Atari, I'll kill you all!

Chapter 71 Atari, I'll kill you all!

Barbara was certainly able to see Jobs before 2 p.m.

Or, to put it another way, when Ethan drove his Dino 246 GTS to Jobs' house and recounted his ordeal, the guy who was engrossed in building the Apple One jumped up and wanted to ride his motorcycle to block Atari's door.

In his view, Nolan Bushnell and Don Valentine's coercion was tantamount to taking his good brother's life!

He wanted to show these money-grubbing bastards that even though he had left the hippie scene, his friends were not to be trifled with!

If Ethan hadn't stopped him, pulled him back, and dragged him along, he would have even suspected that Jobs, this spirited young man, would most likely be in jail today.

However, Jobs' anger was actually a good thing for Ethan, because when Ethan calmed him down and said he needed help, the guy followed Ethan to Stanford without hesitation, went into the law school, and met Barbara who was waiting there.

Then, he answered whatever Barbara asked.

Barbara gained a lot of information from his open and honest attitude.

For example, Barbara learned that Nolan's sales of Atari began around the time of the evidence presentation process after the lawsuit was filed.

For example, Barbara learned that Disney had quoted Atari 20 million, while MCA had quoted Atari 22 million.

This price seemed unbelievable to Barbara, because, on the surface, Atari wasn't worth that much money at all.

When she voiced her doubts, wanting to know why Disney and MCA had offered Atari such a high price...

Steve Jobs, who had been recounting what he already knew, stopped, pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I really don't know about this, because my friend just told me that Disney and MCA offered Atari a surprisingly high price."

"He even asked me, 'Is making games more profitable than making movies?'"

Barbara nodded slightly at the answer, and after glancing at Ethan, she smiled at Jobs and said, "Steve, could you help us find out the inside story of the offer? For example, why was MCA willing to offer twenty-two million?"

"Sure," Jobs agreed without hesitation.

But at the same time, he asked, "Is this matter very important?"

"Yes." Barbara pointed at Ethan with a serious expression and said, "If we know why Disney and MCA were willing to pay such a high price to acquire Atari, then we will know what Don Valentine and Nolan Bushnell's real demands are."

"This allows us to deduce what role they played in this case."

"Okay, I understand." Jobs understood Barbara's meaning. "I'll go to Los Angeles to find my friend now."

"However, this process may take a little time, so you may need to wait a few days for me."

Jobs' mouth was fast, but his actions were even faster.

After taking on this important task, he immediately left Stanford Law School.

I rode my motorcycle at breakneck speed toward Los Angeles.

Watching that figure gradually disappear into the distance, Barbara, who was standing at the window gazing into the distance, pursed her lips.

At this moment, she was actually a little confused. "Ethan."

"Um?"

Don't you think this is a bit strange?

"Ms. Barbara, why do you say that?" Ethan turned his head to look at her.

"because--"

Barbara drew out her voice, as if she were organizing her thoughts, but more like she was carefully choosing her words.

After pausing for about four or five seconds, she said, as if she were prepared, "Because he was just an ordinary employee of Atari."

"My family doesn't have any special connections."

"So how could he possibly know anyone at the MCA under these circumstances?"

"Furthermore, within MCA, the person who has access to acquisitions in the tens of millions is at least a vice president, right?"

"To become friends with someone like that?"

"He...he...he..."

At this point, the usually sharp-tongued Barbara suddenly started to stammer.

That look made Ethan laugh. "Ms. Barbara, are you trying to say he's unworthy?"

Upon hearing this, Barbara blinked. "As a lawyer, I would never attack my client."

"Hahaha~" This unfounded emphasis made Ethan burst into laughter.

"Oh Barbara—"

"Your concerns are valid."

"But I believe him."

"Because his name is Steve Jobs."

Barbara was somewhat surprised by Ethan's words.

She didn't know why Ethan had such great faith in Jobs.

And this kind of thing...

Okay, Ethan was actually bragging.

In fact, after Barbara pointed to Atari, which Nolan wanted to sell, as the key to solving the problem, Ethan was already constantly verifying the accuracy of this information on his way to find Jobs.

Because we must ensure that this message is accurate before we can use subsequent messages as a basis for judgment.

Otherwise, one wrong step could lead to a series of wrong steps.

Even with the help of his past life memories... Ethan still couldn't find a source of information belonging to Jobs...

When this situation arises, what can Ethan do when he has no other options?

Let Steve Jobs ask him first!

Since it's free, I might as well believe it a little!

But when Ethan placed high hopes on Jobs, Jobs simply vanished as if he had evaporated into thin air.

He went to Los Angeles on the afternoon of September 17th, but did not return by the evening of September 18th.

This situation puzzled Ethan, and when he went to ask Woz if he knew Steve Jobs's whereabouts...

The chubby boy also said that he did not receive a call from Steve Jobs.

This result left Ethan with no choice but to wait. Meanwhile, San Francisco media, the Los Angeles Times which had previously touted "Snake Game," and even some television stations in California and New York all reported on the matter.

When news of "MiloVa sues Atari, Snake Game may infringe on copyright" spread everywhere, Ethan just felt annoyed.

The concern shown by Thomas, Linda, Mr. Foberle, Chuck Patel, and others was pushing his patience to its limit.

Because he hates this situation where he has to appease his family and friends while waiting for the final verdict.

"MFxxk, what's that guy up to?!"

Ethan, who was stuck at home and dared not go anywhere, was scratching his head in frustration.

