Atari Corp, whose turnover has been shrinking alarmingly quarter by quarter, but which may still have a hot property in its 64-bit Jaguar games machine, has decided to secure its future by turning some of its intangible assets into a substantial sum in cash. It has been in legal proceedings with Sega Enterprises Ltd, and has reached a settlement that sees it getting a major cash infusion. Atari has a portfolio of 70 patents, and has granted Sega worldwide, non-exclusive rights with some exceptions to use them in return for $7m a year for the seven years that the key patents have to run, bringing Atari $50m. Sega will also buy about 4.7m new Atari shares for $40m, and the two will enter into software licence agreements for a specified number of new games that will be available for each company’s present and future machines.
