News

Week of August 28 - September 3, 2000

[Friday, September 1, 2000]

European Price Drop
Sega of Europe is matching their American counterpart's price drop. Mirroring Sega of America's announcement that Dreamcast prices in the United States would fall from $199 to $149, Sega of Europe is revising it price in the U.K. to £149 from its current £199. The new price is effective September 8.

UEFA Deal
Take-Two Interactive has snagged UEFA Champions League game rights. Take-Two signed an exclusive deal with International Sports Management to market and distribute a Silicon Dreams-developed UEFA Champions League videogame over the next three years. The game will appear on Playstation near the end of the year, with Playstation 2 and PC versions to follow.

Xbox Developers
Microsoft is bragging about its exclusive developer list. The company announced the signing of a number of prominent developers to provide exclusive content for Xbox under the Microsoft label, a group that includes Peter Molyneux's Lionhead Satellites and Universal Interactive. Rounding out Microsoft's list of 18 developers are Stormfront Studios, Kodiak Interactive, Totally Games, Rainbow Studios, Artificial Mind and Movement, Boss Game Studios, Climax Group, Digital Illusions, High Voltage Software, KnowWonder, Meyer/Glass Interactive, Pipeworks Software, Pseudo Interactive, Tremor Entertainment, and VR-1. "Lionhead is committed to creating games that push the boundaries of creativity and technology," explained Molyneux, "Xbox is the only game console based on an architecture we are already familiar with, which allows us to focus on what we do best: bring our creative visions to life."

[Thursday, August 31, 2000]

Sega Price Cut
Sega is dropping the price of a Dreamcast in an effort to lure console gamers to its online services before Sony's Playstation 2 ships. The company has set a price point of $149 for the console, an expense potential buyers can wipe out entirely by participating in Sega Net's $150 Internet service rebate scheme. Sega is also tempting consumers by confirming the imminent arrival of anticipated online multiplayer games NFL 2K1 and Quake III Arena for Dreamcast. "We are confident that our combination of great hardware, unsurpassed title lineup and the industry's first-ever online console gaming network will prove irresistible to consumers," said Sega of America President Peter Moore, "especially those who may be frustrated by the lack of availability of other game systems this fall."

Eidos Results
First quarter revenues at Eidos remain largely unchanged from last year. The company's first quarter revenues totaled $25.4, unchanged from the same period one year ago. Losses for the quarter also moved only slightly, to $26.8 million before taxes and goodwill. "Results for the first quarter of financial year 2001 reflect a relatively quiet period for Eidos, with only four new releases," said Eidos CEO Charles Cornwall, "With our balanced portfolio of established franchises, licensed products and exciting and original new titles, we remain confident that Eidos can trade through the current market difficulties." The flat result might encourage more takeover rumors, but the company still isn't talking. "On June 20, Eidos released an announcement saying it was in preliminary discussions which might or might not lead to an offer for the business," said Eidos Chairman Ian Livingstone, "It is as yet too early to determine the outcome of the negotiations."

Yeti Interactive
A group of Rayman veterans are setting off on their own. Yann Le Tensorer, lead programmer on Rayman and Rayman 2, Alexis Vaisse, senior programmer on Rayman 2, and Jean-Christophe, lead artist on Rayman 2, have announced the formation of Yeti Interactive. "We were able to attract an outstanding team with a tremendous track record in creating hit games," said Yann Le Tensorer, who will serve as president of Yeti Interactive, "Most of our team members have already worked together in the past and we are very excited to continue our close relationship as Yeti Interactive." The company plans to release a Playstation 2 title for Christmas 2002.

Unite for Kids
The Interactive Digital Software Association is announcing its third annual 'Nite to Unite for Kids' charity dinner. The black-tie fundraiser and auction will take place on October 17 at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. The event, which benefits the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, is co-chaired by Byron Cook, vice chairman of Midway Games, Tom Dusenberry, CEO of Hasbro Interactive, and Kazuo Hirai, president of Sony Computer Entertainment America. Last year's dinner raised more than $640,000 for the Child Welfare League of America.

[Wednesday, August 30, 2000]

3dfx Losses
Chipmaker 3dfx is reporting more than $100 million in losses for the second quarter. Revenues for the quarter reached $67 million, compared to $104.8 million in the same period one year ago. Though sales slowed in the second quarter, much of the company's poor performance can be attributed to soaring operating expenses. Expenses for the quarter jumped from less than $43 million in the second quarter last year to better than $106 million (including a $66.2 million charge related to the Gigapixel acquisition) this year. 3dfx's net loss for the quarter totals $100.2 million, equalling $3.81 per share. Last year's second quarter loss, by comparison, was just $11.6 million. "During the quarter, we were simultaneously faced with product transition, component supply and seasonality issues," explained 3dfx CEO Alex Leupp, "Clearly, we are very disappointed with this quarter's financial results."

