Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!zephyr.ens.tek.com!orca!anvil!stank
From: stank@anvil.WV.TEK.COM (Stan Kalinowski)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: ST in USSR
Keywords: USSR
Message-ID: <5073@orca.WV.TEK.COM>
Date: 21 Oct 89 00:46:55 GMT
References: <758@utacs.UTA.FI> <595@nadia.UUCP>
Sender: nobody@orca.WV.TEK.COM
Reply-To: stank@anvil.WV.TEK.COM (Stan Kalinowski)
Organization: Tektronix, Inc., Wilsonville, OR
Lines: 51

In article <595@nadia.UUCP> peterii@nadia.UUCP (Peter Bechtold) writes:
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   .
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>I don't think that the USSR is an attractive market place for ATARI.
>The computers the Soviet Union wants to buy aren't produced by ATARI.
>They need mini's and super computers and they do not have the bucks to
>buy STs for their schools. 
>I've been twice in the USSR, i talked to many pupils and visited a couple
>of schools, but i didn't meet anyone who had ever worked with a computer
>(even not with a pocket-calculator; some friends of mine sold a few of those
>solar powered credit card sized calculators, each worth a few bucks.
>They got about 60 rubels, that is 90 dollars ! The average salary of a russian
>is 150 rubels ...).
>
>I can't imagine that the USSR would by ANY computers for their schools within
>the next 5 or 10 years.
>

I agree that it is unlikely that the Soviet Union offers much
potential for Atari sales, but for different reasons than Peter gives.
I believe the IBM PC class of personal computer has become the
accepted standard for personal computing in the USSR.  An article in
the New York Times business section (Oct. 1, 1989, "Soviet Plant, U.S.
Managers") told of a contract awarded to Phoenix Group International,
the firm is to build some 12,000 PC AT compatible computers here in the
U.S. and will setup an assembly plant in Pensa that will deliver the
remainder of a total 6 million computers by 1994.  The article said
that 3 million computers were slated to go to schools and the other 3
million were to go to factories and offices.  The article also
mentioned that Siemens A.G.  currently has a contract to supply
300,000 personal computers for Soviet schools.

The article went on to say that a PC class machine sells for 30,000 -
50,000 rubles in the USSR and is typically "junk", the new PC's in the
Phoenix deal are expected to sell for 100,000 rubles.  When asked if
such a high price might invite price competition, the article claimed
a Soviet official said "What's competition?"

One other interesting note was that the Soviet Union would pay the
split in profits from the joint venture to Phoenix Group by providing
chemicals, scrap steel, and other goods to Austrian Laenderbank for
sale in the West, as a means of generating hard currency.  Sheesh, the
things 'ya gotta do to make a buck these days.  OK, so the article
said the deal was worth as much as $8 billion.

							stank
US Mail: Stan Kalinowski, Tektronix, Inc., Interactive Technologies Division
         PO Box 1000, MS 61-028, Wilsonville OR 97070   Phone:(503)-685-2458
e-mail:  {ucbvax,decvax,allegra,uw-beaver}!tektronix!orca!stank
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