CommodoreUSA Partners with Disney

[danwood]

In case you missed it earlier Darrin, I'm not an employee nor am I an investor of C=USA.  In fact I can remember feeling the rage you have right now when they deluded the worthy Amiga name by some rebadged h0rked up PPC mobo with the name AmigaOne which sold initially running only Linux.   You had the same rage back then, right?

A PPC board that runs AmigaOS 4... if you really can't tell the difference between a PPC board running AmigaOS 4 and a generic x86 running Windows 7/Linux and think they're both Amigas, then there's really no hope here.  The difference should be blindly obvious to any one.

The OS is really the only defining factor in computers these days, Macs are not the same as PCs running Win 7 just because of the hardware similarities, what makes them a Mac?  Because they run the MacOS and run Mac apps, same with Amiga hardware, if it doesn't run AmigaOs or Amiga apps, it's not an Amiga.

[danwood]

amigadave

You are right.. Sooo many people have left the site because of this idiot fanboys.. they need to get a life.

Commodore uSA has DONE MORE THAN ANY AMIGA COMPANY SINCE 93 TO GET THE BRAND OUT THERE.

Personally I'd rather the Amiga brand was laid to rest than whored out on cheap knock-off tat like supermarket TVs and sub $100 buggy android tablets, what a sad and undignified end to one of the industries most pioneering technology brands of the 80s/90s.  Sticking the name Amiga on a kettle or crap TV is not doing "more for the Amiga", it's making what was once a legendary name into a laughing stock.

[danwood]

Thanks Red,
.[/I]".
The venom is a bit much considering how many people have already suggested that if the Amiga were still around it would probably be X86 based.
!

Maybe, but it wouldn't be running Windows 7 or Ubuntu with an emulator (at best), that's just a PC, same as we had in the Amiga era running Windows, the same, these CUSA "Amigas" are no more an Amiga than the Amstrad 286 running Win 3.1 my bro had when I had my A600.

[danwood]

yeah, um.. hey danwood if you're considering becoming a apple Switcher or upgrading to an Atari ST I would be willing to give ya a couple of bucks for that slow old amiga hardware

I've been a Mac user since 2001, a Windows user since 1998, a Linux user since 2006 and an Amiga user since 1991 (OS 2.0-4.1.2).  I use OS 4 on an A1XE today and an A1200 upgraded for classic stuff, but it's not the same as my Mac or PCs, slapping a boing ball logo on my Win 7 box would not make it be an Amiga.

[danwood]

I may be too young to claim I was a first generation commodore user but having inherited them from an older brother I remember them fondly and still have a working amiga that I still use sometimes. This new commodore seems to have no such sense of nostalgia and interested only in making a quick dollar selling devices you can already buy elsewhere for less. Theres no visible affection for anything or respect for anyone in the existing community and even a sense of glee from some that they are going to upset as many people as possible.

This exactly sums up the way I feel too. Slapping the Amiga brand on any rebadged crap you usually see in Lidl, Aldi (NOK, Alba gear etc.) or other cheap supermarkets is not doing the brand any favours, just cheapening what was once a legendary name, anyone who remembers the Amiga will just look at it and be like "wow, sad what happened to the Amiga that it ended up on this crap!".  At least before it had died with a bit of dignity.

[danwood]

So your saying Amiga.org, which is dedicated to the Amiga computer and derivitives, should cover anything with an Amiga sticker on it?
I don't often say this sort of thing, but You really are talking shite, and you aught to question why you are on here.

+1

I must say, the CUSA fanboys/employees can take the piss all they like about "it's not a religion", "we're doing something with the 'amiga'", but as someone who loved the Amiga, and had my life changed by it in many ways, what they are doing breaks my heart.  Yeah yeah it's just a "computer" but it meant a lot to many of us, hence our interest in it almost 2 decades after it died commercially, and it does upset a lot of us to see it's name being used on anything from shitty PCs you'd find in Aldi/Lidl to sub $100 no-brand tablets, it cheapens it and is a very undignified use of a brand that meant so much so many of us.

Especially as I'm known on some forums as a long time Amiga fan, and recently have had people wondering why I like the Amiga when they see stuff like those tablets, and think that represents the Amiga today, and I have to explain that I have no association or any love for the current tat that's being branded "Amiga".  Some of the younger guys who don't remember/know how powerful and ground-breaking the Amiga was, now think Amiga is a brand like NOK or Alba that you see on supermarket sold TVs etc, how sickening.

