Atari

Template:Infobox Company

For the concept Atari (当たり) in the board game of Go, see Atari (go term).

Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR) is a majority owned subsidiary of Infogrames Entertainment SA (IESA), encompassing its North American operations. Atari develops, publishes and distributes games for all major video game consoles, as well as for the personal computer, and is currently one of the largest third-party publishers of video games in the United States.

The company that currently bears the Atari name was founded in 1993 under the name GT Interactive. GT Interactive was acquired by IESA in 1999 and renamed Infogrames, Inc. Infogrames acquired the Atari brand name from its purchase of Hasbro Interactive, which in turn had acquired it from JTS Corporation, which the original Atari had merged with in 1996. Infogrames, Inc. intermitently used the Atari name as a brand name for selected titles before officially changing its name to Atari, Inc. in 2003.

The original Atari was a pioneer in arcade games, home video game consoles, and personal computers, and its dominance in those areas made it the major force in the computer entertainment industry in the early to mid 1980s. The brand has also been used at various times by Atari Games, a separate company split off in 1984.

Contents

History

Original Atari logo

Since the early days of coin operated machines, Atari has been responsible for home consoles such as the Atari 2600 (VCS); produced a series of eight-bit computers (Atari 400 & 800); taken part in the 16 bit computer revolution with the Atari ST; made the revolutionary (for its time) 64-bit Atari Jaguar; and released a hand held video game console, the Atari Lynx.

Founded in the United States in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell, Atari could be credited with starting the video arcade industry with the seminal Pong. The home version of Pong, which connected to a television set, was one of the first video game consoles.

There is an urban legend of sorts of Atari originally having been called Syzygy, an astronomical term - however, as there already existed at least one company with that name (accounts varying as to whether it was a candle company or roofing company), Bushnell wrote down several words from the game Go, eventually choosing Atari, which is said to inform an opposing player that he or she is in danger (see check) [1] (http://computermuseum.50megs.com/pong.htm). Atari is arguably also rather more memorable in terms of spelling and pronounciation for most markets.

Bushnell sold Atari to Warner Communications in 1976 for an estimated $28 million to $32 million and used part of the money to buy the Folgers Mansion. Bushnell departed from the division in 1978. While part of Warner, Atari achieved its greatest success, selling millions of Atari 2600 consoles, and at its peak, it accounted for one third of Warner's annual income and became the fastest-growing company in the history in the United States (at the time). Although it had garnered the lion's share of the home video game market, the 2600 experienced its first stiff competition in 1980 from Mattel's Intellivision, which featured ads touting its superior graphics capabilities relative to the 2600. Still, the 2600 remained the industry standard-bearer, due to its market superiority, and due to Atari featuring (by far) the greatest variety of game titles available.

However, Atari ran into problems in the early 1980s. Its home computer, video game console, and arcade divisions operated independently of one another and rarely cooperated. Faced with fierce competition and price wars in the game console and home computer markets, Atari was never able to follow on the success of the 2600. In 1982, Atari released disappointing versions of two highly publicized games, Pac-Man and E.T., causing a pileup of unsold inventory and depressing prices. Also in 1982, Atari settled a court case with Activision, officially opening the 2600 to third-party development. The market quickly became saturated, depressing prices further. In addition, in December 1982, Atari executives Ray Kassar and Dennis Groth were investigated for insider trading (later found to be false). Larry Emmons, employee No.3, retired in 1982. He was head of research and development of the small group of talented engineers in Grass Valley, California. The Atari 5200 game console, released as a next-generation follow up to the 2600, was based on the Atari 800 computer (but was incompatible with Atari 800 game cartridges), and its sales never met the company's expectations. It is rumored that in 1983, in response to a massive number of returned orders from distributors, Atari buried millions of unsold game cartridges (http://www.snopes.com/business/market/atari.asp) (the bulk of them consisting of two titles--Pac-Man and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial) in a New Mexico desert landfill. Howard Scott Warshaw, the programmer of E.T. and several other Atari 2600 games, questions the accuracy of this urban legend. (http://beepbopboop.heavysixer.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=47&Itemid=67)

