Sega

Sega
Type	Subsidiary of Sega Sammy Holdings
Founded	Irving Bromberg Co. 1930 Service Games 1934 Standard Games 1940 Rosen Enterprises 1954 Service Games of Japan 1955 Japan Entertainment Products & Japan Machinery Manufacturing June 3, 1960 Sega Enterprises 1965
Headquarters	Tokyo, Japan
Key people
Industry	Video games
Products	Arcade games Arcade hardware Video games
Number of people	5,349
Website	http://www.sega.com/

Sega (セガ) is a game company that was founded on June 3, 1960, when Japan Entertainment Products was created and used the trade name Sega, a contraction of its preceding company, Service Games. However, it has roots in companies dating back to the 1930s.

Formation of Sega

In 1930, Irving Bromberg founded a coin-operated machine distribution company named Irving Bromberg Co.. The company distributed coin-operated machines to New York City, Boston, and Washington, D.C. In 1933, he sold the New York office to office manager Leon Taksen. Then, according to an advertisement in the July 1933 issue of Coin Machine Journal, the Supreme Vending Company of Brooklyn had purchased the Irving Bromberg Company of Brooklyn. After the sale of his company, Bromberg moved to Los Angeles, California. In 1934, he started a new coin-operated machine distribution company in Los Angeles named Standard Games.

By 1940, Irving Bromberg's son, Martin Bromley, had enlisted in the Navy and was sent to Honolulu, Hawaii. However, he was placed on inactive duty due to his employment at the Pearl Harbor Shipyard. Later that year, Martin Bromley, his father Irving Bromberg, and a fellow shipyard worker named James Humpert formed a company in Honolulu, Hawaii also named Standard Games. This company provided coin-operated amusement machines to military bases, for soldiers to use during their leisure time. In 1945, after World War II had ended, Standard Games was sold. The three Americans that founded that company started a new coin-operated machine distributor named Service Games, due to the company's focus on military personnel.

In 1951, the United States government passed a law that outlawed slot machines in United States territories. Thus, in 1952, Martin Bromley sent two of his employees, Richard Stewart and Ray LeMaire, to Tokyo, Japan. They set up a distribution company there to provide coin-operated slot machines to the United States military bases in Japan. By 1953, this company was active and operating as Service Games of Japan.

In 1954, an officer in the United States Air Force stationed in Japan, David Rosen, set up a two-minute photo business. This company, Rosen Enterprises, began importing coin-operated games to Japan in 1957.

On May 31, 1960, Service Games closed Service Games Japan. However, on June 3, 1960, two new companies were set up to handle the business. Japan Entertainment Products (日本娯楽物産, Nihon Goraku Bussan) was set up to handle distribution, while Japan Machinery Manufacturing (日本機械製造, Nihon Kikai Seizō) was set up to handle manufacturing.

In 1960, Japan Entertainment Products released the Sega 1000 jukebox, named after the first two letters in the first and the second word of Service Games. The game was a hit, and as a result, the company, while still retaining its legal name, began using the trade name of Sega. Due to this, Sega considers its official foundation as June 3, 1960.

In 1964, Japan Entertainment Products acquired Japan Machinery Manufacturing, bringing both arms of the business together once more.

By 1965, Rosen Enterprises had grown to a point where they operated over 200 arcades in Japan. That year, David Rosen sought a merger of Rosen Enterprises and Japan Entertainment Products. In the resulting company, David Rosen was named the chief executing officer. The company was named Sega Enterprises, after the trade name of Japan Entertainment Products.

Home video game and computer hardware by Sega

Title	Release	Added to Museum	Notes
SG-1000	1983	Not Added Yet	There are several variants, as it was licensed for production by other companies. Sega released two variants themselves: The original SG-1000 had one hard wired joystick and a port for an optional second controller. The SG-1000 II had two detachable joypad controllers.
SC-3000	1983	Not Added Yet	The SC-3000 was a computer that used the SG-1000 architecture. It had a built-in keyboard and support for more hardware expansions.
Mark III Master System	1985 1986	Not Added Yet	The original Japanese release was named the Mark III, due to the fact that it was the successor of the SG-1000 II. The Master System II lacked the port for games that came on Sega Cards.
AI Computer	1986	Not Added Yet	Had an NEC V20 processor (based on the Intel 80186) and 256KB of RAM.
Mega Drive Genesis	1988 1989	Not Added Yet	The reason behind the North American rename to Sega Genesis is unknown, but it's possibly due to a trademark dispute with Mega Drive Systems Inc. The Mega Drive II lacked a headphone jack. The North American exclusive Genesis 3 lacked expansion ports, which made it incompatible with the Sega CD and 32X. The Sega Nomad was a portable version of the Sega Genesis.
Video Driver	1989	Not Added Yet	VHS-based video game console co-designed by Tyco Toys.
Mega CD Sega CD	1991 1992	December 25, 1992	The Sega CD connects to the Genesis, adding CD support as well as extra processors and memory. It could be used in conjunction with the 32X to play Sega CD 32X games.
Teradrive	1991	Not Added Yet	An IBM computer powered by an Intel 80286 processor and integrated Mega Drive hardware. There were three models: Model 1 had 640KB of RAM. Model 2 had 1MB of RAM. Model 3 had 2.5MB of RAM
Mega PC Mega Plus	1993	Not Added Yet	An Amstrad computer powered by an Intel 80386SX processor, 1MB of RAM, and an ISA card containing Mega Drive hardware. The Mega Plus had a Cyrix Cx486SLC processor, 4MB of RAM, and an ISA card containing Mega Drive hardware.
Sega PAC	1993	Not Added Yet	A module for the LaserActive laserdisc video game system that allowed it to play Genesis/Mega Drive games, Sega CD/Mega CD games, and Mega LD games.
32X	1994	Not Added Yet	The 32X connects to the Genesis, adding a 32-bit processor and the ability to display texture-mapped 3D polygons. It could be used in conjunction with the Sega CD to play Sega CD 32X games.
Saturn	1994	Not Added Yet
Dreamcast	1998	September 9, 1999
Sega Genesis Mini	2019	May 4, 2019	Dedicated console with built-in Sega Genesis games that run on a custom emulator by M2.
Sega Genesis Mini 2	2022	Not yet	Dedicated console with built-in Sega Genesis and Sega CD games that run on a custom emulator by M2.

Handheld video game hardware by Sega

Title	Release	Added to Museum	Notes
Game Gear	1990	December 25, 1991	Based on Sega Master System hardware with support for palettes with a wider variety of colors and stereo sound.
Pico	1993	Not Added Yet	An educational portable video game system that was the first to utilize touch controls. Sega Toys inherited the system after it was formed in 1994.
Visual Memory Unit	1998	September 9, 1999	Memory card for the Dreamcast that had a screen, a joypad, buttons, and also functioned as a portable video game system.
Game Gear Micro	2020	March 26, 2021	Dedicated handheld consoles with built-in Game Gear games that run on a custom emulator by M2.