[danwood]

Barry's got a good understanding of marketing.  Look at how he pitches a paid advert on a DVD of a film that frankly didn't make the splash it should have.  It's pitched as "co-branding."  Winning means never having to say you're sorry over any exaggeration...

I think that much is obvious to anyone who even did business skills as an 11 year old at school.  Many bigger companies have tried to market Commodore PCs since the 1990s, I can count, Escom, Tulip, Commodore Gaming to name a few, all of which have failed.

Fact is you can't go up against the likes of Dell etc. who can afford little margins because they have huge customer bases.  

Plus I keep hearing from people such as Dammy that Barry/CUSA isn't aiming at the "retro market" as such, but outside of it, who on earth would want a PC on their desk that looked like something from 30 years ago?

The brown breadbox C64 even looked outdated by 1987 when it was replaced with the C64C.  Who are these hundreds of thousands of customers he's guaranteed?  Not retro enthusiasts, the general computer buying audience, businesses?  Sorry but I just can't see anyone outside maybe a few hundred Commodore fans (who CUSA have mostly managed to piss off) buying this?

I've asked the question around 10 times now on here but never can seem to get an answer to the above question.

Personally I think they over-estimate people's interest in "retro" gear, sure people get dewy eyed over the C64 and Amiga, but actually buying something today and reminiscing fondly about it is two different things.  I can't imagine most people would want to own a c64 look-a-like in 2011 anymore than they'd like to wear the fashion they were wearing in 1983 today.

[danwood]

So CUSA partners with Disney and is supposed to ship production this week? That's just nuts! Look, this is what they should have done, especially it they wanted to be accepted by the Amiga community.

They should have started out by hijacking a historic computing event to promote the product, showing a couple of revision 1 units - maybe set up a PC in a black box to give a "live demo". Then they should have set up a beta testing program, and started small with five units before going throttle up with a full 100 pre-paid "beta" units. In the meantime they should have been doing interviews with Commodore interest magazines, and Barry should have been replying to random subjects on the forums with meaningless yet inoffensive comments like "Very cool!"

All this partnering with Disney for advertising is just crazy kid stuff. Look, this "Tron" movie only grossed about $397 million worldwide - barely a blip on the radar compared to this:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-4K9DSa7JI&feature=related

240 views FTW! In your face CUSA!

CUSA should really consider getting in touch with the marketing genius behind A-eon, if they want any brand recognition. Srsly.

I liked the Tron Legacy movie, and I think it's out in the UK this week, I'll be making a trip to ASDA to buy the blu-ray later, so I'll see what's in the case.

Personally if Commodore USA had to do anything with the Amiga (and I'd really rather they didn't), or had any business sense - to me the most logical and business-wise decision would have been to licence a bunch of old best sellers like Lotus Turbo Challenge, or Sensi and put out a TV-Joystick that ran a bunch of classic games, with a memory card port so people could download ADFs or from their store.

Sell those like the C64 stick a few years ago, put them in Toys R Us etc for £20 each and they'd sell like hot-cakes.

Personally I'd see it as a cute little nod to the Amiga's past and a fun little novelty item, and I'm sure lots of people would.  I'd wager they'd even earn a profit too.

[danwood]

Since you asked 10 times, here is the answer, 10 times:

http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_Comments.aspx

There, even an eleven year old could understand that.

Hmmn a bunch of comments from people who are assuming the Amiga is "back" and the C64 is "back" who will probably be very disappointed when they find out that it's just the same as the Windows Pc they already have.

Doesn't really explain it to me, they are not bringing the Amiga back, the Amiga is/was a platform, the same as Windows/Unix/Mac/ST, this is a Windows platform machine with an Amiga badge.

So again, who are they aiming at?  PC users who want an 80s case?

[danwood]

For anyone that doubts there's interest in C=USA machines, take a look at their facebook page. The number of people who liked C=USA is going up by the minute. I imagine the spike will be even greater tomorrow and once TV commercials begin and this is just the beginning .

Just looks like more people who are wrongly believing these new machines will be a continuation of the platform they loved or a modern implementation, and will be disappointed when it's just the same as their existing PC, bar the case.

