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Newsbytes - Internationa…ews 1983 May to 1994 June
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Newsbytes - International Computing Industry News 1994 Edition - May 1983 - June 1994 - Wayzata Technologies (5045) (1994).iso
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1984
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1991-10-04
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[***][5/22/84][***]
THORNE/EMI WEDS PERFECT:
The giant Thorne/EMI signed an agreement with Perfect Software
Monday (5/14) in which the conglomerate will market and distribute
all the Berkeley-based company's software products (PerfectWriter, Calc,
Filer, etc.) in the U.S. and abroad. Perfect was paid half a million
dollars as pre-payment of royalties. Perfect Software, which by the end
of the month will have lost half its staff of 60 people in Berkeley, has
undergone major management changes and financial crisis as Thorne hammered
out this deal. Originally, Thorne had offered to purchase the company
for $7.7 million in a three-year buy-out but backed off for undisclosed
reasons. Virtually all of the Berkeley-based operation will close down
by June 1. President Buck Lindsay says a new Thorne marketing office
will be opened "probably in San Francisco." Perfect's Eugene, Oregon-based
Product Development Center will continue to design new software products
for Thorne/EMI. Insiders say had the Thorne distribution deal not
happened, Perfect Software would have been in serious financial trouble.
----
CONTACT: LOU DELMONICO
THORNE/EMI COMPUTER SOFTWARE INC.
COSTA MESA, CA.
714-751-3778
----
PERFECT SOFTWARE
BERKELEY, CA.
415-527-2626
[***][5/22/84][***]
LOOK OUT--IT'S IBM SOFTARE:
Make no mistake about it. IBM has entered the software arena in a big way,
announcing this week a series of eight new programs for the IBM PC, XT and
PCjr. The word processing, filing, graphics, spreadsheet and report-
generating programs will be available immediately at very competitive
prices. Most of the programs will retail for $149. Within the next month
three more programs will become available at even lower prices.
The move by IBM into the software arena signals a new game of hardball
among software companies. Analysts say it will trigger across-the-board
price reductions which could be disasterous for smaller software
firms. IBM predicts its software revenues will increase 35% this year
over 1983's $110 million in sales.
----
CONTACT: IBM
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
212-407-6942
----
[***][5/22/84][***]
A PAGE OF HISTORY:
Adam Osborne, founder of Paperback Software and a host of other publishing
luminaries made some grim forecasts for the book business last week at a
meeting of the Association of American Publishers. Osborne and others
foresee the book business going the way of the Model-T unless publishing
companies aggressively market computer software along with books. "Those
of you who think you are just book publishers are not going to be here in
a few years," Merl Miller of Dilithium Press told the gathering. Osborne
says 80 percent of software will be sold through book stores by 1990 and
warns that unless book stores and publishers jump on the bandwagon, their
profits won't grow.
----
CONTACT: MERL MILLER, CEO
DILITHIUM PRESS
BEAVERTON, OREGON
503-646-2713
----
ADAM OSBORNE
PAPERBACK SOFTWARE
BERKELEY, CA.
415-644-2116
----
[***][5/22/84][***]
ASHTON-TATE'S NEW dBASE:
A quarter of a million copies of dBase II, a filing program from Ashton-Tate
have been sold. The company is hoping for even greater success with the new
dBase III which will reach retail shelves June 15 and will sell for $695.
In order not to sabotage sales of its current inventory of dBase II, the
company will reduce the price of the older program by $200 to $495. The
new product reportedly holds two billion records. (The older dBase holds
65K) and is easier to learn. Ashton-Tate recently announced a program
called "Framework" which becomes available July 2.
----
CONTACT: DAVID COLE, PRESIDENT
ASHTON-TATE
CULVER CITY, CA.
