S.T.A.G.E. said:
Nintendo never called for renegotiation on time. They sat through it until the end and I highly doubt the time in which the contract was read and opted out on was relatively short. They were smart not to take it, but at the same time Sony would've been doing all the work anyway. If I was them I would've wanted a piece of the pie as well. |
From what I understood, Sony was doing all the work behind Nintendo's back in the first place. It was super shady from the start.
Source: http://www.n-sider.com/contentview.php?contentid=231
"As an extension of the agreement, Sony made its most ambitious attempt at squeezing into the video game market by signing a deal with Nintendo that would allow it to develop and use CD-ROM drive technology in home console entertainment applications. Furthermore, games for Nintendo's forthcoming Super NES would be fully compatible with Sony's CD-based console."
"Sony quickly began development on its home console in secret using the proposed "Super Disc technology". The technology was not scheduled to be released for another 18 months. Sony's console was initially called the "Super Disc", and was supposed to be able to play both SNES cartridges and CD-ROMs, of which Sony was to be the "sole worldwide licenser," as stated in the contract."
"Nintendo president, Hiroshi Yamauchi thought CD-ROM technology and multimedia would be a vital part of the future of video games. He increased Nintendo's research budget to facilitate the exploration of this new future.
Nintendo was searching for a format to expand its multimedia endeavors, however for some reason Nintendo did not read the contract closely or simply didn't heed enough caution. Hiroshi Yamauchi and Co. thought they were playing Sony, but in reality, Sony would come to play Nintendo like a fiddle."
"In its attempt to stay competitive with Sega, the convergence machines Nintendo today criticizes, were once the waters Nintendo intentionally sailed. (Although, with the drama that would soon follow, it's no surprise Nintendo developed a bias against them.)"
"All was looking just fine for Nintendo until it found that the deal they had struck with Sony way back in 1988 granted Sony the right to control and license all the CD-based games for the "Super Disc". Nintendo was now to be at the mercy of Sony and its "Super Disc", which could play SNES carts and Sony-manufactured CDs. Nintendo, understandably, began to get worried.
When it became clear that CD-ROMs weren't a fluke and could turn into a major business, Nintendo Co. Ltd. president Hiroshi Yamauchi realized that the proposed alliance with Sony meant giving up the very foundation of Nintendo's business - absolute control over license and manufacturing."
"In June of 1991, at the Chicago CES, Sony officially announced the Play Station (space intentional). As originally announced, the Play Station would have a port to play Super Nintendo cartridges, as well as a CD-ROM drive that would play 680 megabyte Sony Super Discs."
"By this point, Nintendo had just about all it could take. On top of the deal signed in 1988, Sony had also retained all rights to the SNES sound chip, which further exacerbated Nintendo. Sony had Nintendo by the balls..."
Nuff said.
Again, I hope this bites them back big time.
