Agenda

Agenda for January 30, 1982 Meeting

Overview of MSP

Goals
Marketing targets
Potential product areas
Marketing channels

Background

The micro industry today
mass market hardware
software development
software marketing
Marinchip--what we've learned
Case studies
Micro-pro
Scripsit

What's needed to succeed

Market-directed products
``Don't be afraid not to innovate''
Responsive organization
Marketing follow-up and project monitoring
Highest standard of products from first release
Target expanding mass markets
Sufficient capital and commitment
Afford to be wrong 80% of the time

The difference between strategy and prediction

Make any potential success a success
Resources to keep on trying until you hit
Structure so you know when something's hitting
Organization which can swing behind a success
Ability to pyramid success when it occurs

What MSP participation gives you

Full-time support operation
Marketing contacts
Market research contacts
Complete manufacturing operation
Risk capital for start-up

What MSP wants from you

Commitment to MSP as best prospect to get rich
Meeting all delivery and support commitments
Providing marketing support as required
Production of highest quality products
Sharing ideas and information with others
Aiding others with partnership projects
Exclusive access to your work in areas MSP addresses
Your capital contribution
A level of effort you can maintain

Don't expect MSP to...

Produce technological breakthroughs
Do pure research
Be as much fun as hacking
Spare you anxiety
Let you specialize
Exploit your existing knowledge optimally
Fit perfectly with your current job

Expect MSP to...

Broaden your horizons beyond your imagination
Educate you in the realities of business
Teach you marketing
Make you appreciate the value in ideas you may disdain
Expose you to many different systems
Introduce you to depths of despair and exhaustion you never knew existed
Introduce you to heights of exultation you never knew existed
Ruin you for being an employee
Make you rich

The last train out

Entry of venture capital to software business
Analogy with hardware business in '79-80
Difficulty of start-up venture in high-stakes game
The tension-demand for software vs. supply / difficulty to produce software in large organizations
Realities of introducing and promoting a product
Why we have a chance at all

The open track ahead

Massive promotion of small machines in business environments
IBM sales staff consolidation
Dearth of software for desktop applications
Availability of growth capital / cash out opportunities

Our experience and goals

Why the low-commitment game is over
Grow or die--Shrayer vs. Micro-Pro
Cash is needed up-front
Marketing follow-up and project evaluation is essential
Go for it-now is the time the GM's of the 2020's are being formed
What do they have we don't?

Why get involved?

Can always think of something better, are you likely to find it?
Absolutely unique opportunity
Every incentive toward being in business
Cannot make it on your own
Why trust these turkeys? -- I do $60K worth.

Marinchip's contribution

Marinchip annual report
Liquid asset summary
Initial capitalization proposal
Marinchip ongoing operation facilities

Partner contributions -- round table

What partner has to contribute
business experience
technical experience
risk capital
What share partner is interested in
What skills partner wants to acquire
Any limitations on partner's participation?
maximum time commitment
won't quit my job regardless
won't work on .... (databases, sorts, compilers)
won't get involved in ...(marketing, ad copy, documentation)
won't work with others (or specific people)
What are your worries?
What have we left out?

What I think is needed

Try to succeed, not prove something
Don't assume that because it's been done it's been done for all time
Distinguish your product from the rest, but don't make it so different it's incomprehensible.
The human mind's basic primitive is ``this is like that, except...'', learn to live with that.
Don't try to solve all problems for all time.
Don't offer any options, ever!
No configuration, ever!
No system programmer after you.

Why I think we can do it

We have the technical competence edge on almost everybody
We're building a responsive structure, and we will make it work!
We have the slant and contacts--micros are moving from the beachhead into the mainframe application class.
We know mainframes and what people do with them and how.
We've always been able to beat anybody on delivery time if we really care to.
We have the systems programming capability to back up our applications. None of our competitors do.
We have a comfortable amount of seed capital--no need to bootstrap or to produce instant performance for outside funding.
We have the historical perspective--almost none of our competitors has been in computer for more than 5 years.
We're able to adapt ourselves to the market--we're not gambling everything on one product or concept.

Timetable

2/6

Participation commitments due.

2/8-13

Partnership share consulations, draft agreement review.

2/13

Partnership charter meeting--tentative agreement approval, projects review, initial work assignments, hardware procurement review.

2/27

Formal partnership organization--agreements signed, initial capitalization delivered.

3/13

First partnership review meeting.

This drawing, originally done on M9900 INTERACT, was the first architectural drawing ever used with AutoCAD. It was shown at the introduction of AutoCAD at COMDEX in 1982.