General Instrument

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General Instrument (GI) was a diversified electronics manufacturer which specialised in semiconductors and cable television equipment. The company was active until 1997, when it split into General Semiconductor (power semiconductors), CommScope and NextLevel Systems (the cable and satellite TV division, which later reverted to GI name). The new (post-split) General Instrument Corporation was later acquired by Motorola and became the Motorola Connected Home Solutions division.

American Totalizator Corporation

A division of General Instrument Corp. It manufactured tote boards for the horse racing industry.

See Harry L. Straus.

Jerrold

GI's original cable TV brand, active from 1948 into the early 1990s. Around 1993, GI dropped the Jerrold branding.

GI Microelectronics

GI Microelectronics was a manufacturer of LSI circuits and a pioneer in MOS technology and EAROM (Electrically Alterable ROM), with both off-the-shelf and custom circuits. GI spun the division off as Microchip Technology in 1989.

In 1980, their product catalog included:

16-bit Microprocessor: 1600 and [1610], a 16-bit CPU, used in the GIMINI TV-game set and in Mattel's Intellivision
8-bit Microcontroller: The PIC1650, an NMOS chip. The CMOS version of this chip is the basis of today's PIC microcontrollers
ROM
EAROM
Telecommuncations chips

Other products were the SP0256, a single-chip speech generator, and the famous AY-3-8910/11/12 series of sound chips.

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