[danwood]

It seemed that the original plan was strictly based on brand recognition, which Barry Altman made clear last year.
"Altman said that he is bringing back the name because "the *name Commodore and the Commodore Computer was the most popular computer of all times "even though a product has not been introduced in the last*almost*20 years the name itself has brand recognition that parallels and rivals the greatest in the industry." He said that Commodore has an 87% ranking."
source

Any venture will change/adapt over time, though, so I wouldn't be quick to conclude that any future view is quite the same. There are a lot of variables here...a lot.

#6

If the Commodore brand had such good ranking, why have half a dozen bigger companies (Escom, Tulip etc.) failed over the last 15 years?  Plus they were actually released in the 90s/early 00s when people still remembered Commodore as a brand.  Even closer to now, the Commodore Gaming PC rigs of 2007-2009 also failed.  Did he not use this very valuable research?  I'm sure the brand is still recognised, but past experience shows people regard it as an old brand from a different era, and are not interested in owning a Commodore these days.

Bananarama are still a recognised band name, but their albums in the 00s flopped.   Recognition and desire to buy are very different.

[danwood]

There is value in a name and likeness. If the cards are played out right, former and current users will buy one. Current users will be a smallish number, former users could be a much greater number. It could also appeal to people who appreciate the retro look.
 
Do what I am doing, sit back and enjoy the show as a casual observer. You will witness one of two things.
 
1) Rebirth of a brand name and identity.
2) A spectacular failure on a big stage for the world to see.

I'm not convinced there is value in the name/likeness in 2011.  It's seen as a brand of the 80s, I think what's been mistaken here is nostalgia "aww man I loved my Amiga/C64, playing Sensi Soccer and Golden Axe lol!" dreaming of long summers as a kid with your friends.

In the same way people might reminisce about being into Rick Astley, or New Kids and wearing parachute pants and rara skirts, nostalgic memories are one thing, people look back fondly on them, but it doesn't mean they want a wardrobe full of shoulder pads and miami vice suits 30 years on.

[danwood]

The Amiga is much more than a machine..it is first and foremost an iconic BRAND!!!

The reason it was an iconic brand was because of the hardware/software it ran.  When I was 9 years old and drooled over the Amiga in catalogues it wasn't because of the name, it was because of the mind-blowing graphics and seeing demos and games in stores that blew me away.

And how can you call our products a Windows platform, when we don't even promote or sell it with any MS s/w?

I've yet to see which, if any OS will be shipped, so you won't be offering Windows 7 as an option on your PCs?   Make no mistake though, these are IBM PC/Wintel machines you're selling, they're a development/descendant of the "PC" platform, not the Amiga platform.

Even if the Amiga did go x86 and was still around, it would be running it's own custom software and run specific Amiga apps, like the Mac, probably with some proprietary hardware too.

These machines are what we call "PCs" today and what we called "PCs" in the 80s, machines that ran DOS now run Windows, they're not Amigas, nothing close, and the comments on most of the links above seem to be from people who remember the Amiga with fond nostalgia, and probably are bored of their PCs/Windows boxes and are expecting a rebirth of the Amiga platform, when this is no such thing.

CUSA fans may berate AmigaOne/OS4, but at least they run the Amiga platform and are direct descendants of the Amiga in many ways, they still run a lot of Amiga apps and do things in the Amiga way, these CUSA machines don't because they are descendants of the IBM PC platform, not the Amiga.

[danwood]

So no, putting a bottom end PC into a retro case that has serious useability-issues  isn't gonna sell wll once the blitz is over.

At the risk of being overly harsh, dunno about you, but if any of my non-retro buddies walked into my place and saw a Commodore 64 sitting on my desk, they'd probably laugh and be like "you loser lol" while sitting down and playing with their iPad.

It's not a cool case design for the general public.

[danwood]

Yeahronimo and Tulip were literally at war the entire time, and I've written extensively about that history on AW.

True, the Commodore brand was jumping back and forth, but even before them Escom were selling Commodore branded PCs for a couple of years, in most of the high-street stores, they failed.  Heck, even Commodore couldn't shift Commodore branded PCs in the late 80s/early 90s, in-fact their move into PCs is often attributed as one of their financial disasters that eventually killed them.

If you couldn't market/sell Commodore PCs in 1988-1997 (when they were still a global mainstream player) I fail to see how you can in 2011, personally.