BKK2 on 25 July 2008
PROMISING NEW ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCTS BUOY SPIRITS AT CES
Video Business Date: February 21, 1992
Sega vs. Nintendo The 16-bit videogame war was turning into a true clash of the titans (VB, 1/24). At the show, Sega of America predicted 3.5 million Genesis consoles will be sold in 1992, along with 20 million pieces of software. More than 150 new titles will be released as well. Nintendo of America said it will sell 6 million 16-bit Super NES sets plus 20 million pieces of software. It predicts 50 new titles will be available this year. NEC's TurboGrafx-16 was not about to throw in the towel, having sold more than 750,000 units of TG-16 players in 1991. Now reorganizing under game expert Hudson Soft (VB, 1/10), the company promised many more cartridges for Turbo. At the show was a combination cartridge/CD game console that will be available by mid-year. No pricing plans - or even a name - were announced. Nintendo, to counter stiff competition from Sega, lowered the price at CES on all of its game units, slicing $20 from Super NES, $10 from the original 8-bit console and $10 from Game Boy. Sega will have a CD accessory for Genesis available this year, called Genesis Mega CD. Nintendo announced specs for its CD drive, an accessory that will be available in January 1993. TurboGrafx will be the leader in this category for the foreseeable future. It has 100 titles on disc in Japan while Sega has five and Nintendo none. Recession or not, it's expected videogames will be a $4 billion-plus business in 1992.
Video Business Date: February 21, 1992
Sega vs. Nintendo The 16-bit videogame war was turning into a true clash of the titans (VB, 1/24). At the show, Sega of America predicted 3.5 million Genesis consoles will be sold in 1992, along with 20 million pieces of software. More than 150 new titles will be released as well. Nintendo of America said it will sell 6 million 16-bit Super NES sets plus 20 million pieces of software. It predicts 50 new titles will be available this year. NEC's TurboGrafx-16 was not about to throw in the towel, having sold more than 750,000 units of TG-16 players in 1991. Now reorganizing under game expert Hudson Soft (VB, 1/10), the company promised many more cartridges for Turbo. At the show was a combination cartridge/CD game console that will be available by mid-year. No pricing plans - or even a name - were announced. Nintendo, to counter stiff competition from Sega, lowered the price at CES on all of its game units, slicing $20 from Super NES, $10 from the original 8-bit console and $10 from Game Boy. Sega will have a CD accessory for Genesis available this year, called Genesis Mega CD. Nintendo announced specs for its CD drive, an accessory that will be available in January 1993. TurboGrafx will be the leader in this category for the foreseeable future. It has 100 titles on disc in Japan while Sega has five and Nintendo none. Recession or not, it's expected videogames will be a $4 billion-plus business in 1992.
US:
CY92:
Super Nintendo: 7m HW / 22m SW / $2.5b total value
Genesis: 4.5m HW / 15m SW / $1.3b total value
Game Boy: 4m HW / 25m SW
NES: 3m HW (33m LTD) / 30m SW
Sega CD: 200k HW
16-bit: $3.8b
8-bit: $1.3b
Portable: $1b
CY91:
Genesis: 1.6m HW
TurboGrafx: 750k HW
CY90:
Genesis: 440k HW
