Atari Hotels just updated their website for the first time in years......

[Giles N]

47 minutes ago, Lord Mushroom said:

That is a good deal. If no hotels come out of it, they got $3 million for nothing. That is still a good deal.

Could they find similar good deals…?
What should they be? Where or who to seek out..?

[+GoldLeader]

I'd call it a good deal.  I mean if someone offered me $3 Million and wanted to put an image of my ummm my face or something on the side of a building,  and I got to keep the dough, even if the venture failed...Well,  Hellz Yeah!

[roots.genoa]

1 hour ago, GoldLeader said:

I'd call it a good deal.  I mean if someone offered me $3 Million and wanted to put an image of my ummm my face or something on the side of a building,  and I got to keep the dough, even if the venture failed...Well,  Hellz Yeah!

And you're forever known as "the guy from the shitty hotels"... But you're rich, so you don't have to talk to people anyway. 🧐

[Lord Mushroom]

12 hours ago, Giles N said:

Could they find similar good deals…?
What should they be? Where or who to seek out..?

That was an exceptionally good deal, so it won´t be easy to find deals like that. Chesnais was really good at making licensing deals, or his employees was. They just need to look at what they did back then, and learn from it. Chesnais made it very clear they were open for making licensing deals. That is probably a part of the answer. They need to avoid giving their name to things that will hurt their brand, though.

[+x=usr(1536)]

12 hours ago, roots.genoa said:

And you're forever known as "the guy from the shitty hotels"... But you're rich, so you don't have to talk to people anyway. 🧐

 

It's like the old joke:

 

 

A mediaeval villager is sitting in his hovel one night, musing on life.  He pokes the fire with a stick, watching the embers rise into the chimney and begins to ruminate to himself.

 

"Once you've been the village innkeeper for a few years, they call you 'Tim the Innkeeper'."

 

"And once you've been the village blacksmith for a decade or so, they call you 'Tim the Blacksmith'."

 

"Even the village idiot would take a couple or three years to be called 'Tim the Idiot'."

 

"But you screw one goat..."

[CharlesEChuck]

On 5/26/2024 at 1:45 AM, Lord Mushroom said:

They were guaranteed $3 million, and could potentially get additional royalties for something that Atari has no reason to be ashamed about (in my opinion). That is a good deal. If no hotels come out of it, they got $3 million for nothing. That is still a good deal.

That would be true if it was true, but it isn't. That $3m was from the deal with the ICICB scammers which was terminated in 2022 and eventually resulted in a horrific $11m write-off:

https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2022/04/18/2423873/0/en/Atari-Announces-Planned-Creation-of-New-Token-and-Termination-of-Joint-Venture.html

The GSD deal had a $0.6m upfront, but if you balance that with with the brand dilution every time Atari got sh*t on in the media because of their hotels that don't exist, I'd say this isn't a very lucrative deal yet.

 

Maybe a well designed convention hotel with an attached Recharged Arcade center and a fully loaded 2600+ in every room could be a neat thing we may be cautiously optimistic about, but until a little more than a copyright date change on an unvisited web page happens, I will remain neutral.

Edited May 28 by CharlesEChuck

[82-T/A]

On 5/26/2024 at 4:07 PM, x=usr(1536) said:

 

It's like the old joke:

 

 

A mediaeval villager is sitting in his hovel one night, musing on life.  He pokes the fire with a stick, watching the embers rise into the chimney and begins to ruminate to himself.

 

"Once you've been the village innkeeper for a few years, they call you 'Tim the Innkeeper'."

 

"And once you've been the village blacksmith for a decade or so, they call you 'Tim the Blacksmith'."

 

"Even the village idiot would take a couple or three years to be called 'Tim the Idiot'."

 

"But you screw one goat..."

 

 

[Lord Mushroom]

7 hours ago, CharlesEChuck said:

That would be true if it was true, but it isn't. That $3m was from the deal with the ICICB scammers which was terminated in 2022 and eventually resulted in a horrific $11m write-off:

Atari was entitled to $3.5 million in a non-refundable advance payment from them. If ICICB never paid that, sure then it was a bad deal.

