What is MSX, and what does it mean for American computer companies, software publishers, and consumers?
We’ll examine these questions in this first installment of a special two-part series. A giant silicon-based question mark is rising on the Far Eastern horizon. The shadow it casts is stalking the U.S. home computer industry, and millions of dollars in future sales hang on how far it creeps. Depending on your point of view, it will either brighten the market for everybody or darken the future for American competitors. One way or the other, its arrival on these shores will help determine the course of the consumer electronics and home computer industries for years to come. The question mark is something called MSX, and it’s an enigma waiting for answers. Will it signal the first successful Japanese invasion of the U.S. home computer market? Will it establish the long-awaited standard among home computers? Will it banish the confusion over home computing and make computers as widely accepted and popular as TV sets and stereos? And finally, how will American manufacturers react to the Japa
