BBC stays with Acorn

A NEW four year contract has been signed between Acorn Computers and the BBC.

The agreement means that Acorn can continue to use the BBC name on its top selling product — the BBC Model B micro computer.

The signing also ends months of speculation that the BBC might take the opportunity presented by the expiry of Acorn’s existing agreements to include other manufacturers.

A number of companies including Sinclair and Dragon have in the past shown interest in gaining the lucrative BBC contract.

Acorn is planning to expand its manufacturing and distribution of the Model B machine. It has also begun an export drive to sell the machines in the US and the Germany and Benelux areas of Europe. Manufacturing facilities are being set up in Australia, India and China.

“Acorn is planning to develop more power add-ons for the BBC to take it into the 16-bit and 32-bit computer range,” said an Acorn spokesman.

“The BBC contract has become a very significant one for Acorn — in the beginning the Model B was seen as a fairly minor machine.”