77777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777 @BEGIN_FILE_ID.DIZContents of fax sent to amiga dealers on Satuday April 30, 1994 from Creative Equipment International USA largest Amiga distributer @END_FILE_ID.DIZ ************************************** *Contents of fax sent to amiga *dealers on Satuday April 30, 1994 *from Creative Equipment International *USA largest Amiga distributer ************************************** Dear CEI Dealer: As we have been expecting, Commodore International filed for liquidation inorder to be protected from its creditors Friday April 29, 1994, at 4:10 P.M. Commodore's official statment follows: "Commodore International Limited announced today that its Board of Directors has authorized the transfers of its asstes to trustees for the benefit of its creditor and has placed its major subsidiary, Commodore Electronics Limited, into voluntary liquidation. This is the initial phase of an orderly liquidation of both companies, which are incorporated in the Bahamas, by the Bahamas Supreme Court." This action does not affect the wholly-owned subsidiaries which include Commodore Buisiness machines (USA), Commodore Buisiness Machines LTD (CANADA), Commodore/Amiga (UK), Commodore Germany, etc. Operations will continue normally. CEI has been working closely with Commodore's management and major investors to find a resolution to the current financial crisis. Commodore's actions now clear the way for PROGRESS to be made. In the next few weeks CEI will be making a number of important announcements. CEI currently has suffcient Amiga inventory to meet expected demand until manufacturing can be resumed. All our policies remina intact, full service and support will continue. If you have any questions or concerns please contact your CEI representative. Please assure your cutomers that this event should be seen in a positive light. What if...better support, better products, better marketing, better prices, better margins all arose from the ashes. Stay tuned Sincerely, Alex Amor President --------------------------------- --------------------------------- The following is an edited version of a open forum on Compuserve Sunday night at 9:00 EST 5/1/1994.....(Edited by Cygnus.23 / MAYHEM/RDC ) --------------------------------- --------------------------------- MarkM/MOD) Ok... let me start with the formal stuff, I have a comment and then MarkM/MOD) I'll ask for a opening statement. Welcome one and all! Please welcome our guest Mike Levin, the spokesman for the Commodore Shareholders Movement (CSM). He is here to answer questions in regards to the current Commodore situation as he understands it. As well as talk a little about the past events. Please welcome Mike, this is his first public conference. Remember that this is a formal conference and that all questions should be presented to the moderator (me!) with a ? and wait to be recognized. Mike, do you have an opening statement? Mike Levin) yes I will be typing it in real time so bear with me... There will be no doom and gloom here tonight... Two of us will be answering questions- Marc Rifkin and muself... We are long-time CSMers and have dedicated a great deal of time in trying to effect Commodore's course. Tonight we can speak on those activities... and the activiteis we will continue to do... We can not speak for Commodore and can not anwer questions on sales figures and performance. With that out of the way, let's start. MarkM/MOD) I am opening the floor for questions. Karl Kugel) was interesting that the liquidation only covered the U.S. and parent companies, but seemed to leave the profitably European part alone. Any comments? Mike Levin) It is so early. Commodore is a big company with many divisions... but the parts which are closing down are important parts... including the factories. When the supply runs out, even the European... companies will not have Amigas to sell, but I don't think that that will be for several months, at least. GA Michael Shea) What ever happened with regards to the meeting CSM had with CBM creditors? Mike Levin) I met with them the beginning of April... But, their official position was that as a lender, they only had certain leagal remedies. There was not much they could do. I told them the things about Commodore which they did not know... including the size of Commodore's market, their strengths in Europe... and the potential of the technology, especially if Commdore were to... take the critical step to license. They were very interested in what... I had to say, but they could not supply me with any new informantion... John Horton) Will the Amiga line continue...by who(is anyone going to pick it up)? Mike Levin) That is the most important question. There are several possibilities... which most of you are already aware of. It is my belief... that no one will continue to make the Amigas which we are familiar with... beyond what the existing supply of chips (Paulas, 8520's) will allow... but instead, someone will pick up the technology and license it out to... anyone who wants it, and you will see an array of Amiga-ish products... including cable boxes, game machines, and an Amiga-on-a-card for PCs. GA Carl Hansen) Welcome Mike and thanks