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Post by elmothepezguy on Oct 3, 2010 14:23:52 GMT -6
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Post by MikeSanders on Oct 5, 2010 13:47:22 GMT -6
The Miami Herald Article:
The Miami Herald
July 12, 1993
VIDEO CREATOR PLAYS 52 GAMES TO WIN
Author: James McNair, Herald Business Writer
Edition: Final Section: Business Page: 9BM
At 51, Vince Perri has called himself a businessman for a long time. But it took fatherhood to help him find what could be the business of his life.
Perri is the brains behind a 3-year-old Miami company, Active Enterprises Ltd., that is offering a new game product for the six million Sega Genesis systems in the United States. His isn't just another addition to the hundreds of titles on store shelves. His product, Action 52, offers 52 games for the price of two. An investment banker for six years, Perri has seen his share of business opportunities, good and bad. This time, the idea originated at home.
"Having a 9-year-old, I had to buy a lot of video games, and it cost me a fortune," he said. "A decent Sega or Nintendo costs $55 to $60. I said there's got to be a way to do this cheaper."
The breakthrough came by accident.
"I happened to see my son playing an illegal product made in Taiwan that had 40 games on it. The whole neighborhood went crazy over it," Perri said. "I figured I'd do it legally. It's obvious when you see something like that, you know there's something there."
Perri said he used his overseas banking connections to raise $5 million from private backers in Europe and Saudi Arabia. He farmed out the programming to college students and the technical work to Cronos Engineering Inc., a Boca Raton company that does work for IBM Corp. He expects to begin shipping Action 52 today.
"We've sold out of our first manufacturing cycle, so we're going into another cycle as soon as these go out the door," he said.
Action 52 is meant to be played on the Sega Genesis system, which, at 16 bits, is faster and more stimulating than the older, eight-bit Sega games. Perri said the 52 games, like G- Force Fighter, Sunday Driver and Haunted Hills, were fashioned for kids between 9 and 12 years old.
Perri said he'd be happy snaring a tiny fraction of the $9.5 billion market for video games. So far, all of his orders have come from oversea s. A sales representative for the United States was hired just two weeks ago, but has already pitched the product to several major retail chains. Perri said Action 52 will sell for $99 to $119, depending on where you buy it. He will sell it over the phone for $99.
Perri's company might have to clear one more hurdle. Sega of America Inc. in Redwood City, Calif., said third-party developers need a Sega license to sell software for the Sega system. Perri said he doesn't.
"You need a license if you want to be a licensed Sega game and if you want to display the Sega seal," Perri said. "We are unauthorized, but not illegal."
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Post by MikeSanders on Oct 5, 2010 13:53:39 GMT -6
The other article was published by numerous newspapers. Judging by its content, I'd assume it's a press-release from Active that numerous papers ran as an article. It's done pretty often, and it's the same type of thing as a Video News Release being put into a television news broadcast. Here are its contents:
Fed-up with buying expensive video games that only offered one game per cartridge, Vince Perri of Miami decided to design his own.
He created Action 52, a game that contains 52 video games on one cartridge. It is compatible with Sega Genesis and Nintendo video game systems.
Perri, who left a career in international banking to devote himself full time to video games, will be demonstrating Action 52 at the International Winter Consumer Electronics Show, which opens on Thursday in Las Vegas. The annual industry trade show runs through Sunday and attracts buyers from all over the world who hunt for the newest in electronic games and gadgets.
Action 52 can be ordered by telephone, but Perri says it will be in video and toy stores within six months and will retail for about $100.
Sega Genesis and Nintendo cartridges start at $20 and run as high as $70 for one tape with only one game. Advertisement
``I thought about the cost of Nintendo, and it was getting very expensive to buy for my son,`` Perri said, recalling why he started designing video games.
He started working on Action 52 about three years ago. He knew he would have to come up with a lot of money to put his ideas into play, so he formed an international business corporation called Active Enterprises Ltd., in the Bahamas. He says he now has investors worldwide.
``One thing we wanted to do was make sure it was all U.S.-built and well- built, Perri said.