213-204-5570
----
[***][5/22/84][***]
QUIT OF THE WEEK:
Raytheon is abandoning its line of computers claiming "it's just not
profitable" to compete in the computer business. For 13 years, the
company has manufactured terminals, word processors and related business
computers which have sold to a variety of businesses including 165
airline companies worldwide. The closure of Raytheon's Data Systems
Division in Norwood, Massachusetts means 1,600 people will be laid-off
from a staff of 3,625. The Data Systems division lost $24.3 million
last year and had prospects of losing an equal amount in 1984.
----
CONTACT: THOMAS PHILLIPS, CHAIRMAN
RAYTHEON, INC.
LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS
617-862-6600
----
[***][5/22/84][***]
WORK SMART, AMERICA!
That's IT&T's new slogan as it launches a $15 million dollar television
and print media campaign to advertise the new "Xtra" computer. The "Xtra"
is just reaching Computerland stores. It resembles the Televideo computer
and operates on "ITT-DOS" (reportedly an "enhanced" version of MS-DOS).
The suggested retail price is $3,070 for a 128K machine with detachable
keyboard, a single drive and a 14-inch monochrome monitor. IT&T plans
to associate the computer with the company's history of telecommunication
expertise in its marketing campaigns.
----
CONTACT: ITT INFORMATION SYSTEMS DIVISION
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
212-797-7607
----
[***][5/22/84][***]
MEANWHILE IN COMPUTERLAND:
Several staff members had better learn to speak Chinese. Computerland
has struck a deal with the People's Republic to open an exhibition of
computer products and sell directly to government, industry and schools
in China. Eventually the company plans to open a chain of retail outlets
in China where it will sell the same products as are sold in the current
653-store U.S.-based chain. ComputerLand is the first American computer
retail outfit to make such a deal with China. A company spokesman says
$5 to $10 million in sales to the People's Republic have already been
lined up.
----
CONTACT: KEN MCCONNELL, PRESIDENT INT'L DIVISION
COMPUTERLAND
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA
415-839-5230
----
[***][5/22/84][***]
EXODUS FROM COMMODORE:
In the past two weeks, eight top-ranking executives of Commodore have
left for greener pastures. No reasons were given for the departures
(or firings) but among the alumni is Sam Tramiel, now former General Manager
of Japan operations. (His father Jack Tramiel left in January.) The
resignations follow four months of what appears to be a major internal
reorganization. Commodore is not in serious financial trouble; it continues
to post million-dollar profits. A Commodore spokesman would only say
the resignations are part of a "streamlining" of the company. Speculation
has it that some of the departing personnel may join Jack Tramiel in a
new software venture.
----
CONTACT: COMMODORE INTERNATIONAL
WEST CHESTER, PA.
215-431-9100
----
[***][5/22/84][***]
ELECTRONIC MAIL WARS:
Western Union is kicking off its electronic mail delivery system this
week with a $15 million dollar advertising campaign. Western Union
is the first of several companies (MCI, ITT, among others) to launch
a major consumer-oriented ad campaign to promote its electronic mail
system. Called "EasyLink", the system requires a sign-up fee to
access via computer and modem. Deliveries of electronic information
will be made to telex or computer systems or printed out in the form
of Cablegrams or Mailgrams. Western Union hopes to have 100,000
subscribers over the next six months.
----
[***][5/22/84][***]
IN BRIEF--
-CHEMICAL BANK will give its online "Pronto" customers the ability to
buy and sell stock and get portfolio updates. 6,000 people are already
signed up for "Pronto" which costs $12 a month. No fee has been revealed
for the stock purchasing service.
-VDTs do not cause birth defects or miscarraiges according to several
medical experts who testified before Congress last week. The group of
OBY-GYNs said there is no medical evidence to support the feared link between
work at a video display terminal and pregnancy problems.
-HEWLETT PACKARD enjoyed a 30% rise in earnings during the last quarter.
The company made $141 million in sales in its fiscal second quarter.
-GENERAL MOTORS is talking with Electronic Data Systems of Dallas in
what appears to be a move to wed cars and advanced electronics.
-EAGLE COMPUTER announced losses from the third quarter amounted to $9.7
million, more than had been anticipated. The losses were directly tied to
IBM's lawsuit and its affect on sales.