Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!rochester!ritcv!cci632!rb From: rb@cci632.UUCP (Rex Ballard) Newsgroups: net.micro.atari16 Subject: Re: FINANCIAL HEALTH OF ATARI ?? Message-ID: <387@cci632.UUCP> Date: Mon, 22-Sep-86 11:35:23 EDT Article-I.D.: cci632.387 Posted: Mon Sep 22 11:35:23 1986 Date-Received: Mon, 22-Sep-86 21:26:19 EDT References: <8609201633.AA06324@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> Reply-To: rb@ccird1.UUCP (Rex Ballard) Organization: CCI, Rochester Development, Rochester, NY Lines: 27 Summary: When?? In article <8609201633.AA06324@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> "V5130B::MENTON" writes: >Did I hear right, on the cable TV show "Computer Chronicles" on 9/20/86? >Atari is laying off people, down from 7,000 not long ago, to 1,000 in the >near future? Because they LOST $500 million (!) last year ?? > Bob Menton > MENTON@NRL-ACOUSTICS These numbers do sound familiar. They sound like what occurred when Mr. Tramael took over ATARI from Warner. When he took over, there were about 7000, many of them in marketing. Within a few months, there were only a hand full of marketing people, a core engineering staff (mostly working on the ST), and the manufacturing facilities were all put under automation. Atari did lose $500 million the year it was sold to Mr. T., in fact that was one of it's better years. Since the sale, Atari has not only been doing well in the sales, but it may be showing a profit for the first time since the release of the 800. Is it possible that this show was a repeat? Ironically, Atari has been one of the few PC companies that has shown improvement this year (1986). Even grand old IBM has been feeling the Atari bite of the market. Just out of curiosity, what is the ticker symbol for Atari? It used to be part of Warner Communications, but appears to be a separate company now?