Ex-Sega Of America Head Explains Why The Genesis Wasn’t As Successful In Japan
For former CEO of Sega Of America took to Twitter to explain why the Genesis sold better in the West than in Japan.
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On Wednesday, the former CEO of Sega of America explained on Twitter his reasoning for the poor sales figures of the Genesis in Japan compared to the West. Tom Kalinske has previously railed about other issues regarding Sega during his tenure, but this is the first time he’s been on record discussing the sales disparity between Japan and the American and European markets.
Kalinske rose to the position of CEO during his time at Mattel in the ‘80s. His background in toys made him a good fit for Sega in 1990, as they were poised to take over the gaming market from Nintendo with their release of the Genesis (or as it was known outside of North America, the Mega Drive). Kalinske left as CEO of Sega of America following a clash of ideologies regarding the release of a Genesis successor– what ultimately became the Sega Saturn.
The statement came by way of a simple question posed to Kalinske via Twitter. A freelance illustrator and presumed Sega fan, Dave Song, asked via the social media platform, “Do you have any insights why the Megadrive/Genesis in Japan could not achieve the same success that your team magnificently did in the US?” Kalinske later replied, “In Japan they didn’t use the strategies we did in the US/Europe, didn’t promote the same way, didn’t try to change the marketplace, werweak. [sic]”
The Genesis sold exceedingly well in the Western markets. The combination of beating Nintendo to market on a 16-bit console, offering a lower price point, and an aggressive marketing campaign that marched to the beat of the “xtreme” aesthetic of the ‘90s positioned Sega as the market leader for a time in the console wars. Ultimately Nintendo did wind up beating Sega in hardware units. In large part, this was due to a tepid response in the Japanese market, where the numbers were approximately a third of those in Europe and nearly one-eighth the American figures.
While it is conventional wisdom that the marketing strategies were one of the reasons behind Sega’s 16-bit faltering in Japan, it is notable to hear it straight from the American CEO of the time in question. Moreover, calling the company weak is a strong move against Kalinske’s former parent company– especially now that Kalinske works in a different field and Sega has contracted both their American division and their hardware sales in favor of 3rd-party development and licensing. It should be noted, too, that Kalinske’s Twitter feed seldom deviates from political commentary in regards to economic policy. Kalinske, since his controversial Sega remark, has also fallen prey to taking an article from parody newspaper The Onion as a legitimate news source.
Source: Twitter, IGN
Link Source : https://www.thegamer.com/ex-sega-america-head-explains-why-the-genesis-wasnt-as-successful-in-japan/