Hercules Computer Technology
Hercules Computer Technology: pioneer of monochrome graphics and later a Guillemot brand.
Hercules Computer Technology, Inc., founded in 1982 in Hercules, California, by Van Suwannukul and Kevin Jenkins, made peripherals for PCs and Macs and became a leading graphics card company in the 1980s. Its most successful products were the MDA-compatible Hercules Graphics Card (HGC) and the Hercules Graphics Card Plus (HGC+), along with the standard they created, which many others copied and remained in use into the 1990s. By the first half of 1986, the company held half of the monochrome-graphics market, and its 18% share of the overall graphics card market placed it second only to IBM, which sold its own cards with its computers. The HGC included a Centronics-compatible parallel printer port, like the IBM Monochrome Display and Printer Adapter it was based on. The company also made CGA-compatible cards, but its attempt to compete directly with the Enhanced Graphics Adapter (EGA) through the Hercules InColor Card failed.
After low sales of the InColor, Hercules stopped designing its own graphics cores and instead bought chipsets from other manufacturers. Its name faded through the 1990s as chipset firms like Tseng Labs, S3 Graphics, 3Dfx, nVidia, and ATI Technologies rose, though the company still sold US$20 million in graphics cards in 1998. A planned acquisition by German graphics card maker ELSA fell through that year when the two sides could not agree on terms. The Hercules brand was then bought by French-Canadian Guillemot Corporation for $1.8 million. In 2000, Guillemot used the Hercules name for its 3D Prophet graphics cards, first with nVidia chipsets and then switching to ATI chipsets in 2002. That same year, Guillemot launched the Game Theater XP sound card under the Hercules brand, and Hercules gradually became Guillemot’s computer peripherals label. In 2004, Guillemot stopped making graphics cards, and within the group, the Hercules division now designs computer peripherals such as audio interfaces, speakers, webcams, and networking gear, while game peripherals fall under the Thrustmaster brand. By 2010, the Hercules brand covered computer speakers, DJ controllers, webcams, and wireless networking products, with a turnover of €40.9 million (US$56.5 million).
The company’s headquarters are in France, with Claude Guillemot as president. Research and development takes place in Canada, France, Hong Kong, and Romania.
Quick Facts
- Industry
- Computer peripherals
- Founder
- Van Suwannukul · Kevin Jenkins
- Defunct
- 1998
- Fate
- Acquired by Guillemot Corporation
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Hercules Computer Technology (HCT) was formed in 1982 in Hercules, California, by Van Suwannukul and Kevin Jenkins. Its biggest products were the MDA-compatible Hercules Graphics Card (HGC) and Hercules Graphics Card Plus (HGC+), which included a Centronics-compatible parallel printer port. By the first half of 1986 HCT had 50% of the monochrome-graphics market and 18% of the overall graphics card market, second only to IBM. The company also produced CGA compatible cards and attempted to compete with the Enhanced Graphics Adapter through the unsuccessful Hercules InColor Card.
After low sales with InColor, HCT stopped making its own graphics core and bought graphics chipsets from other manufacturers. The company name gradually declined through the 1990s while firms such as Tseng Labs, S3 Graphics, 3Dfx, nVidia and ATI Technologies became popular. An acquisition by German graphics card maker ELSA fell through in 1998 after the companies could not agree on terms. The Hercules brand was then acquired by the French-Canadian based Guillemot Corporation for $1.8 million.
Under Guillemot, Hercules became the brand name for 3D Prophet graphic cards based on nVIDIA chipsets, switching to ATI Technologies chipsets in 2002. In 2000, Guillemot introduced the Game Theater XP sound card under the Hercules brand. In 2004, Guillemot announced it would cease to produce graphics cards. Within the Guillemot group, computer peripherals such as audio interfaces, speakers, webcams, and networking are designed by the Hercules division, while game peripherals are designed by the Thrustmaster division.
Reader's Guide
Hercules Computer Technology's significance lies in its early dominance of the monochrome-graphics market with the Hercules Graphics Card, a standard that was widely copied and persisted into the 1990s. The company's decline in the 1990s reflected the broader shift from proprietary graphics cores to third-party chipsets, as firms like nVidia and ATI rose. The acquisition of the Hercules brand by Guillemot Corporation for $1.8 million allowed the name to survive, transitioning from graphics cards to sound cards such as the Game Theater XP and later to computer speakers, DJ controllers, webcams, and wireless networking. The brand's legacy is thus twofold: as a pioneering force in early PC graphics and as a lasting consumer-peripheral label under Guillemot. The failed acquisition by ELSA in 1998 and the eventual cessation of graphics card production in 2004 mark the end of Hercules as a graphics hardware maker, but the brand continued in other product categories, with turnover of €40.9 million in 2010.
Did You Know?
- The Hercules Graphics Card included a Centronics-compatible parallel printer port.
- The Hercules brand was acquired by Guillemot Corporation for $1.8 million and later used for sound cards like the Game Theater XP.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who founded Hercules Computer Technology and when did the company start?
Van Suwannukul and Kevin Jenkins launched the company in 1982 out of Hercules, California. From the outset it built peripherals aimed at both PC and Mac users.
Which graphics cards made Hercules Computer Technology famous?
The MDA-compatible Hercules Graphics Card (HGC) and its successor, the HGC+, were the company's signature products. They established a de facto monochrome-graphics standard that rival manufacturers copied well into the 1990s.
How dominant was Hercules Computer Technology in the 1980s graphics-card market?
By the first half of 1986 the firm controlled roughly half of all monochrome-graphics card sales. Its 18 percent slice of the broader graphics-card market made it the number-two player behind only IBM.
What ultimately happened to the Hercules brand?
The company was later absorbed into Guillemot, a French electronics group led by president Claude Guillemot, and sold for just $1.8 million. By 1998 its graphics-card revenue had fallen to around US$20 million.
Why do PC-history fans still talk about Hercules Computer Technology?
It proved that a small startup could define a graphics standard that outlived the company itself. The HGC/HGC+ format became so ubiquitous that it shaped monochrome display expectations throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s.
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