Becker Indianapolis in BMW-Z1 Techno-Classica 2018 IMG 8976-crop2

Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH, commonly known as Becker, is a manufacturer of automotive electronic equipment. It is part of the car division of the American manufacturing company, Harman International Industries, a subsidiary of South Korean company

Samsung Electronics Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (SEC; stylized as SΛMSUNG; ) is a South Korean multinational major appliance and consumer electronics corporation founded on 13 January 1969 and headquartered in Yeongtong District, Suwon, South Korea. It is curr ...

History

The present company goes back to the German car radio and navigation systems manufacturer, Becker. This firm was founded in 1949 from a repair workshop in the Baden town of

Pforzheim Pforzheim () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city of over 125,000 inhabitants in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, in the southwest of Germany. It is known for its jewelry and watch-making industry, and as such has gained the ...

. Its founder was (died 1983).aerokurier.de 11 August 2016, ''60 Jahre Becker Avionics''
(German), retrieved 2020-10-04. Even the receiver ''Nürburg'' with

vacuum tube A vacuum tube, electron tube, thermionic valve (British usage), or tube (North America) is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between electrodes to which an electric voltage, potential difference has been applied. It ...

s had mechanical station memories in the 1950s. In 1953 the first car radio with automatic search for stations was launched.faz.net 5 Oktober 2007, ''75 Jahre Autoradio: Von Musiktruhen zu Multimedia-Zentralen''
(German), retrieved 2020-10-04. In 1955 Becker started manufacturing aircraft radios. In 1987 Becker launched a CD car receiver.historic-radios.info, ''Becker'', retrieved 2020-10-04
(German). In 1995, the US concern, Harman International, took over the firm, apart from the aircraft

avionics Avionics (a portmanteau of ''aviation'' and ''electronics'') are the Electronics, electronic systems used on aircraft. Avionic systems include communications, Air navigation, navigation, the display and management of multiple systems, and the ...

division, Becker Flugfunkwerke GmbH (later Becker Avionics, which remained under the control of Roland Becker, the son of the founder). At the time Becker had 1,300 employees and two plants. The company, with its head office in Karlsbad near

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

and other bases in the USA and Hungary, developed and integrated complete infotainment systems worldwide. Its product range runs from navigation systems, voice control and human-machine interfaces to audio and entertainment technologies. From its earliest days, ''Harman Becker Automotive Systems'' was a supplier to

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to simply as Mercedes and occasionally as Benz, is a German automotive brand that was founded in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz Group, established in 2019) is based in Stuttgart, ...

, but also supplies other marques such as

Audi Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. A subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide. The origins of the compa ...

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French automobile brand owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was established in 1810, making it the oldest car company in the world. On 20 November 1858, Émile Peugeot applie ...

, Hyundai and also Luxury Marques

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

, Porsche,

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

and

MINI The Mini is a very small two-door, four-seat car, produced for four decades over a single generation, with many names and variants, by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors British Leyland and the Rover Group, and finally ...

. Worldwide, Harman Becker has 28 bases in Germany, USA, Great Britain, France, Sweden, Hungary, Canada, Mexico, South Africa (to 2008), Japan, South Korea and China. Since 11 January 2010 Harman Becker Automotive Systems has pulled out of the market for mobile navigation. The trademarks Becker Traffic Assist, Becker Traffic Assist Pro etc. were transferred to United Navigation. Under the latter's roof, the brands Falk and Becker continue to run. Since 2008, as part of the strategy of its parent concern, Harman International, the company's divisions have been increasingly based in low-wage economies, so that the number of employees in its German facilities dropped from 3,800 in 2008 to 2,250 in 2013. The company sites in

Hechingen Hechingen (; Swabian: ''Hächenga'') is a town in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated about south of the state capital of Stuttgart and north of Lake Constance and the Swiss border. Geography The town lies at the foot of th ...

, Villingen-Schwenningen, Schaidt and

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

(leading development of navigation software Innovative Systems, sold in 2008 to Neusoft China as Neusoft Technology Solutions) were closed down or sold off. In November 2016,

reportedly acquired Harman for US $8 billion dollars. The acquisition was completed on 10 March 2017.

References

{{Authority control Electronics companies of Germany Auto parts suppliers of Germany Electronics companies established in 1949 Harman International Companies based in Baden-Württemberg Karlsruhe (district) 1949 establishments in Germany