Word: marketing
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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That, of course, is Sega's game plan. Launched in a $100 million marketing blitz last week in the U.S., Dreamcast is the first in a succession of machines that promise to bring real computing power for all the family to use. The graphics are far more realistic than those of even the best PC software on the market today and just about as textured as television. And while certainly designed for games, Sega's new consoles are capable of electronic wizardry that should turn even game-playing agnostics into believers. Dreamcast, for instance, comes equipped with a 56K modem...
Dreamcast represents Sega's bid to reinvent itself. And analysts think it has a good shot. The machine is at least 10 times as powerful as its rivals and already has 18 new games available. Equally important, Sega introduced it with savvy marketing. That is a turnaround for a company that in 1989 was No. 1 in the gaming business but has since been steadily slipping, barely hanging on to third place with only 1% market share. Sega botched its 1995 Saturn rollout by alienating software developers and retailers with poor support and imperious directives. Sony has dominated the industry...
Fortunately for Sega, Dreamcast is the best act in town--for now. Michael Goodman, a Yankee Group analyst, says that as long as the great games keep coming, the company could up its market share to 15% or 20%. Early returns look good. A remarkable 250,000 Dreamcasts sold on launch day. If the pace keeps up and Microsoft gets into the action, then even I'll be e-mailing Santa for a console...
...game-show host: after the family's needs are met, everything else is negotiable. Periodically, I've taken a page out of the Good Parent's Rule Book and given my daughter an allowance, usually accompanied by a little speech about money management, the go-go stock market and the magic of compounding interest...
...that group? Savings bonds still offer a return that's competitive with things like bank CDs, money-market funds, Treasury bills and savings accounts. Better yet, the income is exempt from state and local taxes, and you have control over when you cash in savings bonds...