Tv Guide Game

Based on the success of Trivial Pursuit in Canada and the usual Canadian and US sales ratio (10X) Bob Reiss identified a potential boom in trivia games (and entrepreneurial opportunity for himself) and introduced TV Guide’s TV Game in late 1984. The game sold ~ 580,000 units and made ~ 2M $ for Bob Reiss (as per class discussion) and over 1M $ for Kaplan, while the total cost of designing and launching the product was $50K. By any measure of success, the ROI for the venture was extremely successful for the team.

What did Bob Reiss do right? Entrepreneurs are quick to identify an opportunity when others see a pain point or are quick to identify a trend. Reiss capitalized on a trend in the gaming industry that had not yet met its potential, particularly in the US. His game was a takeoff from the Canadian version, Trivial Pursuit. He also realized that it is ok to follow a trend as long as the entrepreneur is an early adopter. Reiss also understood the lifecycle of the product. He was not hung up on sustainability and realized that the trivia games were a fad which will pass. Thereby he showed the “hustle” required to get the game to the American Toy Fair of 1984 and on the shelf prior to the holiday season. While other major companies would also be working on a trivia game, Reiss realized that he can be faster. Reiss also went straight to the top (or close to it) when he started his communication with TV Guide. This is a common thread of entrepreneurs – they ask for help and they go to the top. Similar to Steve Jobs (at age of 12) calling up Bill Hewlett to ask for spare parts to build a frequency counter. Reiss also cultivated and nurtured his contacts and reputation in the industry. His experience and contacts enabled him to get funding (Kaplan), logistics (Heller Factoring and Swiss Colony), design (Alan Charles) and ended up producing the game with very little risk and funds from his own pocket. -> Risk diversification. Reiss was also clearly able to articulate the value proposition to TV Guide. His letters to TV Guide clearly articulated the attributes of a good value proposition – What is the game that he is proposing, Key benefits and differentiators, trends, price/value and the benefits for TV Guide.

What did Bob Reiss do wrong? Based on the case itself, I do not see any major shortcomings. Looking beyond the case, I feel that having made money in 1984, Reiss will