Most of the work for Action 52 is done in Florida. The plastics are made by M&M Plastics in Hialeah; Caribbean Box Co. builds the boxes; the electronics are handled by American Technologies in Orlando; and Miami artist Joe Martinez does the art work.
The games feature three Cheetahmen ( half-man/half-cheetah) who defy death and destruction and perform heroic acts to help mankind and the animal kingdom.
Perri envisioned much more than a video game when he started Active Enterprises.
There is a colorful and action-packed 35-page comic book that tells the story of how the Cheetahmen came into existence and how they fight evil.
Plastic action figures and rubber dolls are also in the works and will be available at international toy shows later this year.
A life-sized costume of the Cheetahmen is being designed by Screaming Mad George, a Hollywood special effects company. Their creations have been seen in such movies as Beetlejuice, Nightmare on Elm Street 4, Predator and Poltergeist II.
The costume will be worn at trade shows and conventions around the world.
The most phenomenal product to be offered by Active Enterprises, Perri says, is the Action GameMaster, a portable, hand-held video game unit that will be compatible with Nintendo 8-bit cartridges, Sega 16-bit cartridges and Super Nintendo 16-bit cartridges.
``This is the ultimate in compatibility,`` Perri said.
The Action GameMaster will be available in the fall, he said.
WHERE TO ORDER
Action 52 is available:
-- PHONE: 1-800-876-2503
-- PRICES: $99, Sega Genesis version. $79, Nintendo version, and Super Nintendo version available in the fall. $6 shipping and handling, plus sales tax.
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Post by MikeSanders on Oct 5, 2010 13:55:24 GMT -6
The press release/article is dated January 05, 1993, by the way.
The Consumer Electronics Show mentioned ran January 07th through 10th, so it shouldn't be surprising that a lot of the claims made are similar to what was stated in the documentation they provided at CES. By July, it seems like Perri had either forgotten about his other ideas or didn't think they worth mentioning. He must have known that Active Enterprises' foray into the video game market was just about over.
The comic book being thirty-five pages is just an outright lie. It's a thirteen page comic, fifteen if you count the front cover and the toy advertisement, and that's barely a third of what Perri claims. The only way to justify this would be if there was a second comic made, but not released; however, there is no evidence to support that.
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Post by elmothepezguy on Oct 8, 2010 11:57:37 GMT -6
Thank you for the articles! I wonder if that life-sized cheetahmen costume was actually made.
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glp
Cheetah Cub
Posts: 29
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Post by glp on Aug 17, 2011 13:20:27 GMT -6
I ACQUIRED THE MEDIA KIT FOR THE CES SHOW. IT HAS A GREAT DEAL OF INFO AND INCLUDED SOME COLOR ONE SHEETS OF OOZE AND THE PROTO ACTION 52 GAME. MORE ABOUT THIS LATER
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Post by superjoe on Aug 20, 2011 17:00:06 GMT -6
GLP, does that media kit includes something we haven't seen yet? Come back and explain yourself! :-O
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glp
Cheetah Cub
Posts: 29
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Post by glp on Sept 24, 2011 18:27:53 GMT -6
SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO GET BACK. THE MEDIA KIT IS INDEED DIFFERENT THAN THE ONE POSTED ON THE WEB FOR THE LATER CES SHOW. THIS ONE HAS BUSINESS CARDS FOR VINCE PERRI AND SOME OTHER FOLKS INCLUDING ANOTHER COMPANY/ENTITY I HAD NEVER COME ACROSS BEFORE "ACTION HOLDING CO., INC" THERE ARE FULL COLOR "ONE SHEETS" FOR OOZE AND TO INTRO THE ACTION 52 GAME. THE PICTURE USED IN THIS ONE SHEET IS THE THAT OF THE UNIQUE CART I HAVE WITH THE BLUE PCB AND THE PROTO CARTRIDGE. THE PRICE SHEETS ARE ALL DIFFERENT AND THERE ARE A FEW "SURPRISES " I WILL SHARE LATER GREG
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