Truck and Barter: Outdated Video Games are Popular

December 20, 2004

Outdated Video Games are Popular

By Kevin

I had briefly seen the this product--a joystick that has the computer console inside--on QVC. The games looked really simplistic, and I cringed at the thought of all the people who purchased this toy and thought they might be getting the latest and greatest.

Now, The New York Times has a writeup of the product and the female entrepreneur, Jeri Ellsworth.

I did not know that Ms. Ellsworth had miniaturized an entire commodore 64 onto a single chip::

Sold by Mammoth Toys, based in New York, for $30, the Commodore 64 joystick has been a hot item on QVC this Christmas season, selling 70,000 units in one day when it was introduced on the shopping channel last month; since then it has been sold through QVC's Web site. Frank Landi, president of Mammoth, said he expected the joystick would be distributed next year by bigger toy and electronics retailers like Radio Shack, Best Buy, Sears and Toys "R" Us. "To me, any toy that sells 70,000 in a day on QVC is a good indication of the kind of reception we can expect," he said.

Ms. Ellworth's first venture into toy making has not yet brought her great wealth - she said she is paid on a consulting basis at a rate that is competitive for her industry - "but I'm having fun," she said, and she continues with other projects in circuit design as a consultant.

Did I mention she dropped out of high school? And get this about her relationship to her partner in a computer assembly business:

They went into business together in 1995, but soon had a falling out and split up. For a short time Ms. Ellsworth considered leaving the computer business. Instead, she opened a store near that of her former partner, then drove him out of business. Ultimately her store became a chain of five Computers Made Easy shops in small towns.

The game console costs $30 and includes these games.

Posted at December 20, 2004 10:16 AM

Comments