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LOT 19:
RALPH BAER (1922-2014) - The Father of video games.
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Start price:
£
100
Estimated price:
£400 - £500
Auction house commission: 29.6%
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VAT: 20% On commission only
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RALPH BAER (1922-2014) - The Father of video games.
A drawing of the game box by Inventor Raph Baer, on A4 paper. Supplied with coa.
Ralph H. Baer, the man widely acknowledged as the "father of home video games" for his pioneering work in electronics and television engineering.
In 1966 when Baer who was working as an engineer for defense contractor Sanders Associates, now part of BAE Systems — scribbled out a four-page description for "game box" that would allow people to play action, sports and other games on a television set.
One Sanders executive saw potential in Baer's idea and gave him $2,500 and two engineers to work on the project. Over the years they churned out seven prototypes in a secret workshop, before landing on a version that Baer and Sanders would use to file the first video game patent in 1971.
The "Brown Box" was licensed to Magnavox and went on sale as the Odyssey in 1972 — the world's first video game system. The primitive system was all hardware and used "program cards" for games. Plastic overlays for the television screen provided colour. Priced at $100 (though Baer had recommended $19.95), the Odyssey sold more than 100,000 units its first year and 300,000 by 1975.
When Atari's Pong debuted just months after the Odyssey went to market, Sanders and Magnavox sued them for copyright infringement. The case was settled for $700,000 and Atari became an Odyssey licensee. Over 20 years, Magnavox won more than $100 million in patent lawsuits involving the Odyssey.
