Author: Steven Schwartz
Date: 19:50:35 10/20/00
Go up one level in this thread
On October 20, 2000 at 20:47:27, Al Lawrence wrote:
>My name is Al Lawrence. I'm the co-author of "Hoisting the Hippopotamus" on
>www.chesscafe.com. This month we offer an obituary/remembrance of Sid Samole. In
>1984, I was Associate Director of the US Chess Federation and in charge of its
>sales program. I was subpoenaed to give testimony in the Fidelity vs. ICD
>lawsuit Steve discusses on this forum.
>
>Obviously, there was indeed a lawsuit. However, at least one of the statements
>made by Steve in his original posting seems incorrect to me. And a few others
>seem unlikely. But this is ancient history and hardly worth the key strokes.
>Steve is certainly entitled to his memories and opinions. At any rate, Sid and
>Steve did not get along in business, at least not all the time.
>
>I know Sid honestly felt that what he saw as a misrepresentation of the strength
>of the Excelence cost Fidelity a lot of sales. I am certainly a personal
>partisan at this point because I no longer work for USCF and miss my old friend
>Sid very much.
>
>I invite you to see a different perspective of Sid by visiting our column at
>www.chesscafe.com.
>Cordially, Al Lawrence
Al,
Hi. Long time no speak.
I am more than willing to have a public discussion on the merits
of the lawsuit without demeaning Sid's reputation. As I said in
my initial post on this matter: "I harbor no ill will toward
Sid, and I hope that he rests in peace. What he did to my company
was a business decision not a personal one."
So, now that I have your attention, perhaps you can answer a
few questions about the lawsuit...
1) Why did the USCF advertise the Excellence as playing "Over
2000" without having tested the machine? Or, if you DID test the
machines, why was ICD/Your Move being told that no machines were
available for testing?
2) Was it the USCF that tcame up with that "over 2000" figure
that you advertised for the Excellence or was it Fidelity that came
up with that figure?
3) Where was the evidence that it played that well when you
placed your ad in the October, 1985 issue of Chess Life?
4) Was our promise of "Over 1700" any more incorrect and/or
misleading than the U.S. Chess Federation's claim of "Over 2000".
5) Were you aware that the machines performing in Florida in
late 1985, just before the computer's release, were actually 8 MHz
machines instead of 3 MHz machines that were about to be commercially
sold?
6) Why do you suppose Fidelity entered 8 MHz machines in that
tournament instead of the 3 MHz machines that were supposed to
be commercially available?
7) Why do you suppose that Fidelity kept the fact that the machines
in the tournament were faster than commercial ones a secret?
8) Do you honestly believe that our ad, promising an "above 1700
rating" caused Fidelity $1,500,000 in lost sales within 3 weeks of the
release of the ad in Chess Life?
9) How do you suppose that Fidelity found out about our ad in
Chess Life BEFORE it was actually published in Chess Life?
10) Were ads that we sent to Chess Life for publication 6 weeks
prior to publication SUPPOSED to be released to third parties before
they were printed and distributed?
If, as you say above, you believe any of my statements are incorrect
or unlikely, please do not hesitate to correct them. I look forward
to your responses.
Steve (ICD/Your Move Chess & Games)
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