Still, Atari held a formidable position in the world video game market. They were the number one console maker in every market except Japan. That market belonged to Nintendo, who had released their first game console, the Famicom (known to the rest of the world as the NES) in 1983. The system took Japan by storm, and Nintendo began to look to other markets. They approached Atari and offered a licensing deal - Atari would build and sell the system, paying Nintendo a royalty. The deal was in the works, and the two companies tentatively decided to sign the agreement at the 1983 Summer CES. Unfortunately, at that same show Coleco was showing their new Adam computer, and the display unit was running Donkey Kong. But Atari owned the rights to publish Donkey Kong for computers. Atari CEO Ray Kassar had a fit, accusing Nintendo of double dealing with the Donkey Kong license. Nintendo in turn tore into Coleco. In the coming month, Ray Kassar was forced to leave Atari, and executives involved in the Famicom deal were forced to start over again from scratch.

These problems were followed by the infamous video game crash of 1983, which caused losses that totaled more than $500 million. Warner's stock price slid from $60 to $20 and the company began searching for a buyer for its troubled division. As for Nintendo, Atari could no longer afford the Famicom deal, and eventually Nintendo would be forced to go it alone.

In July 1984, Warner sold the home computing and game console divisions of Atari to Jack Tramiel, the recently ousted founder of Atari competitor Commodore International, under the name Atari Corp. for $240 million. Warner retained the arcade division, continuing it under the name Atari Games.

Under Tramiel's ownership, Atari Corp. abandoned the game console market to concentrate on aggressively priced home computers, releasing the 8-bit Atari XE series and the 16-bit Atari ST line in 1985. Then, in 1986, Atari re-released the Atari 2600 and released its previously canceled Atari 7800 console. Atari rebounded, producing a $25 million profit that year. The Atari ST line proved moderately successful, ultimately selling more than 4 million units. It was especially popular among musicians, as it had built in MIDI ports. Still, its closest competitor in the marketplace, the Amiga, outsold it 1.5 to 1. Atari eventually released a line of inexpensive IBM PC compatibles as well.

Atari also released Atari Lynx, a handhold console with color graphics, in 1989 to critical acclaim. However, a shortage of parts kept the system from being released nationwide for the 1989 Christmas season and as a result, the Lynx lost market share to Nintendo's Game Boy, which had only a black and white display but was widely available. Also in 1989, Atari Corp. sued Nintendo for $250 million, alleging it had an illegal monopoly. Atari lost.

As the fortunes of Atari's ST and PC compatible computers faded, consoles and software again became the company's main focus. In 1993, Atari released its last console, the Jaguar. After a period of initial success, it, too, failed to meet expectations. It was not nearly as powerful as Sony Computer Entertainment's PlayStation or Sega's Saturn and lacked the extensive third party support its Japanese competitors had easily secured for their consoles.

By 1996, a series of successful lawsuits followed by profitable investments had left Atari with millions of dollars in the bank, but the failure of the Lynx and Jaguar left Atari without any products to sell. In addition, Tramiel and his family wanted out. The result was a rapid succession of changes in ownership. In July 1996, Atari merged with JTS Corporation, a short-lived maker of hard disk drives, and the Atari name largely disappeared from the market.

Although the original Atari ceased to exist, a large amount of underground development remains for Atari's game systems and computers of the 1970s and 1980s, and much of the Classic Gaming Expo's attention, which has existed since 1997, focuses on Atari.

In March 1998, JTS sold the Atari name and assets to Hasbro Interactive for $5 million, less than a fifth of what Warner Communications had paid 22 years earlier. This transaction primarily involved the brand and intellectual property; the development headquarters and design teams during this time were bought by Midway. The brand name changed hands again in December 2000 when French software publisher Infogrames took over Hasbro Interactive.

In October 2001, Infogrames announced that it was "reinventing" the Atari brand with the launch of three new games. On May 7, 2003, Infogrames officially changed its name to Atari, Inc.

