DTK Computer

DTK Computer is the name for international branches of Datatech Enterprises Co., Ltd., a Taiwanese computer manufacturer. Founded in 1981, the company was an early supplier of peripherals for IBM PCs as well as PC compatible motherboards. In the late 1980s, the company switched to developing complete systems under the DTK name as well as serving as an OEM for motherboards and cases, as bought by other small computer companies and systems integrators.

DTK was little-known in its own time but performed well in the marketplace. By 1991, the company was the second-largest computer system manufacturer in Taiwan, behind Acer. It was the 10th and 11th biggest personal computer manufacturer in the world in 1991 and 1992 respectively, according to Electronics magazine.

History

Foundation and expansion (1981–1989)

Datatech Enterprises was established in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1981. The company was founded by eight employees with US$15,000 in start-up capital; in 1982, Datatech raised an additional US$337,000 in capital and expanded to 24 employees. Datatech's president Duke Liao founded the company's United States branch in 1986. This branch was named DTK Computer and was initially headquartered in Rosemead, California.

Further expansion (1989–1999)

In the United States, DTK Computer expanded to Texas in 1988, leasing a 17,700-square-foot office in the Alief section of Houston. It later opened up production facilities in Elk Grove Village, Illinois; Norcross, Georgia; Miami, Florida; and New Jersey. DTK began manufacturing computers within the United States in Norcross in the early 1990s, leasing a 150,000-square-foot assembly plant near Georgia State Route 141. Computers manufactured there were shipped domestically and abroad, including to Hong Kong. DTK's Miami facility, meanwhile, was particularly conducive to DTK's sales in Latin America.

DTK was among the first companies to have its computers sold via satellite television in 1991. Satellite Market USA, a satellite-only shopping channel, premiered the Satellite Computer Store in 1991, a program on which DTK and several other computer brands were advertised. In 1992, the company also set up two brick-and-mortar computer stores. These stores did not sell to the end users directly but instead targeted resellers, putting their Grafika multimedia PCs on display as well as accompanying promotional material. A Kansas store was opened in January; another was set up in the Metro Center of Nashville in November. DTK posted revenues of $99 million in the United States in 1994, selling 46,000 equipment units that year.

Duke Liao founded Datatech's Hong Kong subsidiary in 1990, naming it Gemlight Computer. Elsewhere in Asia, Datatech expanded into Japan, India, and Mainland China in Shenzhen. In 1996, its Dubai subsidiary DTK Computer FZE, was founded. Japan was the primary market for Datatech's SPARC workstations. Datatech's Taiwanese operation changed its name to Advance Creative Computer in the mid-1990s and began focusing on PowerPC- and UltraSPARC-based machines as well as Java-based internet appliances. Advance Creative abandoned their PowerPC pursuits in 1996, citing Apple's disposition toward open architectures, but continued developing Java appliances and UltraSPARC workstations. In Europe, meanwhile, DTK established subsidiaries in Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary, and Moscow.

trade name	DTK Computer
type	Private
industry	Computers
founded	1981 in Taipei, Taiwan 1986 in Rosemead, California, United States
defunct	2009
fate	Dissolved (except Dubai branch)
num employees	1,000
num employees year	1989
revenue	US$99 million (1994)

History

Foundation and expansion (1981–1989)

Further expansion (1989–1999)

Decline (1999–2009)

Products

Personal computers

Laptops

Workstations and servers

Notes

Citations

References

External links