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Nintendo Gets In The Game With Its Own 64-Bit Machine

Compiled By Business Staff

Brace yourself, mom. With its never-too-early-to-shop-for-Christmas philosophy, Nintendo Co. Ltd. this week begins delivery of its new “64-bit” video game player to U.S. retailers.

The company hopes to sell 1 million units of Nintendo 64 machines to U.S. shoppers during the next six months.

Each machine, which has advances in computer chip and software design created by Silicon Graphics Inc., will cost about $200. Mario 64 and other games will sell for $70 each.

Exporting Mario to American homes is the Japanese company’s best hope to jump, run, swim and cartwheel back into its leading role in the video game market.

But financial analysts are skeptical because Nintendo is more than a year behind its rivals in bringing an advanced game player to market. Sega’s Saturn and Sony’s PlayStation video game machines already have sold 8.4 million combined worldwide.

In other events this week:

Today

Idaho Wheat Commission meets in Boise to review applications for administrator, continuing Tuesday. Call 208-334-2353.

U.S. Department of Commerce Department releases July personal income.

Tuesday

Management consultant Stephen Covey speaks via videoconference about personal effectiveness at 9 a.m. at the Red Lion City Center downtown. Tickets for the four-part series on “Worldwide Lessons in Leadership,” which is sponsored by Eastern Washington University’s College of Business and Public Administration, start at $299 per person. Call 1-800-233-0937.

Lawsuit expected to be filed in Los Angeles against Unocal over alleged support of Burmese rulers.

Wednesday

Phil Herring, founder and chairman of Herring/ Newman in Seattle, speaks to the Spokane Advertising Federation at 11:45 a.m. in the Crescent Court. Cost: $10 members; $15 non-members. Call Judy Morris at 448-5255.

Consumer Credit Counseling of Spokane conducts a workshop on “Surviving a Layoff” from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Priest River Junior HIgh Library.

Friday

Marva Collins, founder of the Westside Preparatory School in Chicago, addresses Washington Water Power’s Viewpoint luncheon at 11:30 a.m. at the Red Lion Hotel downtown. Cost: $15. Call 325-7328.

Candidates for Fifth Congressional District debate at 7:30 a.m. at the Spokane Area Chamber of Commerce, 1020 W. Riverside. Cost: $2. Call 459-4113.

The Workplace Connection non-denominational Christian business owners group meets at 7 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church, 318 S. Cedar.

Saturday

Pat Williams, general manager of the Orlando Magic, speaks to the URM Stores Inc. annual meeting at the Coeur d’Alene Resort. Closed to the public.

Sunday

President Clinton and Bob Dole, Republican presidential candidate, meet in Hartford, Conn., for the first of two national debates.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Graphic: Total employment

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: ON THE SHELF Business Week, Sept. 30: Boeing is booming, with new airplane orders pouring in and 1,000 new employees arriving each month. Business Week explores whether the Seattle-based giant can keep up with the growth as it transforms the way it designs and builds airplanes. Forbes, Oct. 7: How strong has the current economic recovery been? Not very. Forbes says the recovery to date has underperformed each of the previous three up cycles by dramatic margins.

CELLING IT Almost one in three American households have cellular telephones, a recent survey found. The survey by the marketing research firm Decision Analyst found that cellular phones are most often used by people 45 to 54 years old and by people who earn $40,000 or more a year.

This sidebar appeared with the story: ON THE SHELF Business Week, Sept. 30: Boeing is booming, with new airplane orders pouring in and 1,000 new employees arriving each month. Business Week explores whether the Seattle-based giant can keep up with the growth as it transforms the way it designs and builds airplanes. Forbes, Oct. 7: How strong has the current economic recovery been? Not very. Forbes says the recovery to date has underperformed each of the previous three up cycles by dramatic margins.

CELLING IT Almost one in three American households have cellular telephones, a recent survey found. The survey by the marketing research firm Decision Analyst found that cellular phones are most often used by people 45 to 54 years old and by people who earn $40,000 or more a year.