Five Questions With Sega

   The following interview was conducted with Charles Bellfield, Sega's vice 
president of corporate marketing.

Ivan Trembow: You have said that Sega's goal is to be the #1 game publisher 
in the world, which would mean knocking Electronic Arts off of its throne.  
Is there going to be any extra sense of pride in doing this because of EA's 
stubborn refusal to support the Dreamcast?

Charles Bellfield: There are no hard feelings between Sega and EA.  What will
help Sega reach our goal of becoming the #1 game publisher in the world is 
our emphasis on our network business model.  We will continue to place heavy 
emphasis on network gaming, an area where EA is currently lagging.
   Sega has seized opportunities that are available now instead of waiting 
for those that are promised for the future, allowing us to grab the market 
for online gaming early and establish a fan base.  When we launch our second 
generation of online-playable games, EA will still be waiting for broadband.
Analysts agree that the future of gaming is online, and we'll continue to 
take gamers online through a host of gaming and non-gaming platforms.

Trembow: In the past, you have referred to the widely-publicized problems 
between Sega of America and Sega of Japan as "rumors of in-fighting."  Can 
you honestly say that none of the reports of in-fighting have any basis in 
fact?

Bellfield: Those are purely rumors, and Sega does not comment on rumors.  

Trembow: Based on your discussions and negotiations with Sony, do you believe
that online gaming will be a reality on the PlayStation 2 before the end of 
this year, or is it something that will have to wait until sometime in 2002? 

Bellfield: As soon as Sony is online, Sega will be ready with online-playable
games for the PS2.

Trembow: Despite the fact that Sega has announced its plans to "support all 
video game platforms," you continue to speak of Sega's GameCube support as 
"in negotiations" rather than a done deal.  Is the announcement of GameCube 
support just a formality at this point?

Bellfield: Sega is currently involved in many deals, including talks with 
Nintendo.  We look forward to the opportunity of publishing for the GameCube 
in the future.

Trembow: A total of 1.5 million Dreamcast systems were sold in the US in less
than four months of 1999, yet the number of systems sold in 12 months of the 
year 2000 was actually lower than 1.5 million.  What do you believe is the 
cause of this slowdown in sales? 

Bellfield: As you know, the industry as a whole has experienced a slower 
economy than expected, and Sega is not immune to these economic situations.
Since our announcement in January, we have heard time and time again from 
Dreamcast fans who are sad to see the system go.  We wish that more consumers
had caught on to the benefits the Dreamcast has over the competition, but
we're sorry to say that they didn't.
   The Dreamcast is a great system heralded by the media and by analysts as 
a cost-effective, solid choice among consoles... but becoming a third-party, 
platform-agnostic company was the best business decision for Sega in order 
to become a profitable company quickly.  We look forward to bringing our 
legacy of stand-out games to other platforms, and to continue to lead the 
charge in network gaming.

Send your thoughts on this interview to ivan@mastergamer.com

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