 

But the $11 million write-off doesn´t mean that the deal cost them $11 million. It means terminating the deal made them gain less from the deal than previously estimated, potentially having to compensate ICICB for breaking the deal and potentially having to repay any advance payment received. All this amounting to $11 million. If terminating the deal cost Atari $11 million, that is not the deal´s fault, rather breaking the deal.

 

7 hours ago, CharlesEChuck said:

The GSD deal had a $0.6m upfront, but if you balance that with with the brand dilution every time Atari got sh*t on in the media because of their hotels that don't exist, I'd say this isn't a very lucrative deal yet.

In the position Atari was and is in, I would say even that is a good deal. Not as good, obviously. Atari is also entitled to 5% of any revenue from the hotels.

 

If Atari doesn´t have a good plan for growing their business through new ideas, cashing in on the brand in a Chesnais light way is the best course of action. In such a case, that means saying yes to much worse stuff than hotels that might never be built.

Edited May 28 by Lord Mushroom

[Giles N]

3 hours ago, Lord Mushroom said:

If Atari doesn´t have a good plan for growing their business through new ideas, cashing in on the brand in a Chesnais light way is the best course of action.

You have also mentioned that they are getting old, - and with time the Atari name is diluted as game-brand, that they may not have the necessary money for really Big-Name IP, that they need to rerelease games on new platforms but also that there aren’t many left for rereleases, and what they need are new good ideas (some which you will keep to yourself)

 

So, my impression is that you list up potential problems - all of them which may be very real and rooted in reality - but not describe alternatives they should’ve pursued…?

 

Am I missing something…? 
 

They are not giant publishers, they need production means (they aren’t free) to produce or realize any new idea, they have almost exhausted rereleases of classics for the platforms around, and the big apples hang too high, so I feel you point out problems, but not giving any direction of good alternatives.

(and are we sure they got these IPs at a high-risk price…? Could it be they got a good deal…?)

 

It would be interesting to hear what you think they should do instead.

If you feel like keeping the details to yourself, it would be interesting to hear a general drift, general direction-comment.

 

If they were to sell more merch (even quality) for 5 or 10 years just get money, it would make the feeling of Atari = gaming, feel even more obsolete when they’d accumulated some money.

 

So, what are the functional and balanced alternatives here?

 

 

Edited May 28 by Giles N

[Lord Mushroom]

1 hour ago, Giles N said:

So, my impression is that you list up potential problems - all of them which may be very real and rooted in reality - but not describe alternatives they should’ve pursued…?

I am saying less is more. If all you have is poor ideas, do nothing. They don´t have to invest. If they find themselves with excess money, they should pay dividends or make buybacks for a change.

 

One concrete thing I can suggest to increase revenue is going out publicly and say they are very interested in licensing their brand and IP. That should increase the interest of people wanting to license their brand and IP, and it is free.

 

1 hour ago, Giles N said:

they need production means (they aren’t free) to produce or realize any new idea,

Wade has at least tens of millions more he would be willing to invest in a good idea. If your idea requires more than tens of millions to get off the ground (if necessary with partners), it is not a good idea. Atari only has a money problem if/when Wade loses interest.

 

1 hour ago, Giles N said:

It would be interesting to hear what you think they should do instead.

Like I have said, drop unprofitable ventures and stick to licensing and releasing old games. Those two are tried and true money-makers for Atari. If they had stuck to those in the last few years, they would have had a small steady profit, instead of big losses. Maybe publishing is profitable too.

 

But of course, if they have a good idea for a game with high potential, or any other product or service that is likely to make a profit, go for it. And they shouldn´t interfere too much with Nightdive Studios and Digital Eclipse as they are presumably making money.

[Giles N]

1 hour ago, Lord Mushroom said:

stick to licensing

And what would you reply to those eho think this dilutes Ataris reputation?

 

How great would you estimate this business to be? You said the Chesnais Hotel deal was special.

 

How much do you see them making on this, and couldn’t they still go out for free and say ‘Hello, here we are now, license us?’

 

1 hour ago, Lord Mushroom said:

and releasing old games

…and who, what or where is left here as to the IP they’ve already had (before trying to get more) to release their games on…again…?

 

Who would be the buyers of another rerelease…?

Edited May 28 by Giles N
weeding out typos

[Lord Mushroom]

3 minutes ago, Giles N said:

And what would you reply to those eho think this dilutes Ataris reputation?

