Sega of America Promotes Three Key Executives

Business Wire, Oct 2, 2000

Business/Technology Editors

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 2, 2000

Sega(R) of America today added additional depth and experience to their management ranks, with the promotions of three key executives: Neal Robison has been promoted to vice president of technology development; Charles Bellfield has been named vice president of corporate and marketing communications; and Kathy Schoback has been elevated to director of third party management. Each executive played a vital role in sustaining the momentum of Sega Dreamcast, which had a highly successful launch in September 1999, and now has an installed base of 2.1 million. With the help of these key executives, Sega has gone from 1% to 20% of marketshare, in less than one year.

"Neal, Charles and Kathy have all played a part in the critical successes that Dreamcast and Sega have enjoyed over this last year," said Peter Moore, president and COO, Sega of America Dreamcast, Inc. "As we move into this next critical year for Dreamcast, these three individuals - along with the entire Sega management team -- will be driving Sega's strategic direction for hardware, software and third party relationships and partnerships. Additionally, we will continue to work with our sister company, Sega.com, to drive the adoption of SegaNet, the industry's most inventive online gaming network. With our strong track record over the last year, we expect to continue to break new ground and set new standards in this industry."

Robison, previously vice president of third party licensing at Sega, will evaluate and manage new technology initiatives and business opportunities, monitor competitive activity and identify custom needs to enhance the Dreamcast platform. Before joining Sega, he worked at The 3DO Company as the director of technical marketing services. In his new capacity, he will continue to report directly to Peter Moore.

As vice president in charge of corporate and marketing communications, Bellfield will be responsible for the development and implementation of Sega's strategic communications plans and programs, including public and investor relations. In his previous role, Bellfield directed all internal and external communications issues for Sega, achieving massive media coverage nationwide for Dreamcast at launch and through the holidays. Before Sega, Bellfield worked for NEC Electronics as brand marketing manager, where he was responsible for strategic brand marketing, worldwide, for NEC's multimedia technology and products. Bellfield will report to Chris Gilbert, executive vice president of sales, marketing and operations.

With her promotion to director of third party management, Schoback will be responsible for developing strategic relationships and business alliances with developers and publishers, in addition to managing the team of third party account managers at Sega. Schoback will also manage the existing third-party organization, including testing and developer technical support. Schoback had an early stint at Sega as western regional sales manager and she has also worked as an account manager in Sega's third party department, handling the needs and managing the relationships with a number of key third party publishers and developers. Prior to Sega she worked at the Game Developer's Conference, where she was national sales manager. Schoback will report directly to Shinobu Toyoda, executive vice president of content, strategy and business development.

About Sega Dreamcast

The 128-bit Internet ready Sega Dreamcast is available in the US with a built-in 56K modem, allowing for full Internet functionality via SegaNet, the only high-speed online console gaming network and ISP service for Dreamcast and PC users. Dreamcast currently has over 100 titles available. The total Dreamcast game library count will be more than 200 by December 2000.

About Sega

Sega of America is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based Sega Enterprises, Ltd. responsible for the development, marketing and distribution of Sega videogame systems and videogames in the Americas. Sega Enterprises, Ltd. is a nearly $2.5 billion company recognized as the industry leader in interactive digital entertainment media, offering interactive entertainment experiences both inside and outside the home. Sega of America's World Wide Web site is located at www.sega.com.