"Fine, if you're not coming back, at least you could make a phone call, right?"

Ethan was extremely anxious and restless.

Just as he was pondering whether he should go to Los Angeles to take a look, around 10 p.m. that night, a loud roar entered his ears. When he opened the door and saw the guy in black clothes, black pants, and black leather shoes, he was truly shocked.

"Oh! Fxxk! What are you doing dressed like that?!"

Ethan remembered that Jobs wasn't dressed like this when he left.

"Stop talking, I've been so busy these past few days."

Jobs parked the motorcycle directly in Ethan's yard and then got in as if he were at home.

I walked into the living room, opened the refrigerator, took out a bottle of mineral water, and gulped it down.

As he drank heartily, the sudden chill made him shiver, but he didn't care. Instead, he pulled an envelope from his pocket and waved it in front of Ethan. "First-hand information, want to see it?"

"What do you think?" Ethan ignored him and reached out to snatch it.

However, Jobs had anticipated his move and decisively withdrew.

Ethan was completely surprised by this action.

At the same time, Jobs said, "I can give it to you, but you have to promise me one thing."

"What's wrong?"

"After this is all over, get me a Snake Game autograph machine; he wants one."

"That's easy. Don't even mention signing a contract for one unit, we can sign a contract for a hundred units."

Ethan readily agreed and reached out to take it.

This time, Steve Jobs simply let him take the envelope.

Because Ethan was in a hurry, he simply disassembled it.

When he unfolded the neatly folded white A4 paper, the concise yet profound line of text made his blood boil!

Atari holds a patent license for 'US3728480 A'.

"WTF!!!"

"What's going on?!"

Ethan was shocked!

"Where did this news come from?! Are you sure???"

Ethan looked at Jobs in disbelief.

Jobs nodded seriously and said, "I'm sure."

"My friend told me to my face that Sidney Sinberg told him this news personally."

"How did Atari obtain this license?"

Ethan's eyes widened, his voice trembling. "Was this before we met?"

"Yes!" Jobs took a deep breath, pointed to the sofa, and said, "I know you're in a hurry, but shall we sit down and talk?"

"Okay." Ethan promptly flew onto the sofa.

As he clenched his fist, struggling to suppress his shock, Jobs recounted his experiences on the trip.

And this observation...

Ethan was furious!

because--

"Ethan, according to my friend, there was a clause in the settlement agreement between Mirova and Atari regarding 'Pong' that stipulated a patent licensing agreement for 'US3728480 A' to ensure that Atari could sell video games normally."

"They agreed that for every video game console Atari produced, it would have to pay Mirova a patent fee of three percent of the sales revenue for a period of twenty years, which is the natural expiration date of patent protection as stipulated in our country."

"Milohua did not notice this anomaly when signing the contract with Atari, or perhaps it was a settlement facilitated by Professor Ralph Bell, so Milohua did not delve into the terms. But when Milohua began suing other parties, it discovered a problem: the licensing period for 'US3728480 A' was too long, and the price was too low."

"When Milrova sues other companies, the patent fees it demands start at eight percent of the selling price, and the time limit is also limited, normally one year, sometimes up to three years, and it needs to be renewed upon expiration."

"Because Mirova discovered that the patent 'US3728480 A' allowed them to make money effortlessly, they wanted to control the video game industry and force all video game manufacturers to pay them. At that time, Atari, which obtained a long-term license with extremely low licensing fees, possessed the most valuable assets in the entire industry."

"So when Nolan Bushnell sold Atari, MCA and Disney offered tens of millions. Because they realized that this license would allow them to develop freely in the gaming industry without having to worry about being held hostage and having their prices drastically increased by MilroVard, like other companies."

Jobs, leaning back on the sofa, looked at Ethan.

In his view, Ethan's cheeks were already flushed.

Although Jobs knew Ethan was furious, he still wanted to say one last thing—

"Ethan, my brother, even though you're angry, there's something I have to tell you."

"According to my friend, before we even met, Nolan Bushnell had already been selling the 'US3728480 A' patent license as Atari's core asset. Even though Atari hadn't reached an agreement with Milrova, Nolan Bushnell was trying to use this license to get help from MCA or Disney."

"My friend said that from the beginning, Nolan Bushnell and his team should have known that Snake Game was a copyright infringement."

"They even have a way to avoid this infringement, which is to stipulate in your licensing agreement that you entrust them with the production of the presentation of 'Snake Game' instead of leaving the arcade machines directly to their company."

"But he never told you."

"My friend couldn't say the specific reason, but these things shouldn't be hard to guess, right?"

Jobs opened his mouth slightly and gestured a word towards Ethan.

Although he didn't speak, Ethan had heard everything clearly—

Copyright!

"MFxxk!!!!!!!"

Ethan roared and overturned the small coffee table next to him!

"You son of a bitch, Atari!!!"

"I'm going to kill you all!!!"

Note: ① Sidney Sinberg, Jewish, is the president and CEO of MCA and president of Universal. ② Atari's most valuable asset was its video game licensing. The reason Atari was able to make consoles, and continue making consoles after the Atari crash, even being the only one in North America to persist in making consoles, was not because they had superior technology, but because the licenses they obtained in the early days were too cheap. Unfortunately, being with Warner Bros. meant they couldn't do anything about it; Warner Bros. made bad movies, and anyone who tried to piggyback on their success would fail.

P.S. The 3% licensing fee and the 20-year period mentioned in the article were made up by me, because there is no publicly available data for this part; it is only said to be very low and very long.

(End of this chapter)