Interview with Keith Adams- President - Miacomet, Inc.

Q.  What is your history with Miacomet and what do you do there?  What will your role be with the ACT LABS subsidiary?

 I am one of the three founders of the company. I joined on an informal basis in the Summer of 1997 by assisting the founders, Chris Meredith and Robert Foley with introductions into the industry and business development. I formally joined the company in the Fall of 1998 as the Director of Sales and Business Development and was named President of Miacomet in November of 2000. In the new company I will be acting as President and CEO with Alex Pui of ACT-LABS acting as the COO and Brandon Crick of ACT-LABS acting as Vice President of Business Development.

 

Q.  On December 6, 2000 it was announced that Miacomet will be acquiring ACT LABS.  How will this affect each companies product lines and operation?

 We will be continuing all of the two companies product lines moving forward with some products retaining ACT or Miacomet branding as appropriate. We are working to close an exclusive license deal to supply our products and technologies to a third party who will bring these products to the mass market through their established worldwide sales channel.

 

Q.  Each company has a history of providing unique controllers to the gaming populous.  Will this tradition continue?

 Absolutely, the synergy between ACT-LABS and Miacomet is overwhelming and the primary reason for creating the new entity. We will continue to develop new and innovative products backed by strong game support. We will continue to raise the bar and establish ourselves in present and future controller genres by relying on our patented protected technologies and historical commitment to product quality.

 

Q.  Neither company has put out a typical joystick in quite some time.  Are there plans to do this?  What other types of controllers can we expect to see in the future?

Our plan is to first execute on our patented technologies and develop the "Real Feel" line for this third party exclusive licensee. We will also continue to to focus on the ACT-LABS racing system with the development of a new performance pedal system with clutch and with continued evangelism of the stick shifter product as well. Next in line is the continued development of the PC light gun technology from ACT-LABS to solidify it's reputation as the standard for computer light gun devices. At that point in time we may turn our energies to assist our license partner in the development innovations to the standard joystick products.

 

Q.  Distribution of Miacomet products was being handled largely by InterAct.  Will this relationship continue?  Will we see current ACT LABS products enter into the same distribution line?

 Currently InterAct distributes our Pool Cue controller in North America under the "Pool Shark" brand. This will continue until May 2001. At this point in time there are no plans to license any other products to InterAct.

 

Q.  Will ACT LABS console product lines continue?  be expanded?

 Yes. We have definitive plans to expand this line and aggressively ramp up the development of additional products. This is where you can expect the most activity in the coming months.

 

Q.  What are some of the games you play when you find time in your busy schedule?  And more importantly- what controllers do you use?

 I am an avid gamer. Right now I have been spending most of my time on Driver 2 and I play Everquest on-line with my 12 year old son. I have been using the ACT-LABS racing wheel system and a new 3-D mouse which is still in development.

 

Q.  Is there anything else you would like to share about yourself, the companies or the industry in general?

 I would just like to say that I feel strongly that the next big advances in gaming are going to be with input devices and controllers. Having spent the last 16 years in the computer gaming industry I think that we will see the biggest leaps in realism and extended playability from these devices, not from software and higher powered machines that are becoming available. As with any large advances in technology, software developers will need time to create content that can truly take advantage of the added power and capabilities that the new platforms and technology provide. In the meantime, quality, specialized controllers can expand on the gaming experience and provide users with a much more immersive experience that cannot be achieved with software by itself. Miacomet/ACT-LABS is uniquely positioned to take advantage of this opportunity and will have many exciting releases for E3 this year that should prove this.