Charles Steinberg, former president of the Broadcast and Professional Company of Sony Electronics passed away at his home in Woodside Calif. on March 12. He was 89.
Serving as president of Sony Broadcast from 1988 to 1999, Steinberg is credited with a number of technical innovations as well as raising Sony’s profile in the broadcast, business, governmental and educational markets. He was instrumental in the evolution of Sony's digital storage, camera, display, and editing products and high-definition systems and the concept of integrated production systems. Prior to joining Sony, he had been with Ampex for 25 years, serving as president, CEO and chairman of the board.
Over his 45-year career, Steinberg was credited with leading efforts to develop 2-inch tape, 1-inch helical tape, Digital Betacam (commonly referred to as DigiBeta), and HDCAM (standardized as SMPTE 367M, also known as SMPTE D-11). His development of the HS-100 color video magnetic-disk recorder helped revolutionize slow-motion instant replay.
Steinberg was the recipient of three Emmy Awards including the Charles F. Jenkins Lifetime Achievement Award Emmy, which honored him "in recognition of his many contributions to electronic technology during his career at Ampex, and as the president of the Broadcast and Professional Division of Sony Electronics." He received a second Emmy Award for the production and broadcast of the first four National Football League (NFL) games in high-definition television and a third for his work at the Games of the XXVII Olympics in Australia in 2000.
In 1999, Steinberg received the NAB’s Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition for his contributions to electronics technology during a professional lifetime. He was also presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Imaging Technology and Sound (ITS). He was also a Fellow of The Society of Motion Picture & Television Engineers and was awarded Honorary Membership, the society’s highest honor, in 2018.