3dfx Defense
Financial woes aren't the only problem facing 3dfx, as the company vows to defend itself against a patent infringement suit brought by competitor Nvidia. The company's position is that Nvidia suit is being brought in order to force a settlement of the multi-texturing patent suit 3dfx filed against Nvidia in 1998. "We regret that Nvidia feels compelled to resort to these kinds of tactics as a defence of the pending litigation. 3dfx intends to vigorously defend itself against this litigation," said 3dfx CEO Alex Leupp.

3DO Cash
3DO is leaning on CEO Trip Hawkins to get the company through the console transition. Hawkins is giving 3DO a $20 million capital infusion. The deal will give the company, which has been operating in the black, improved resources to develop its franchise games for next generation consoles.

GTR Results
The GTR Group, the company behind game accessory brand Mad Katz and value software provider Games Trader, is announcing a loss for its first quarter. The company saw last year's first quarter profit of $0.5 million turn into a $3 million loss in the same period this year. The company expects to see improvement in the coming quarter when it releases a line of Playstation 2 products.

Nvidia Trading
A former Nvidia engineer is being charge with insider trading. Manu Shrivastava was arrested on charges of earning nearly $450,000 after buying call options upon learning of Nvidia's deal to provide graphics chips for Microsoft's Xbox and selling those options after the news became public. Shrivastava faces one count of securities fraud and one count of wire fraud, with a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison and fines of as much as $500,000.

[Tuesday, August 29, 2000]

Ubi Buys Red Storm
Paris-based Ubi Soft Entertainment is purchasing North Carolina's Red Storm Entertainment. Red Storm will become a wholly owned subsidiary and brand of Ubi Soft. Though sales and distribution functions for the two companies will be integrated, Red Storm will continue to operate independently. The company will continue to focus on its ongoing projects as well as continuing its association with Tom Clancy, a license that has been extended as part of the Ubi Soft deal. "The games published by Red Storm will complement Ubi Soft's product range and this acquisition will allow the group to reinforce its existing expertise in multiplayer action and strategy games," said Ubi President Yves Guillemot, "we are convinced that in the years to come this genre of game will undergo strong growth."

Creative Realms
Andrew Whittaker is forming a new studio. Whittaker, a twenty-year veteran of the games industry, is founding Creative Realms. The company will have studios in both Nevada and the U.K. The company plans to unveil its first project, a 3D multiplayer fantasy title, behind closed doors at ECTS. We wanted to announce our presence when we had something to show people", said Whittaker, "and at ECTS the timing is right for us to come out of the shadows and shine very brightly."

[Monday, August 28, 2000]

Nvidia Sues 3dfx
Graphics chipmaker Nvidia is suing competitor 3dfx for patent infringement. The suit, filed in a Northern California district court, involves five Nvidia patents that the company believes have been infringed upon by 3dfx products. Nvidia is asking for an injunction to prevent 3dfx from selling it Voodoo 3, Voodoo 4, and Voodoo 5 product lines, and is also seeking monetary damages. "We have always been on the forefront of innovation in 3D graphics technology and visual computing," said Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang, "This innovation is achieved through the annual investment of hundreds of millions of dollars in research and development. We cannot allow the fruits of this investment to be misappropriated."

Violent Marketing
A Federal Trade Commission study has concluded that violent entertainment products are being marketed to children. The year-long study focused on movie studios, record companies, and video game producers. The report found that videogame companies often placed ads for games with mature content in magazines geared towards young teens and pre-teens. The report scheduled for release next month, and Senate Commerce Committee is planning a hearing. Vice presidential candidate Sen. Joseph Lieberman, a leading critic of violence in entertainment, has reportedly expressed an interest in testifying.

Square IPO
Japanese game maker Square is looking at floating it U.S. subsidiary. Square Co. is considering listing its wholly owned movie subsidiary, Square USA, on the Nasdaq market. According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Square is hoping issue shares as early as December in an effort to raise funds for its portion of its Final Fantasy CG movie projects. Last week Square announced plans to jointly finance three Final Fantasy movies with Columbia Pictures. "We want to list our U.S. unit on Nasdaq but have not decided any details yet," said a Square spokesperson.

Ragaini Goes Lith
Asheron's Call veteran Toby Ragaini is joining the team at Monolith. According to Monolith frontman Jason Hall, Ragaini leave Turbine to join Monolith some month ago. Ragaini is expected to contribute to an unannounced project that will bring the Lith Tech game engine into the realm on online persistent worlds.

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