for all your work in the past. What will a share of C= be worth tomorrow and then next week...? GA Mike Levin) Friday's news is definately bad for shareholders... First the large creditors will be paid back, then the smaller ones... then the shareholders. We probably won't see much at all when it's done. Don Suhr) How much of C= is dead, and what remains? GA Mike Levin) Commodore consists of over 30 companies... The big parts are gone including Commodore International, Commodore Business Machines, and Commdore Electronics Limited... The rest are sales companies in the respective countries. I haven't heard much news over the weekend beyond the ones that have already closed. Mike Richard) What do you think that this will all mean in the short-term for those of us... Mike Levin) In the short term, there will definately be a dry period, BUT... continue to buy 3rd party products from GVP, Macrosystems, Scala, etc... so that when potential purchasers of the Amiga technology look at the... market, they will see something good. Above all else, the market must not... be allowed to go away. GA Endre R Bujtas) What is the possibility of a class-action suit in behalf of the stockholders agaist M. A;li and the gang Mike Levin) A good one... What is needed is a shareholder with enough of an investment in the... company and enough money to bring a class-action suit, and a top-notch class-action lawyer who can prove that Commodore stock shoul be worth... around $20 per share now if not for (I don't want to be liable here)... the inappropriate management. GA Paul Idol) What are CSM's plans and with whom are you working to put them into effect? In Mark's announcement of this CO he suggested that this (the liquidation) might be the best thing ever to happen for the Amiga. This implies concrete knowledge. My dealer things thinks that CEI might be trying to take up the reins, but this is just a rumour. What is fact? GA Mike Levin) Everything is rumor... The technogy will go to the highest bidder. Now that Commodore management... is gone, the horse has ben unhobbled. This is what Mark is referring to, but it is like rolling dice. My plans are to talk to the people necessary... so that the dice come up ACES for the users and developers... I think CEI might be able to get the factories running to make as many more Amigas as possible if they get a technology license, but it is not... the most profittable venture in the world. The best thing that can be done... is to demonstrate demand by writing CEI with letters saying that you are ready to buy more Amigas if they are able to build them. This is something which they could "take to the bank." Actual orders would be even better. Tim - GVP, Inc.) I have heard that one of the "final straws" on Commodore, was that they recently lost a patent infringement suit based on Multiple-screen technology, one of the strong points of the Amiga. Is this true, and if so what kind of problems would it cause to a potential buyer of the Amiga chip set? Mike Levin) From my understanding, the people with the injunction... wanted a one-time payment which other companies have been able to pay... and get on with business as usual. If someone wants the Amiga technology, this is just another expense which is part of the investment they must make. MarkM/MOD) Isn't injunction based on cursor ? Mike Levin) I don't know the particular nature of the patent. I heard it might be the cursor. Ottmar Roehrig) Don't you think that the professional Amiga-market will discontinue to... exist _immediatly_? Which company will buy machines which are not being... produced and repaired anymore by its maker? Have you heard any opinion from... third-parties like GVP, Scala, NewTek, ASDG etc.? GA Don't you think that the professional Amiga-market will discontinue to... exist _immediatly_? Which company will buy machines which are not being... produced and repaired anymore by its maker? Have you heard any opinion from... third-parties like GVP, Scala, NewTek, ASDG etc.? GA Mike Levin) Unfortuantely, it is a confidence issue... Sure, there are customers who will not buy computers made by a dissolved... company, but there are also people who care about solutions more than... support, so keep buying those A4000's which are in the channels... And better than that,, write every magazine you know to tell them you... are still buying Amigas, and that you will buy from whoever picks up... the Amiga and that you look forward to the next generation Amiga, especially now that it has been liberated from management... Mike Levin) this might be optimistic, but it will get some attention from potential... technology investors. The more optimistic and vocal you are, the better your chances for the next generation Amiga, which might still be something very special. Steve Thompson) what, if anything has Newtek said? Mike Levin) In answer to Steve... I have not talked to anyone from NewTek in months... But if I were them, I would do everything I could to ensure that a friendly and open party gets the Amiga technology who is open to licensing. I think that CD32s will only continue to be made if some company sees it as profitable to do so. It is a long-shot... Instead, you might see a