CompuServe Messages

Redmond, I have one slight argument with your points. I do not find it suprising at all that the Amiga market is but 1/3rd that of the Mac while the third party is hardly one-thirtieth as lucrative. If any industry exhibits significant economies of scale, it is the computer market. Nothing we can do, nor Commodore in a very real sense, will change those facts. Only if the installed base increases significantly, and I do not mean by 50% but on the close order of 300%, will significant economies of scale occur. The barriers to entry are high and I do not think that C= has the management to pull off a marketing coup. They seem to have a significant presence in the video market, at least to judge from the number of Amigas I've spotted in video studios in news reports, but this is a very small market niche. Given the state of the market, C= doesn't have a choice chance in hell of penetrating the consumer market unless it is willing to play with the big boys with their significantly tighter profit margins. They can't do that, period. If they try, they will be in bankruptcy proceedings so fast it'd make your head spin as they can't afford the advertising budget required. As evidence, I offer the campaign by Intel. There is no way C= could afford a comparable campaign, and this is in comparison to a chip company, which is but a small part of C=, not to a full-fledged OEM. In comparison to an OEM, C= also fails the test. There is no way they can afford an advertising budget similiar to Apple or IBM, period (again). Face it, we are stuck with a niche machine with a evangelistic following that will never break into the "mainstream." Wishing won't make a difference nor will advertising by a company that can not afford the effort. As for myself, I'm going to sit here enjoying a five year old machine that is easily comparable to a 20 MHz '486 and, for now, cheaper. Brian