It doesn´t if you only give licenses to good products/services. And if you have no ideas to benefit from Atari´s brand, you have nothing to lose from squeezing as much money as possible out of the brand before it is worthless.

 

7 minutes ago, Giles N said:

How great would you estimate this business to be?

I would guess a profit of over $1 million per year.

 

11 minutes ago, Giles N said:

couldn’t they still go out for free and say ‘Hello, here we are now, license us?’

Yes.

 

12 minutes ago, Giles N said:

…and who, what or where is left here as to the IP they’ve already had (before trying to get more) to release their games on…again…?

I am not criticising them on this point. I am saying they should continue doing what they are doing in this area. I am not saying there are platforms out there that Atari have neglected, although there could be. Atari´s games are on Steam, PS5, Switch, Antstream and many more. These are all newer platforms. As other platforms enter the market, Atari should be there with their old games, as I am sure they will be.

 

20 minutes ago, Giles N said:

Whi would be the buyers of another rerelease…?

Mainly Atari fans who no longer can (practically) play Atari games on the platform they used to play them on.

[Giles N]

40 minutes ago, Lord Mushroom said:

over $1 million

One  million dollars!  
 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 28 by Giles N

[PowerDubs]

1 hour ago, Lord Mushroom said:

They don´t have to invest. If they find themselves with excess money, they should pay dividends or make buybacks for a change.

 

 

 

Dividends won't come until there is a large group of retail buyers interested in such.

 

Retail buyers won't come until they get rid of the foreign exchange fee to buy Paris stock in the U.S.

 

Sadly- the common man doesn't realize by the time the share price and volume gets high enough to allow a normal Nasdaq listing- the share price will be waaay higher than now- so whatever shares they get will be fewer than just buying now at a high enough chunk to negate the fee.   Right now you can buy for .12-.14 in small chunks and typically a $50 fee.  

 

Example last Sept I bought another 28,000 shares at .14 - so $3920 + 50 = $3970.

 

The price only needs to hit 0.1417857142857143 to break even.

 

As soon as it hits .1418 I am up.

 

For Atari to have a normal listing- they will need a price and consistent large volume north of $1.

 

Anyone want to spend $28,000 for 28,0000 shares? 

 

By the time Atari hits $1 (and YES it's coming) - my $3970 investment (on that single buy) will be worth $24,030 profit.

 

 

Yes- I think a buyback will happen (and should)...and they've voted + for it.  Wade's playing his chess game. 

 

Buyback is MUCH better than a reverse split...and thankfully given his holding- probably preferential to him as well.

 

 

1 hour ago, Lord Mushroom said:

 Atari only has a money problem if/when Wade loses interest.

 

 

 

He won't- so they won't.

 

Loosing interest isn't an option when you own 50+% of the company... (at a significantly higher cost out of pocket than the stock can we all can currently buy for)

 

 

 

[PowerDubs]

2 hours ago, Lord Mushroom said:

 Nightdive Studios and Digital Eclipse as they are presumably making money.

 

Watch next week or so... 

https://x.com/DigitalEclipse/status/1795547491984662603

1 hour ago, Lord Mushroom said:

 Atari´s games are on Steam, PS5, Switch, Antstream and many more. These are all newer platforms. As other platforms enter the market, Atari should be there with their old games, as I am sure they will be.

 

Mainly Atari fans who no longer can (practically) play Atari games on the platform they used to play them on.

 

 

The best part of 'retro' games...is it is evolutionary... things I think back as 'recent' are 'ancient' to people half my age or less....

 

Meaning- Wade will never run out of things to buy / repurpose.   Brilliant.

 

 

Mushroom - you seem to have a pretty good grasp.  Surprised you don't see value in the stock potential given all the circumstances.

Edited May 28 by PowerDubs

[Lord Mushroom]

37 minutes ago, PowerDubs said:

Loosing interest isn't an option when you own 50+% of the company...

If the company keeps losing money, I am sure at some point he will get tired of putting his money into it, and cut his losses.

[Lord Mushroom]

40 minutes ago, PowerDubs said:

Mushroom - you seem to have a pretty good grasp.  Surprised you don't see value in the stock potential given all the circumstances.

Flattery will get you everywhere.