cable-box which is CD32-ish. Jay Goodwin) I'm concerned about buyer for AmigaOS, the HW has been iffy... but the OS is what I really want to see live on. MarkM/MOD) What is your question--this sounds like a comment. Jay Goodwin) I would like to know if someone is interested in the OS. Mike Levin) Hopefully, someone gets the technology who can take it from where... Commodore left off. The Hardware and Software, I expect will be... a package deal (but not necessarily). I hope it is. John Horton) What can be done to keep the Amiga line going? Impossible? (lets buy it!?) Mike Levin) The only way the Amiga line as we know it will continue is if it is profittable for a company to do so. There will be studies of Commodore's operations and profits. The picture will look grim... your job is to counter that effect. Create demand. Write letters... to everyone you can think of who needs to know that you want Amigas! This includes magazines. John Horton) Can the GVP rep here make a comment. Mike It was CBMs marketing that ...... killed the machine (or lack of it) Trent Hawkins) What parts of C= are dead? Specifically is C= Canada dead? or C= UK or C= Germany? Mike Levin) I was already asked that question. It's too soon to tell. Only Friday's news about CIL, CBM and C=Elec.Ltd. MarkM/MOD) It is my understanding if CIL (Commodore International) is gone.. all is gone. Andrew.. go ahead. Andrew Farrell) Who are the mystery 'trustees' of Commodore's assets? According to CEI, Commdore subs. are all okay - inc. the very profitable Commodore U.K... Also, the assets include the factry n the Philipines? Mike Levin) The factory in the Philipines has not produced since March... I don't know who the trustees are going to be yet, but I certainly... plan on finding out and talking to them to make sure they understand the market and the investment opportunities. It is an exciting and potentially lucrative alternative computer technology or core for a game machine. It should go into the hands of someone... who will want to maximize the investment. MarkM/MOD) Paul.. a comment? Paul Idol) Yes, I just think that there is the distinct possibility that by the time all the liscensing issues and investigations and so on are completed the Amiga technology will have fallen far enough behind the state of things that potential investors will be less interested in getting on board than we might think or hope. So things should happen FAST. Andrew Farrell) CEI indicated in their dealer newsletter they expected manufacturing to resume soon. Do they know something we don't? (The newsletter was faxed on Saturday) BTW, The level of inventry in the U.K. warehouses will be critical to Paul's issue. Mike Levin) These proceedings don't happen fast, unfortunately. The Amiga already has fallen behind in certain areas. The value of the Amiga technolgy is not in going up against clones, but in... the kind of inexpensive boxes and devices you can make out of it for running applications such as the Toaster and Scala... This should be enough to attract companies interested in making money by licensing the technology. Don't forget the minimal amount of RAM Amigas require compared to DOS machines. Joe Clasen) Are the big players talking or will they jump ship l Golddisk? Mike Levin) What big players? Amiga developers or large companies? Mike Levin) Good question! I think NewTek will look for ways to get the technology. How could they not? more... I hope Phillips does not try to squash it, but it is a possibility. michael biddle) What about inventory? Are Amiga products available anywhere? Mike Levin) Yes. I can't answer much, but I am led to believe that the UK distributors have stockpiled. Andrew Farrell) According to the CEI newsletter, they have plenty of stock (current Saturday) Mike Levin) I hope that they do. The people at CEI are resourceful. Paul Idol) I understand your hope that we all buy Amiga products and announce that we WILL buy them and so on, but how do you answer questions in the minds of buyers to the effect of "Where will we get parts and rep airs?" Mike Levin) Good question... Paul Idol) and "Why buy something that won't be upgraded?" and so on? Mike Levin) It depends on the supply of parts. I can only guess that part of the... Mike Levin) responsibility of the trustees is to maintain the value of the products... and the market. This is a hope, but responsible trustees should do what they can to supply whatever parts might still be in warehouses. Again, I admit that there will be a dry period and that an Amiga purchase now is only for the brave, but we all eat off of the same plate, and only that kind of letter will do any good now. MarkM/MOD) Dean, your comment? Dean/DKB) When has Commodore ever supplied upgrades to the Amiga other than... requiring you to buy a new machine? The third party companys have done... more in that respect than Commodore. As for parts, they have always been... available through the gray market if you know where to look! Mike Levin) I agree. I see opportunity where others see danger. That is the only way good will come of this. Commdore has been unhobbled the hard way. Third-party developers must pick up where Commodore left off. And, they haven't actually