Capacitance Electronic Disc's competitors, Philips/Magnavox and Pioneer, instead manufactured optical discs, read with lasers. On April 4, 1984, after sales of only 550,000 players, RCA announced the discontinuation of CED videodisc players. RCA's losses since the product's introduction were eventually estimated at $650 million.Peltz, James P. "RCA to Exit Videodisc Hardware Field" (AP story). Yonkers Herald Statesman, 5 April 1984, 18. The huge financial losses partially resulted in General Electric's acquisition of RCA in 1986, and the abandonment of the "SelectaVision" brand on all RCA video products.