[Astro Rabby]

Atari Hotel?? First I've heard of it. If it's not an exact replica of the world from Adventure I'm not interested.

[PowerDubs]

20 minutes ago, Lord Mushroom said:

If the company keeps losing money, I am sure at some point he will get tired of putting his money into it, and cut his losses.

 

He is too deep to just cut... meaning- he can't just run out the door... there will be notice... news, sales, numbers...  time for ALL to make their choice...not just him.

 

He has spent many tens of millions out of his own pocket.

 

And he is not the only Atari employee holding a lot of stock at a higher price than can be bought now...Digital Eclipse, Nightdive, as well as normal execs... are in deeper.

 

That says something....  $PONGF

[PowerDubs]

5 minutes ago, Astro Rabby said:

Atari Hotel?? First I've heard of it.

 

 

Designed by Gensler- the world's best Architecture firm.

 

https://www.archpaper.com/2020/10/gensler-is-bringing-the-flagship-atari-hotel-to-las-vegas/

 

Associated with Woz-

 

 

 

Problem is they did this right as Covid started.

 

They have done NUMEROUS motorsport sponsorships since then...several different off road race trucks, a Ferrari race car, a motorcross team.....and we are about to see a new drag race car at any day now....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

People think the project is dead?  Think Again....

 

If you look quick at her jacket you'll see the logo. The woman is Shelly Murphy from #AtariHotels

 

(Shelly Murphy will be speaking at Southern Nevada & Las Vegas Hospitality Summit Wed Jul 10, 2024.)

 

 

 

 

 

Quote- "Cannot forget the Atari Hotel and Roosterwise teams for coming through. Much love!"

 

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/stephenmonyer_thanks-to-john-odom-racing-and-the-street-activity-7161836118454288384-X2L8/

 

 

The guy that posted that- Wells Fargo - Senior Vice President - Middle Market Banking

 

 

 

Kenneth Discipio from Lake Nona posted- "Excited to move this project forward in 2024 with our Atari team."

 

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-7153503630048784385-Czyj/

 

 

 

 

Lake Nona was first mentioned as a location for Atari Hotels in this presentation-

 

 

 

 

 

 

Think this is all 3rd party and Atari has nothing to do with it?

 

Think again... Atari recently released their new Yars Rising video-

 

 

 

 

 

 

For those not paying attention.... right smack in the center of that video- the cityscape- is the Atari Hotel....

 

 

 

 

[Lord Mushroom]

2 minutes ago, PowerDubs said:

He is too deep to just cut... meaning- he can't just run out the door... there will be notice... news, sales, numbers...  time for ALL to make their choice...not just him.

As you know, when the loan is converted, he will be the majority owner, and can do whatever he likes (simplified). Even today, nobody can force him to keep putting money into the company. He can cut the cord at any time.

 

Here is the scenario:

Atari keeps losing money year after year. He finances the losses and further purchases himself with loans/buying new shares. After a few years he realizes the strategy isn´t working, and/or he is uncomfortable with how his wealth is dwindling. He sells or shuts down the unprofitable areas of the company to reduce losses. If the debt is unsustainable, the debt is turned into shares, and he owns virtually 100% of the company, which now is small.

 

There will be egg all over his face, but he will consider that better than the alternative.

 

Of course, it doesn´t have to end this way. The strategy might still prove successful, and Wade can be the proud majority owner of a profitable company for decades to come.

[PowerDubs]

.....but again... he can't just cut and run... there will be notice to anyone paying attention... which any investor should do.  Time for ALL to make their choice.

 

As it sits...my choice is... BUY MORE.  

 

[Lord Mushroom]

9 hours ago, PowerDubs said:

.....but again... he can't just cut and run... there will be notice to anyone paying attention... which any investor should do.  Time for ALL to make their choice.

Sure, he will let anyone know he won´t be putting more money in the company, but people won´t have any choice to make. He alone willl decide what the company does, as he will be the majority owner.

 

The only way people will have a choice in the matter is if the scenario is worse. For example if he suddenly sells his shares, leaving Atari with losses and high debt. Or if he doesn´t eliminate the company losses in time, and issues new shares (that he won´t buy himself) to cover the losses. In those scenarios there is a high chance of bankruptcy.