been liquidated yet. MarkM/MOD) We are about to go open conference.. let me get Karl's question out of the way. Then we can talk freely. Karl Kugel) Is there anything left at Westchester, and do you think work can be resumed on AA Mike Levin) Only 22 people (I'm told). They are only likely to be there for a short while more... It is so hard to sa y about AAA, but I am as close to the heartbeat as any outsider... I guess it is in the hands of whover buys the technology... This won't be for several months and no kind of manufacturing will be able to begin for months after that... MarkM/MOD) Dale Larson.. you have the last comment.. then a closing statement from Mike. and one from me. IAM-Dale) Hey, don't people doing COs have to give something away? What is Levin giving away? Useless stock? :-) MarkM/MOD) Thanks Dale. :-) Mike, closing comments? Mike Levin) Yes... Mike Levin) The tradition of Commodore computers will only continue based on your activities and letters and outcry in the coming weeks. Let people know this market exist and wants to continue to exist... Where there are customers, there are people who want to profit off of them. Say things like "I would buy an Amiga even if it was more expensive" Dollars talk. Talk dollars. Write AmigaWorld and Amazing and your newspaper and Forbes and Time and the Wall Street Journal. Make a story out of this. Be resourceful in figuring out who to write. Don't hope for me to pull of some magical stunt. All I can do is reinforce your message. That's all. ,MarkM/MOD) Ok.. I am going to open the floor for those developers who are represented here... who may have a comment. The first comment I have is from Jim Drew/ from Utilities Unlimited. Go Jim. Jim Drew/UUI) Nobody freak... but I am wil ling to put up as much money as necessary to obtain the rights to the Amiga. The Amiga market has been good.... Mike Levin) Hey Jim, attract investors! Assemble a consortium of Amiga developers. I could think of no better scenario. Jim Drew/UUI) Ok.. well, basically I have a staff of attorneys waiting for tomorrow to roll around and see how much it is going to cost me... I will be damned if they (HP, Sony, take your pick) are going to 'rape' my 'baby' (aka Amiga). The Amiga market has been very generous to us.. time to give some back. I will be talking to other developers to see if a mutual public corporation would be in the interest of the Amiga community. I think the developers (us peoples that know the machine) could make this thing fly... that's all. I'm not going to give up on you guys... and to make things more interesting.. we have MAC products being introduced... and the revenue generated from this is going directly into the Amiga community... we need this... Mike Levin) Someone has to spearhead such an effort. Jim Drew/UUI) I would be happy to. Dean/DKB) I'll have a quick say. DKB has every intention of staying available in the Amiga marketplace. We... have been working behind the scenes to try and obtain a supply of machines... for the US market. We have not yet been succesfull, but if we can do it,... we will. MarkM/MOD) Dale? IAM-Dale) Optimism has a valuable place sometimes. Whether or not you are optimistic, in the worst case the Amiga(s) that you already love/own/use will be just as good after the sale of C= as before. It will still be more cost effective for most people to continue to use and upgrade those machines than to immediately plunge into a new platform. I anticipate a fairly strong market for continuing support of the Amiga even in the worst case scenario of no more Amigas whatsoever. Heck, look at how many people continue to use C64s and to buy stuff for them. Admitedly, small stuff, but those are small machines. IAM plans to continue product development and to make neat new stuff available soon. MarkM/MOD) AT this point, I would like to thank Mike Levin for being our guest here at CompuServe. I want to apologize t o Dean from DKB as he was next in the schedule.. but was bumped .. I will get him on next (soon). And let you know the date. Please, everyone thank Mike for taking the time to talk to us tonight. (Alot of thanks to Mike here - ED.) Mike Smith) Jim- HEAD THE BUY THE AMIGA CAMPAIGN AND GIVE DAVE HAYNIE A JOB!!! Jim Drew/UUI) Dave Haynie and Randell Jessup would definately be most welcome... ..along with Carolyn and anyone else who has never had anything to do with marketting. :-) Tom Barker) Jim Drew, Good Lick!! gimme 5!! Jim Drew/UUI) 5 John Horton) Jim Drew--->With the millions of AMs out there, i'll sent you a dollar... ME) Jim, can you really come up with that kind of money? Jim Drew/UUI) I can come up with a big cunk of change... the question remains of how much is it going to cost. I am also have many outside financers that are willing to pitch in (some just to see Apple get their pants burned)... ------------------- Well, that was pretty much it on the CBM discussion, except for people saying goodbye. BTW: Jim Drew actually publically announced that the Emplant 486DX emulation was shooting for a release date of June 1 !!!! That's as much info as we've got for now so, keep those fingers crossed and let's hope Jim can help us all out............l8r. Cygnus.23 -----------------