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From: kdarling@hobbes.ncsu.edu (Kevin Darling)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy
Subject: Re: Which market for CDTV? <Was Re: Want CDTV info.>
Message-ID: <1991Feb11.225159.28306@ncsuvx.ncsu.edu>
Date: 11 Feb 91 22:51:59 GMT
References: <1991Feb10.103752.1@ccvax.iastate.edu>  <1991Feb10.211625.24078@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu>  <1991Feb11.055244.3316@ncsuvx.ncsu.edu> <91042.104757AXN100@psuvm.psu.edu>
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AXN100@psuvm.psu.edu writes:
> How about RCA, Zenith, etc..  I don't seem to recall that all of the
> home electronic companies deciding upon a format.  I think most
> sit out and see which is more accepted by the consumers.  If CDTV can
> grab some marketshare quickly, others will join in.

Thanks Ajai!  I couldn't think of anyone.  RCA and GE developed DVI originally,
spent lotsa $$, and sold it to Intel.  So they're probably on the sidelines
for a while.  I can't recall offhand if Zenith is getting into this area.

The key questions are: 1) would CBM license their Amiga chips?  2) would
they even be competitive in price and features?  Both are very doubtful.

> My point is that what succeeds in Japan is not guranteed to succeed
> In the U.S..  Mark seems to think that everything introduced from
> Japan will succeed here, and that is just not the Case.

Yes, you're right.  The difference with CD-I is that it's a joint effort;
people in many countries worked on it, including many companies in the US. 
One reason for bringing up the Japanese companies is that their backing
will mean mass availability, advertising, feature and price competition.
So it's not a case of Japanese intro, but one of having their mass support.
These companies intend to make CD-I players as common in homes as VCRs.

> But all of this is a moot point since there really is no "standard",
> just several companies at the starting line.

MB was correct (and so are you) that the potential success/failure of
any kind of new interactive-TV device cannot yet be predicted for sure.
The recent hype about multimedia helps; the current recession does not :-(.
As you indicated, we're all guessing right now.

Still, the odds are worse for CDTV:  CD-I has overwhelming support, has had
hundreds of million$ in R&D since 1986, and has superior base hardware.
It can be expanded into a home computer, will be available as handhelds,
and will drop in price at a rate CDTV could not possibly match.  Ironic
sidenote: I think the CD-I video is what a 1990 Amiga should've had.

My guess is that CBM came up with CDTV for several reasons.  It was fairly
easy to do, using existing Amiga stuff.  CD-I might still get delayed.
It brought good/free advertising.  But most importantly, it provided a
quick bootstrap into having some CDROM apps written/ported to the Amiga <=.
IMO, Commodore was/is not counting on CDTV to succeed as a consumer item.
If it did, great.  Otherwise, they _still_ gained a starting point for
future Amiga-specific CDROM sales, sources, and support.  A good move!

I think that most of us would be far happier with CDROM drives/discs for
our current Amiga computers, rather than apps for a $1000 standalone player.
Or put another way: most people are going to want the CD-I player anyway,
so why not buy IT for the living room, and an Amiga/CDROM computer elsewhere?

Thanks for your thoughts, btw.  I've been thinking about this home I-TV for
several years; good to hear other opinions. - kev <kdarling@catt.ncsu.edu>