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>Someone....just what did the Thrustmaster CEO say this morning?
here you go ...
note: if you're netshow- or real player-enabled, you can also get the aud & vid here too:
mktnews.nasdaq.com\\www\nasdaq\news\msnbc\1998\12\8\NASDAQ_0810_16719.htm&usymbol=TMSR&logo=True&companyname=ThrustMaster%2C+Inc%2E
for the record, i don't have a position.
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CNBC - SQUAWK BOX
THRUSTMASTER CEO FRANK HAUSSMAN
DECEMBER 8, 1998
ThrustMaster (TMSR) CEO Frank Haussman explains the company's game software
ABSTRACT: Haussman cites the company's exclusive deal with Intel that he believes will limit competition in the field. He explains the advantage of ThrustMaster's product is it does not limit the user to just ThurstMaster's site. Haussman states how he expects to reverse the recent three-quarter hiccup in the company's earnings.
Mark: Company called ThrustMaster thrusts its way to the top of the percentage gainers of the Nasdaq yesterday making high-end PC game controllers. Joysticks, steering wheels and the like for games on news it's releasing a new Internet software product called Talk 'n Play, ThrustMaster's stock price soared 133%. This new software allows up to four people to play games over the Internet at the same time was without additional fees. Shares closed at 11 1/4 after gaining more than 6. 52-week range 2 to 14. And it has covered that ground in the last three hours, it seems. Joining us now to bring us up to speed on the company, Frank Haussman, CEO at ThrustMaster, good morning, sir. Thank you for being with us.
Good morning. Thank you for having me.
Mark: You are known for hardware products, joysticks and the like. This appears to be a software product; is that correct?
That's correct.
Mark: Okay. And it enables people to -- four people to play over the Internet, talk to each other, interact in that way without getting too arcane, how would I actually do? Go to a Web site? And if I have your software the software will work with the Web site? Will it work independent no matter what Web site I'm on? Can you give us some insight there?
Sure. Well, Mark, briefly stated what we're dealing with here is a technology provided by Intel that is essentially conference calling over the Internet. And we believe this is fairly revolutionary, especially when applied to our vertical market, which is gaming. And essentially the way it works is you essentially load up the CD in your computer and it will automatically dial you into the Talk 'n Play destination and at that destination you are able to connect with other participants who have the Talk 'n Play client software and launch an online game where you can talk to each other simultaneously while you listen to the game audio and see the game video.
Mark: All right. Now, wait a minute. Let me interrupt you here. So, it will only function if I go to your Web destination, right? I have to go to your Web site or the talk p and play Web site.
Correct.
Mark: And the technology's provided by Intel.
Correct, but the technology itself will work outside of our Web site.
Mark: Well, actually, that was where I'm going with this. If the technology's provided to you by Intel, Intel can provide to it other people and, bingo, you've got 80 competitors.
Well, that's correct absent the fact we have an exclusive arrangement with Intel in our license for the license for the gaming space. Intel likes to call this a field of use, but essentially the sum and substance of it is a exclusivity provision in our license agreement providing we're exclusive in the gaming sector so long as we meet certain volume milestones.
Mark: This is not a unique concept and not the only software that accomplishes this goal though. There is all at least one Web site that I know of called Mplayer where I can sit and play a game of chess or backgammon or whatever and chat with people. So other people do have this, whether it's the Intel technology or not, right?
Well, I would correct you there. You are correct in your statement about m-player, but number one, the technology is completely different than the Intel technology. Number two, their technology is only on their host site in can go nowhere else. That's to be differentiated from ours. Our product allows you to join in a four-way conference call on the Internet and then hyper link your way around the World Wide Web to other Web sites. What's happening is you're actually launching --.
Mark: I see. I misunderstood that. I thought you told me -- I beg your pardon -- I thought you said I had to go to your Web site.
Well, our Web site's a destination where you meet people to launch this, but it's not absolutely required from a technical standpoint. The beauty of this, again, is as four-way conference calling on the Internet when you launch the online game or some other non-gaming application, which we are going to be moving into four people can hyper link around the World Wide Web and visit different Web sites. For example, four teenage girls could bounce downed the World Wide Web and visit different Web sites and look at fashions, order things from catalogs and at the same time they're all discussing what they're seeing. They're discussing the content that they are viewing. That's what's most exciting about this.
Bob Froehlich: Mr. Haussman , this is Bob Froehlich. In the hardware side of your business, you've had some production and shipping problems. What have you done to address those going forward?
Well, I've been in this new job for about seven weeks. And in that amount of time we have gone through some fairly painstaking efforts to reorganize the company to ensure that from an execution standpoint and our core hardware business that we are delivering on time and on target.
Bob Froehlich: The launch of this new product that you have, it's coming in January, you're sort of missing the Christmas season. Are you expecting that you're still going to be able to pick up a lot of that? Because typically you launch these products and catch the thrust of the Christmas. And I think I read where your product isn't coming online until January; is that correct?
That's correct. That actually is intentional. What we don't want to have happen is to have this breakthrough technology and solution be lost in the blip of Christmas. We intentionally wanted to launch it after Christmas, the beginning of the year, and be reviewed by all of the magazines and the technical journals and be able to create significant pull through in the channel and ramp this product to give it legs as opposed to just having a very short life.
Mark: We've reached a point we're a little early actually for a commercial break, but I'd rather take it now than push it off and have to interrupt you. So, Mr. Haussman, if would you be kind enough to stand by, we will take a commercial break and then come back with more. Is that okay?
Certainly. Thank you.
Mark: We'll be right back with more of Mr. Frank Haussman, CEO of ThrustMaster.
Mark: Mr. Haussman, you're kind of in a great situation here. You're changing the direction of your company and you've only been there seven weeks, so it's impossible to hold you responsible for what has been going on in the past. The fact is that over this year your company has disappointed on earnings and revenues are down dramatically from a year-ago levels. Costs have not been contained. So I assume that's on your agenda. There are two ways to look at this. One can either say, hey, it was bad management and Mr. Haussman is there to fix it, but it also raises the possibility that maybe your market's saturated. Maybe the people who want to play games have got their joysticks.
Well, I think that's an interesting point. As to, one, your comment about past history, I actually joined the company in mid-July as the chief financial officer. So, I have to confess I have been around for a few months, but really what I would point out in terms of the hiccup this company has had this year --.
Mark: This is a three-quarter hiccup
That's correct, but that's on top of 26 consecutive quarterly profits since the company was founded in 1990, went public in 1995, but very specifically to your point about saturation in the market, competition is key, there's no question about that on the low end of the wheel stick and game pad market. I think tactically the mistake the company has made the last 18 months, in my opinion, is that we need to leverage our brand equity in the channel by being in a position to buy on an OEM basis for virtually little mind share, if you will, from our engineering staff. The low-end product, put our name on them and put them into the channel. What we then need to do is focus our high-end and expensive R&D resources on higher-end innovative products like, for example, Talk 'n Play and some of the new products that we are introducing right now for the Christmas season. Having said that this company is in a unique position, in my opinion being in the gaming sector, to continue its focus with its product portfolio in the hardware business, but at the same time morph itself into as much of a software company and certainly take advantage of the Internet as another distribution channel.
Mark: Okay. Mr. Haussman, I'm sorry. I've given you all the time we have. Thank you very much, sir. Appreciate it.
Thank you.
Mark: Frank Haussman, CEO at ThrustMaster joins us from the New York Stock Exchange. |
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