|
 News
Week
of September 25 - October 2, 2000
[Friday,
September 29, 2000]
TLC
Sold
Mattel has reportedly sold off The Learning Company. The purported buyer
is Los Angels-based Gores Technology Group, a company specializing in
turning around trouble technology concerns. Mattel is expected to take
a $430 million dollar after tax charge related to the discontinued operation.
Terms of the sale have not been disclosed.
Sega
Jumps In
Sega of America is preparing to profit from Sony's PS2 shortages. The
company is reporting that it has created a stockpile of Dreamcast consoles,
with the hope that disappointed would-be Playstation 2 buyers will pick
up Sega's machine instead. "We didn't believe they would be able
to ship a million units at launch and we've been building inventory in
anticipation of that," said Sega of America CEO Peter Moore, "The
announcement has created ripples of panic throughout the retail community
and we are positioned to take advantage. There's got to be something under
the tree on December 25"
Xbox V-Chip
Microsoft's Xbox will include parental controls. A report on Game Informer.com
has Xbox Senior Director of Sales Alex Kotowitz confirming that the Xbox
console will include built-in parental controls, allowing parents to lock
out game content based on ratings.
Allen
Leaves MS Board
Microsoft Co-Founder Paul Allen is leaving that company's board of directors.
Allen will formally leave the board on November 9, the day of Microsoft's
annual shareholders meeting, but is expected to spend about the same amount
of time working with Microsoft. Like Bill Gates, Allen is expected to
move away from the company's day-to-day business operations to focus more
on technology. "Being an active board member for a dynamic and successful
company such as Microsoft is a time-consuming role and one I have enjoyed
for many years," reads a statement from Paul Allen, "This new
role will enable me to spend my time on technology and products where
I can really make a significant contribution."
[Thursday, September
28, 2000]
Sony
Falls Short
Sony plans to deliver only half the expected number of Playstation 2 consoles
for the U.S. launch. The company is reporting that it will manage just
500,000 PS2 units for the October 26 launch, half of the 1 million consoles
originally projected. Sony places blame for the shortfall on an inability
to source components. The company is promising to make up the difference
before the holiday buying season by adding 100,000 units each week until
the end of the year, and still plans to meet its goal of 10 million units
worldwide and 3 million in the U.S. by March 2001. News of the shortage
sent Sony's stock down more than five percent. "We will be able to
supply a flow of products, instead of a huge initial spike,'' said Sony's
Kaz Hirai.
Pokemon
Sales
The Pokemon phenomenon still has some juice. Nintendo of America is announcing
that pre-orders for Pokemon Gold and Silver have topped
600,000 since the middle of August, and with three week remaining until
the games become available. Those numbers put the games on track to a
projected 10 million unit sales mark. "It proves the unique staying
power of the Pokemon franchise," said Nintendo's Peter Main, "With
three full weeks to go before launch, the previously unimaginable possibility
of selling 1 million units before the games even hit retail shelves is
becoming a reality.''
World
Winner
Steve Meretzky is joining online game destination World Winner.com. Meretzky,
best know for early Infocom adventures like Planetfall and Leather
Goddess of Phobos, is joining the site as creative/content director.
In that capacity, Meretzky will design original games as well as head
up research, development, and creative direction for all of World Winner.com's
titles.
Apple
Plummet
Shares of Apple lost as much as nearly 40 percent following profit warnings.
The shares took the hit in after hours trading, follow on warnings from
Apple that company would widely miss its fourth quarter profit forecast.
Apple is blaming the slow September sales for the profit miss. The company
anticipates earning of 30 to 33 cents per share; analysts had forecast
45 cents per share.
[Wednesday, September
27, 2000]
Wright
Awarded
The Sims creator Will Wright is to receive an Invisionary Award.
The award, presented each year by the New Media Invision Festival, recognizes
those who push the boundaries of digital media. "Will Wright created
an entirely new genre of interactive entertainment, where the user directs
the storyline and has ultimate control over the experience," said
New Media.com Editor in Chief Richard Landry, "It is this commitment
to creative vision and technical innovation that leads us to honor him
with the Invisionary Award." The award will be presented as part
of the Invision 2000 Festival on November 2 in San Francisco.
Voight
Joins Tomb Raider
John Voight is joining the cast of the film version of Tomb Raider.
Voight has been cast as the father of Lara Croft, the part being played
by Voight's real-life daughter Angelina Jolie. "I'm expecting great
things from Jon Voight who has brought so many brilliant characters to
life," said director Simon West.
[Tuesday, September
26, 2000]
Microsoft
Antitrust
Microsoft's antitrust appeal is moving to a lower court. The Supreme Court
agreed with the company that the appeal should first be heard in the Court
of Appeals, whereas the Justice Department had argued for a speedy decision
from the higher court. Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson, who in June ruled
that Microsoft was guilty of antitrust violations, had certified the case
directly to the Supreme Court, citing the cases immense importance to
the national economy.
New
Kid Co Results
New Kid Co is showing a substantial loss. The company is reporting a net
operating loss of $6.8 million on revenues of $1.8 million in the three
months ended June 30. "New Kid Co is well positioned to attain a
leadership position in this segment by the end of this year," said
New Kid Co CEO Henry Kaplan, "With the addition of International
sales generated by our Ubi Soft agreement and the launch of our third
and fourth quarter new title releases, we expect to have a strong second
half. We believe we are on track to a successful second half of the year."
The company also announced the closing of CDN $8.2 million in new financing.
The company will use the funds, raised primarily through special warrant
issues, to repay debt and fund new product development.
Navarre
Acquires Beamscope
Navarre is acquiring two operating divisions from Beamscope Canada. Navarre,
a software and music distributor is buying Beamscope's videogame and videogame
accessories businesses. "This dramatically expands our business model,
which currently includes being a leading distributor of all categories
of PC software, independent music labels, major label music and DVD video
to alternative retail markets," said Navarre Chairman Eric Paulson,
"it gives us the strongest presence in the video game industry in
Canada." Terms for the deal, which is expected to close October 31,
were not disclosed.
[Monday, September
25, 2000]
Chinese
Game Ban
Officials in the Chinese city of Guangzhou are outdoing their American
counterparts. The southern Chinese city has announced a plan to shut down
more than 1,500 videogame arcades because of concerns about their influence
on children. Parents and teachers in the region believe that the game
parlors are distracting students from there studies and are causing them
to make friends with the wrong crowd, a notable difference from the sex
and violence concerns voiced by North American parents. The crackdown
affects almost 80 percent of Guangzhou's arcades, most of which are being
cited for breaking age restrictions. Many in the region, however, are
calling for a total ban.
Rage
Posts Loss
Game developer and publisher Rage Software is reporting a loss for the
year. The company posted a pre-tax loss of $3.79 million on turnover of
$6.1 million for the year ending June 30, reversing a profit of $4.5 million
last year. Rage had warned of poor full-year results when reporting its
numbers for the first half of the year, blaming a change in strategy.
Activision
Xbox
Activison has confirmed that it is working on several Xbox titles. Activision
reports that it currently has six Xbox games in various stages of planning
or production. The company's announcement follows Microsoft's naming of
Activision as a key publisher at an Xbox press conference in San Francisco.
"Activision is excited about the Xbox, and we are working closely
with Microsoft to create a broad portfolio of games for the new platform,''
said Activision President Ron Doornink.
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