Press release: 1993-07-01: W INDUSTRIES MAKES VIRTUAL REALITY A REALITY FOR SEGA

This is an unaltered copy of a press release, for use as a primary source on Sega Retro. Please do not edit the contents below. Language: English Original source: The Free Library

W INDUSTRIES MAKES VIRTUAL REALITY A REALITY FOR SEGA; STRATEGIC JOINT VENTURE ANNOUNCED

LONDON, July 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Sega Enterprises Ltd. of Japan, the world leader in the coin-operated industry, and W Industries in the UK, the world leader in virtual reality (VR), yesterday announced the signing of a strategic joint venture to develop virtual reality hardware and software. This joint venture will harness W Industries' pioneering technologies in VR developed over the last five years with Sega's commitment to advanced computer graphics hardware and software technology for interactive virtual reality.
 
Both companies express the hope that this venture will mark the beginning of a long term creative and mutually beneficial relationship. It is expected that the first Sega VR arcade game will be launched in the market in early 1994. Sega projects sales in excess of 2,000 units per annum.
 
Based in Leicester, UK, W Industries becomes a technology partner of Sega, alongside Martin Marietta Corp. of the United States, a leading supplier of simulation and training systems. Both companies have been selected to play a key role in Sega's long term VR strategy.

The joint venture between the two companies will use Sega's graphic board and original cabinet as principal hardware components. W Industries will license its operating system and will develop and license the VR software concept. Sega will retain the worldwide distribution rights for this first arcade game.

"We are delighted to announce our joint collaboration with Sega which will bring our VR technology even further to the forefront of the entertainment market," comments Dr. Jon Waldern, founder and CEO of W Industries Ltd. "Licensing our VR technology to leading international companies is a key element in our development strategy for W Industries, providing wide exposure for our existing systems whilst creating significant incremental sales potential and a wider distribution base."

A rapidly growing and privately-held company, W Industries is the internationally acknowledged world leader in VR hardware and software systems with worldwide sales of its own systems under the "Virtuality" brand name. The company will continue to develop its own entertainment products with continuous investment in R&D and with marketing support behind its ground-breaking range of VR leisure machines.

W Industries recently opened a U.S. office in St. Louis. The company's current VR leisure machines can be found at VSpace in Boulder, Colorado, Exhilarama entertainment center in Vorhees, New Jersey and Time Out at Chicago's North Pier.

Sega Enterprises is the leading designer, developer and manufacturer in the coin-operated industry and has developed advanced computer graphics technology. This is demonstrated by its leading-edge amusement machines such as "Virtua Racing", a next-generation racing game machine using the latest computer graphics technologies, and "AS-1", a large scale interactive simulation machine offering a virtual reality amusement ride experience.
 
The culmination of Sega'a R&D power and W Industries' VR technologies will be introduced at Sega's High-Tech Amusement Theme Parks scheduled to open in early 1994.
-0- 6/30/93
/CONTACT: Lisa Habernickel of Donley Communications, 212-751-6126, for W Industries/

CO: W Industries; Sega Enterprises Ltd. ST: IN: CPR SU: JVN

MP -- NY078 -- 7357 06/30/93 17:00 EDT
COPYRIGHT 1993 PR Newswire Association LLC
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 1993 Gale, Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.