CH169 - Going Public?

"MFxxk?"

"Nolan Bushnell was fired?"

"And Magnavox's senior management got purged by Philips?"

"Is that for real?"

When Ethan Jones heard Eulise Noble's report, he was astounded!

Although he was aware that transforming "Space Invaders" into "Star Wars" and launching it into the market was a severe blow to Magnavox and Atari, the direct purge by Warner and Philips seemed a bit excessive, didn't it?

After all, even he felt that the failure of the new generation and Apollo had nothing to do with the operations of Atari and Magnavox but was purely because—

He was awesome!

Hehehe~

Ethan Jones was just such an honest good kid!

"Yes, Warner and Philips have thoroughly overhauled the management teams of Atari and Magnavox, including hiring external accountants to audit their finances," Eulise confirmed.

"They suspect there were issues with the financial accounts of Atari and Magnavox."

"From what it looks like, Warner and Philips are venting their frustration."

"They couldn't bear the humiliation of their new products flopping."

"Atari announced that the development cost for the new generation was as high as three million dollars, and Magnavox announced that the development cost for Apollo was even higher, reaching four million two hundred thousand dollars. Additionally, their initial production volume for each was one hundred thousand units, with the total project cost not falling below twenty million dollars."

"This doesn't even include their previous crazy acquisitions of other game companies."

'Twenty million?'

This figure left Ethan somewhat emotional.

While he wasn't sure how much his meteoric rise had cost Atari and Magnavox, a project loss of twenty million dollars would indeed prompt a company to reshuffle its management.

Because no matter how much inflation there was, dollars in this era were still very valuable.

However, the reorganization of his competitors was good news for Ethan.

It meant he had time to work on his own home console!

After rummaging through his drawer, he found a document he had prepared earlier and handed it to Eulise Noble, "Take a look at this recruitment document and then pass it to Damian Dean. He will be in charge of this, with you assisting."

"You need to pay attention to one thing, and that is we are recruiting for two categories..."

Indeed, since being startled by Atari and Magnavox's home consoles earlier in the year, Ethan had already planned the company's development trajectory following the massive success of "Star Wars."

In his view, the company's R&D department needed to be built in two directions.

The first direction was game development.

When a company's biggest driving force is creative content, naturally, the more creative department personnel, the better. Although Ethan's head was full of game ideas, he also had to admit that with a human brain, he was bound to forget a lot. In this situation, shedding the arrogance of a transmigrator and respecting everyone would prevent him from being harshly kicked in the rear by the locals.

As for the second direction, it was the development of home consoles.

He had discussed this project with Evelyn, and the girl had taken charge. Not only that, but she also said there would be no problems in its development because their technical advisor was Ralph H. Baer. With a legend who could craft a home console from a circuit board standing behind them, the birth of their CPU console was merely a matter of time.

However, even with Evelyn's confidence, the related recruitment still needed to begin.

And the personnel, naturally, were from Stanford themselves~

After all, they had an agreement with the school!

After clarifying these matters, Ethan remembered another issue.

"How's our lawsuit progressing?"

Ethan hadn't been involved in the lawsuit because he didn't think it was important.

Such defamation disputes were just a matter of quibbling.

And Eulise Noble's report confirmed his thoughts, "Our lawyers filed evidence with the court at the right moment, proving that Atari and Magnavox under Warner and Philips initiated the media attack against us. Our counteraction was merely a response to their media tsunami."

"The case is currently in mediation because the San Jose court found our testimony reasonable, but Philips and Warner disagreed."

"If nothing unexpected happens, our appearance in court is just a matter of time."

"Do I need to appear in court?" Ethan asked.

"In principle, yes, but…" Eulise Noble shrugged: "The principal said the other day he had already made some calls for us, and we could have our lawyers represent us in court…"

"He felt there was no need for us to waste time on appearing in court."

"And Professor Barbara Babcock called to say she thought this was all a farce. She had asked her friends in the California courts to keep an eye on the case. If anyone tries anything funny… she can't guarantee they'll be able to continue their careers…"

"Oh… I like this outcome." Ethan nodded with a smile.

Since the professor and the principal had gone out of their way to show support, Ethan couldn't just stay put in his stronghold any longer.

That evening, after talking with his sister, they made a formal plan for the upcoming summer—

They would first visit Principal Fred Terman to express their gratitude for his concern and help;

Then, they would fly directly to Washington, D.C., to meet with Professor Barbara Babcock, who had lost her summer vacation. By presenting gifts, they could also satisfy the needs of children of various officials in the U.S. Department of Defense;

Finally, if convenient, they would like to tour the world's largest pentagonal administrative building in Arlington, Virginia, under the guidance of Professor Vinton Cerf…

The planning was swift, and their actions were even faster.

The next morning, Ethan, following his sister's request, bought gifts in San Jose and rushed to Stanford in the afternoon to deliver them to the old principal.

The old principal was very happy to see them, inviting them in for a chat. The true controller of Stanford University's resources then brought up the topic of their last message.

"Isn't your headquarters' office space a bit small?"

"Thinking of changing?"

"Just tell me which building in the industrial park you like."

"If none suits you, that's fine too. Stanford has plenty of land. Just pick a plot, and I'll rent it to you for ninety-nine years at one dollar. No matter what you build, we can accept it because Destiny Game is Stanford's star enterprise!"

"With you, Stanford's future will definitely be brighter!"

The old principal was genuinely pleased.

Now, who in the circle didn't know his school-enterprise co-building plan had borne fruit!

The consecutive hits of Destiny Game for two years were the best proof!

Whether it was "Pac-Man," which drew academic attention, or "Star Wars," which caused a sensation among the North American public, both were manifestations of the ultimate dream-building capability.

With such a vibrant example, the school would have a lot to say about entrepreneurship promotion and job placement in the future.

And changing locations was indeed a good idea for Ethan and Evelyn, especially since their headquarters now indeed housed dozens of people.

Smilingly agreeing to look into it, and after discussing this matter, the old principal introduced a new topic that made Ethan narrow his eyes.

Because the old principal said, "There's one more thing."

"Your Destiny Game has launched two blockbuster games consecutively, becoming the hottest company in the gaming circle, and perhaps even in our country these past two years. So recently, a lot of people have been seeking me out."

"They're from Wall Street."

"They wanted to know through me..."

"Do you have any thoughts on going public?"

The old principal looked at them with a smile.

Behind his glasses, his eyes twinkled with curious probing.