COMPUTE! ISSUE 37 / JUNE 1983 / PAGE 6
EDITOR'S NOTES
As many
of you are aware by now, we have become the eleventh operating division
of ABC Publishing. What it means initially is that we'll have available
resources and support that we've never enjoyed before as an independent
company. In addition to the general strengths that our alliance with
ABC provides, we'll have senior management expertise and skilled
business support of a type that we've never had available. We're all
quite pleased with this mutual blending of the styles and strengths of
two healthy companies, one old, one young, but both very much committed
to the future of our industry.
Best of all, COMPUTE!
Publications will continue to operate as a separate division, without
internal changes, and from exactly the same perspective of superior
quality and leadership in personal, consumer publishing. I even expect
to find more time for planning, research, and new product direction and
development.
It seems appropriate, on the occasion of this
announcement, to recount the current growth of COMPUTE! Publications. Our COMPUTE! Books Division will have
over 16 titles in print by the end of July; COMPUTE!'s First Book of VIC is
currently in its sixth printing. COMPUTE!'s
Gazette for Commodore VIC-20 and 64 computers is premiering this
month with an initial press run of 175,000 copies. An incredible feat
given that COMPUTE! broke
100,000 in October of last year. Finally, our flagship, COMPUTE! Magazine, has achieved the
significant 300,000 barrier. Our press run for this issue is 315,000.
Need I add, "and growing..."?
The latest round of price cutting has reached a
level defying the most aggressive predictions. Prices have dropped so
fast that Texas Instruments was caught while delaying the planned
introduction of the TI99/2. By the time the /2 series was scheduled to
be introduced at $99, market moves had brought the price of the /4 down
to $99. The Atari 1200, recently announced at the $1000 level, has
rapidly dropped to the $600-700 range; the 400 is now below $150. And
then there's Commodore, with the VIC-20 below $90 in many areas, and
the 64 at $399, or $299, if you're able to take advantage of the
trade-in offer (where you trade in your old computer or video game
computer and receive a $100 rebate).
What's in the wind at Commodore? We've heard rumors
of pending change with the new President of North American Operations
bringing in selected new key personnel. We've also heard that some
existing, previously key personnel are looking around for other
opportunities in the industry. Is another famous Commodore shake-up on
the way? Stay tuned, we'll try to keep you posted.
In another vein, the acknowledgment that software is
a critical factor in the marketplace seems to be gaining strength on
all manufacturers' strategy planning calendars. TI seems to be making
progress with their licensing program for in-house sale of out-of-house
developed programs. Commodore has established a new division to develop
and promote the sale of Commodore software. And through it all, both
established and newly formed software houses are pursuing the growth of
the industry.
Next month: A superior special theme issue, our
third on Games.
