount retail giant Lechmere Sales that
specialized in consumer electronics products. They also were part of the
founding group of the National Appliance and TV Merchandisers.
- Dr. Joseph
Flaherty demonstrated HDTV to the Society of Motion Picture and
Television Engineers in 1981 and also gave demonstrations to Federal
Communications Commission and other officials. He worked to establish the
Advisory Committee on Advanced Television Systems, leading to the ATSC
standard. - Karl Hassel and Ralph Mathews
created the Chicago Radio Laboratory in 1919, later renamed
Zenith Radio, which became the largest manufacturer of black and white sets in
the 1960s and 1970s.
- Dr. Irwin
Jacobs co-founded Qualcomm in 1985 and developed the OmniTRACS
tracking system for trucks – the largest satellite-based commercial mobile
system for the transportation industry. He also led the global commercialization
of CDMA technology.
- Steve
Jobs, CEO of Apple, joined fellow co-founder Steve Wozniak into the
Hall of Fame. Jobs helped to create one of the first desktop computers, the Mac;
revolutionized portable music and how we buy music; and made the world think
differently about cellphones.
- Aaron
Neretin was editor of Merchandizing Magazine and covered CE for Home
Furnishings Daily, now called HFN. He later founded Neretin Associates, a retail
market intelligence firm.
- John
Shalam founded Audiovox, a leader in mobile and consumer electronics.
Shalam has served on several CEA committees and is now chairman of the
investment committee and was first chair of CEA’s wireless
division.
- Walt
Stinson is president and co-founder of the Denver-based Listen Up
audio/video specialty chain. He also co-founded the Professional Audio Video
Retailer’s Association (PARA). CEA and PARA joined in 2004.
- Neil Terk,
founder of Terk Technologies, introduced the Pi antenna in 1987. He was very
involved in CEA, serving on the executive board, the board of industry leaders,
and as chair for both the accessories division and antenna subdivision. Terk
passed away in 2003.
- Dick Wiley, as
former chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, played a pivotal role
in the development and adoption of the U.S. digital television broadcast
standard. He was a champion for HDTV and advocated an all-digital system.