In 2002, Jakks Pacific, a toymaking company, released a "plug-and-play" video game console called the Atari 10-in-1 TV Game, believed by many to arouse interest in the concept of self-contained entertainment devices that did not require separate hardware to operate. It was battery-operated and shaped similarly to an Atari 2600 joystick, and included A/V ports. In 2004, the same company created a device called Atari Paddle Games, in the shape of one of the 2600's "paddle" controllers with appropriate titles included. However, as stated, neither of the games were directly released by Atari.

The same year that the Paddle Games were released, Atari released a TV game of their own which they called the Atari Flashback Console. The device they produced looked like a minute version of a later video game console they released in the 1980s called the Atari 7800. The two controllers were small as well, having a joystick and two red buttons on each side. Twenty titles were built into the system. Unlike most plug-and-plays, the Flashback did not use batteries, but instead, an (included) AC adaptor to power it. The Flashback did fairly well in sales, however, many Atari fans felt disappointed. Many people felt that the device itself was far too small, rather "puny" in some cases, and the joysticks felt very unsimilar to those of the 7800. Since the games were all ported ("NES-on-a-chip" was what some called it), some of the aspects of certain games concerning the sound, graphics, or gameplay were either changed or omitted. Overall, many enthusiasts believed that the Flashback did not capture the true Atari experience.

Due to popular demand, Atari has decided to create a new version of the Atari Flashback console, titled Atari Flashback 2.0. It is to resemble the Atari 2600 system and contain the same hardware, but is to be much smaller (but not as small as the original Flashback). The system will also utilize an AC adaptor, and come with two controllers that appear to be original 2600 joysticks. Forty games are to be built in, including seven previously unreleased games. Four of these games are homebrew titles (created by fans, but are not officially licensed for use with a console), as Atari is seeking to end a rocky relationship between themselves and homebrew developers. It is also speculated that two hidden titles, requiring the use of paddle controllers, will be present as well. Essentially, the system is an Atari 2600 down to similar controller ports, so therefore it will be "mod friendly", meaning it is possible for users to hack the system and replace the included games with ones of their own (but void their warranty by doing so). The paddle controllers, however, will not be included with the package, so the consumer must find the original 2600 ones should they wish to play these "secret" games.

Major products

Historical

Current

External links

See also: Atari Gamesde:Atari es:Atari fi:Atari fr:Atari ja:アタリ (ゲーム) nl:Atari pl:Atari (informatyka) pt:Atari sv:Atari

Navigation

  • Art and Cultures
    • Art (https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Art)
    • Architecture (https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Architecture)
    • Cultures (https://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Cultures)
    • Music (https://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Music)
    • Musical Instruments (http://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/List_of_musical_instruments)
  • Biographies (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Biographies)
  • Clipart (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Clipart)
  • Geography (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Geography)
    • Countries of the World (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Countries)
    • Maps (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Maps)
    • Flags (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Flags)
    • Continents (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Continents)
  • History (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/History)
    • Ancient Civilizations (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Ancient_Civilizations)
    • Industrial Revolution (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Industrial_Revolution)
    • Middle Ages (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Middle_Ages)
    • Prehistory (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Prehistory)
    • Renaissance (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Renaissance)
    • Timelines (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Timelines)
    • United States (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/United_States)
    • Wars (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Wars)
    • World History (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/History_of_the_world)
  • Human Body (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Human_Body)
  • Mathematics (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Mathematics)
  • Reference (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Reference)
  • Science (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Science)
    • Animals (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Animals)
    • Aviation (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Aviation)
    • Dinosaurs (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Dinosaurs)
    • Earth (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Earth)
    • Inventions (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Inventions)
    • Physical Science (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Physical_Science)
    • Plants (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Plants)
    • Scientists (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Scientists)
  • Social Studies (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Social_Studies)
    • Anthropology (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Anthropology)
    • Economics (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Economics)
    • Government (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Government)
    • Religion (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Religion)
    • Holidays (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Holidays)
  • Space and Astronomy
    • Solar System (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Solar_System)
    • Planets (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Planets)
  • Sports (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Sports)
  • Timelines (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Timelines)
  • Weather (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Weather)
  • US States (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/US_States)

Information

  • Home Page (http://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php)
  • Contact Us (http://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Contactus)

  • Clip Art (http://classroomclipart.com)
Toolbox
Personal tools