The Savage Age!

Chapter 33 The Savage Age!

Ethan was genuinely interested in what Steve Jobs had said.

Because he was unaware of how Atari had dominated North America in an era when logistics were underdeveloped.

It's worth noting that when Mirova sued Atari, the sales figures for "Pong" as determined by the court were only 8000 units.

To think that one could become famous throughout North America based on this number, regardless of the era, is a pipe dream.

But after he went on a trip with Steve Jobs' team...

He was completely shocked!

Because after receiving payment from the merchant, Steve Jobs simply pulled two bags out of his car.

One of the bags contained game circuit boards, while the other bag contained three iron plates and a pile of spray paint.

After replacing the circuit board, Steve Jobs began his own crazy operations.

He first took out white spray paint and wildly sprayed the machine in front of him, whose motherboard had already been replaced, with white paint evenly.

Then he took out two iron plates, one shaped like a snake and the other like an apple.

Secure them to the top of the machine and spray them directly with green and red paint.

Next, a "Snake Game" logo was sprayed on the bottom of the design.

As for the snake's two eyes...

He used a marker to draw it directly!

Finally, Steve Jobs pulled out a bottle of odor-removing cleaner and sprayed it onto the machine.

In no time at all, the machine was filled with the fresh scent of apples.

To be honest, this whole thing left Ethan completely stunned!

There's absolutely no skill involved; it's all about emotions!

"No...no...you replace game motherboards like this?" Ethan was so surprised his tongue was practically falling apart.

"Yeah! Is there a problem?" Steve Jobs laughed and said, "Why do we charge thirty dollars for our circuit board replacement service? Because it's a hassle!"

"..."

Ethan was speechless after what Steve Jobs said.

But at the same time, he had another question: "But... the machine you just replaced doesn't seem to be an Atari?"

That's right! If Ethan wasn't mistaken, the racing game console Steve Jobs just switched to had another company's logo on it!

His question received a perfectly reasonable answer.

"Yes, that's why I love riding motorcycles!"

Steve Jobs smiled and raised his eyebrows at Ethan. He quickly packed up all the tools he had used, then grabbed his bag and ran off.

He shouted, "Hurry up! The game sellers don't care which company the machines are from, as long as they make money, but the companies that sell the machines do! We can't let those guys catch us, or we'll get beaten up!"

"???"

"WTF!!!"

Watching the figure recede into the distance, Ethan immediately started cursing.

He never expected that selling a game would actually give him that feeling of love.

He's clearly running a legitimate business!

Why does Atari look like a bandit's den?

Damn it!

It's outrageous!

…………

Although Ethan felt that Atari's sales methods were not like those of a professional company, he also admitted that in the early days, this unconventional approach was indeed effective. When the logistics industry in America was not highly integrated with the Internet, the fast and flexible approach could indeed allow a company to gain a huge market share in a short period of time.

Although our competitors will suffer because of this, it doesn't matter at all, right?

Because only dead competitors are good competitors!

As for the claim that even competitors can do this...

Previously, when Mirova did not file a lawsuit and the entire industry was copying it, they could indeed emulate Atari's actions.

But that's not possible now.

As Steve Jobs said, whether it's the owners of bars, nightclubs, or bowling alleys, they don't really care which company makes their arcade machines; they only care about money! A constant stream of Mane!

As long as I can make money, I don't care if it's Atari or Milwarda, it's none of my business!

Therefore, unless competitors can offer truly outstanding games, they shouldn't expect to get those bosses to upgrade their devices!

Driven by this demand, the door-to-door board replacement service is simply as gentle as an angel!

After showing Ethan around and satisfying the outsider's curiosity, Steve Jobs got down to business with Ethan: "Ethan, what do you think of the on-site motherboard replacement service?"

"That was pretty exciting, what's up?" Ethan asked, panting heavily after running away again. "You could get beaten up at any moment, this life is fucking interesting!"

"Can you do me a favor?"

"you say."

"In the coming days, could you please take me out to get my motherboard replaced?"

'???'

Ethan was puzzled by Steve Jobs' suggestion, but he was quickly told why.

"Ethan, you may have noticed that our circuit board replacement service is very suitable for cross-state sales. Replacing the motherboard of a machine takes a maximum of ten minutes, and with painting, it can be done in twenty minutes. A store only has a few machines at most, so it's no problem to travel to a small city or even a big city in a day."

"It is precisely because this service is so efficient that Nolan and his team do not allow us ordinary employees to participate."

"Because we can carry at least a hundred circuit boards on every trip."

"The cost of a single circuit board is $150, so 100 boards would be $15,000, and after selling them, you can earn $40,000."

"This amount is a huge sum of money."

"Nolan and his team were worried, so they always went on stage themselves."

Ethan understood what Jobs meant.

In an era when communication was underdeveloped, it was indeed a difficult problem for companies to ensure that their employees could safely collect funds.

Without effective constraints, it's impossible to do business solely based on employee ethics.

Companies that hire sales staff either sell high-volume consumer goods or items of high value. No company would feel comfortable letting its employees promote high-value but low-volume items.

First, they fear employees might simply run away; second, they fear employees might falsely report losses and embezzle company funds.

After all, even in the internet age, there are still instances of buying things for free.

In business, only those who can obtain more profit can restrain their greed.

"So, this is the real reason you dragged me here?" Ethan smiled at Jobs.

"Yeah~" The long-haired hippie nodded and said, "Nolan said before that of the thirty dollars in cost for the board replacement service, only nine dollars are for materials, and the remaining twenty-one dollars are bonuses."

"In the past, a team consisted of three people, which meant that for every circuit board sold, the seller would receive seven dollars."

"I want this money, so..."

Jobs rubbed his hands together, revealing his desire very frankly.

Ethan, however, asked curiously, "Do you need a lot of money?"

"Yeah~" Jobs nodded very sincerely, "If I could, I would like to earn this money."

"I need it, my parents need it, and my little idea needs it."

Ethan stared at him for a long time, and as Jobs became somewhat uneasy, Ethan finally laughed.

He smiled, patted Jobs on the shoulder, and said, "Okay."

"Anyway, I have nothing to do at home."

"I would be very honored if you really needed me."

"Because my family taught me that the greatest satisfaction comes from giving satisfaction to others."

"Oh! — Yes!!!"

Jobs was very happy and opened his arms to give Ethan a big hug.

"Thank you! Thank you so much, my friend!"

(End of this chapter)