It 'been a match made in heaven, at least if your heaven includes wonderful coffee. When Douwe Egberts, the world according to coffee roasting, collaboration with Royal Philips Electric, the world's leading electronics company, the result would be sensational. The Senseo coffee pod system is a partnership between two world leaders in their field with a common background.Douwe Douwes EgbertsEgbert opened a small shop Joure, Netherlands, back in 1753. De Witte Os selling coffee, tea and tobacco in the city, and it was only a moderate success. In 1780, his son joined the family business and together they expanded their holdings, adding more stores throughout the region. The company has prospered and has continued to grow throughout the Netherlands, but it took until the middle of the 20 had spread beyond the borders of his homeland. In 1948, Douwe Egberts started selling coffee, tea and tobacco, Belgium. Over the next twenty years, the company said sales in Belgium, France and Spain. In 1978 the company was acquired by Sara Lee International Food Corporation. Since then, Sara Lee and Douwe Egberts has become the second largest coffee roaster in the world. Colloquially known as Sara Lee / DE, the company is a subsidiary of Sara Lee and employs over 26,000 people around the world.The brands are Douwe Egberts Pickwick Tea, Douwe Egberts coffee, espresso Piazza d'Oro, Cafitesse, coffee and Pila, course, the Senseo system. Sara Lee sells its products in nearly 200 countries. Sara Lee brands include Sara Lee, Earth Grains, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean, Ball Park, Bimbo, Kiwi, Ambi Pur, Sanex, and of course, Douwe Egberts.Royal Philips ElectronicsIn Netherlands in 1891, Gerard Philips founded a small company electronic device focused on the production of light bulbs and other electronic means. In 1920 the company began expanding its range of products and make a name for himself as an innovator in the field of electronics. In 1920, they started making vacuum tubes, to acquire shares in Germany and England as subsidiaries. In 1939, Philips began marketing its electric shaver, which is sold in the U.S. as Norelco, which has become the flagship of their personal care division. Among other innovations that came out of the Philips audio cassette (presented by Philips in 1963) and CD (developed in collaboration with Sony). Philips is now a world leader in the production and sale of color television sets, lighting, electric shavers, products containing chips for diagnostic imaging and patient monitoring, and a television. Since 2001, the company has won over 60 design awards for personal care and electronic appliances.A Beautiful PartnershipIn 2001, Douwe Egberts has partnered with Philips to introduce the system of Hello, the only way to dispense coffee with a patented pad for coffee brewing and other hot drinks. The Senseo was introduced in February 2001 in the Netherlands, and became available in the United States in 2004. The system uses a patented coffee pod (called a pad in some countries) have a pre-measured amount of coffee or mix beverages and the manufacturer. The brewer heats the water at the proper temperature and distributes the drink after brewing. The main innovations were the system Senseo single beer cup and use the wafer. Sara Lee / DE 's part of this partnership is, of course, coffee. Douwe Egberts offers a wide range of coffee blends to suit most tastes, and tea pods to fit the Senseo machine. The current mix includes Sumatra, Brazil, Kenya and Colombia, each with characteristics common to the region its name. Moreover, there is a selection of specialty drinks including espresso, cappuccino and black coffee, a sweet mixture of black with a coating of chocolate. There are also portions flavor, including Paris (caramel, vanilla), Vienna (hazelnut, vanilla and coffee), and a number of varieties in a limited edition, which is currently only available in some European countries. For lovers of tea, Earl Gray and Douwe Egberts offers Minty Green T-pod for Senseo.Patent-ly Perfectino 1998, Sara Lee / DE has filed a patent in India to protect their use of the pad coffee. The patent was challenged after the Senseo hit the market and competitors realized that the patent prevented them from making waffles. The patent was successfully challenged before the Belgian courts. In 2004, the year that the Senseo was introduced in the United States, other companies have the right to produce and sell coffee pods that fit the Senseo system. Addition, a number of pods on the market allow consumers to make their coffee pods. This allows the flexibility to make coffee or tea of your choice using the Senseo Brewing System.