Playing the Field
A troubling problem facing the video game industry is the perpetual charge to create next generation consoles. Video game manufacturers are the first to admit they drive little revenue from console sales. The titles themselves, costing around $50 each, are the real bread-winners. By now, Sony, Microsoft or Nintendo should have figured out a way to extend the life of consoles for more than two years before the next one hits retail shelves.
Out With the Old
A new home console from SSD Company Ltd. hopes to change all of that with the introduction of its interactive video game system called XaviX. Like other popular consoles like the Xbox or PlayStation 2, XaviX also plugs into the television with everyday AV cords. The difference? The XaviX processor -- or heart of the system -- is provided with the application in the form of the XaviXPORT System Cartridge. As new applications come to market using the latest technology, this means that XaviX will continue to evolve, thus eliminating the need to create a next generation consoles. In addition, a clever sensor reads timing, speed and direction of the players actions, which in turn, are transmitted to the television screen in real time.
"With something like the PlayStation, you sit dormant on a couch, using a thumb pad and in many cases it is a very solitary experience," says Andre Job, vice president of Marketing, XaviX. "If you look at two people playing PlayStation side by side, there is very little conversation or interaction. You just focus in on that game. With XaviX, you get the physical exercise involved and the reality. You're swinging bats like you do on a baseball field."
Founding Fathers
SSD Company was founded 10 years ago with nine partners, some of which were the primary developers of the original Nintendo system. They developed the XaviX technology and over the last 10 years, the company has been licensing to Japanese companies like Konami and Sega, leading game manufacturers. Today, the interactive XaviX technology is the No. 1 market leader in Japan. Based upon the popularity of the technology in Japan, the developers decided to launch XaviX in the United States. From development and manufacturing to shipping and marketing, SSD wanted to handle the entire launch and today, the company has its first three products available: Golf, tennis and bowling.
"We are introducing the product currently in Best Buy, RadioShack, Toys "R" Us and more retailers as we ramp up towards Christmas," says Job. "We're going to be in mass distribution." Feeding the mass distribution is a multimillion dollar marketing campaign to include national television spots, online and radio. Retailers get Free Standing Inserts. An ongoing public relations campaign includes splashy media events like the recent ones held at the ESPN Zone in Times Square and a strategic tie-in with the U.S. Open.
"The goal of SSD is to create a new category of products that full under this audio/video/interactive technology," says Job. "They are not following any other game or technology manufacturer. They are creating their own path. There are currently 75 to 100 different types of products in different stages of development right now." Job says additional game titles span entertainment, music, education categories designed to appeal to all age groups.
Shelf Life
Worldtrans Services, a San Diego-based logistics company providing import, export, domestic distribution and 3PL, imports XaviX from overseas, then fulfills orders to U.S. retailers. Additionally, the company provides the EDI capabilities to XaviX and handles transactions in-house. "Technology is obviously very important in maintaining product inventory on shelves," says Job. "We manufacture in China, so there's the manufacturing process itself, the overseas shipping, then when it lands in the United States, it has to be shipped to a warehouse before hitting a distribution centers and retailers. That's a long process." Job says the process is tightly monitored to avoid a deluge of excess inventory or a shortage of product from China. "As XaviX catches on, we need to make sure the pipeline is filled and also adjust as demand diminishes, maybe after the holidays, we'll reduce the inventory for a short period of time very quickly all through EDI and tracking sales versus inventory."