Kaz Hirai, President & CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America

This is a partial transcript from Your World with Neil Cavuto, November 8, 2001.

NEIL CAVUTO, HOST: What if this ever happened to you?

You bought a spanking new computer, only your software and games and stuff wouldn't run on it. So, you go out and get software that will work with the machine you got. Sounds silly, right? Well, not so in the video game world, where Sony and Nintendo, and soon, Microsoft, have their own distinct boxes and their own games. The trouble is, those games don't play on the other guys` boxes. So it really comes down to this: May the strongest and mightiest survive.

And with us now, the guy who thinks he's going to win this Darwinian struggle, Kaz Hirai, is the president of Sony Computer Entertainment America. Kaz, good to have you back.

KAZ HIRAI, PRESIDENT & CEO , SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT AMERICA: Thanks for having me back, Neil.

CAVUTO: You have to address that a compatibility issue. What is going on with that?

HIRAI: One of the things that we have going for the PlayStation system and the PlayStation 2, is the fact that we have been in the market with the original PlayStation now since 1995. There are about 1,200 titles available for it and that is backwards compatible, so you can play all those libraries that people have invested in right with your PlayStation 2.

So that is a first in the industry and it certainly protects the investments that the consumers have made in the PlayStation software.

CAVUTO: But now you have big bad Bill Gates entering the picture. Next week he is going to be here touting this X-box. Are you worried?

HIRAI: You know, we have had a year head start in the so called "next generation" video game market. Last time I was on your show was right at launch, back in October of last year. I am happy to report that we now have more than 5 million new PlayStation 2s just in the North American market, 20 million worldwide. So we have a very strong head start, so we are very comfortable with it.

CAVUTO: It is really the software right? Is there enough software for the holiday season, right?

I mean, some of these, when Nintendo fist debuted its system, there was like three or four things you could get. I am probably understating it.

But you promise that there will be plenty there.

HIRAI: We promised compelling entertainment from day one, when we launched the PlayStation 2 back in October of last year. Right now, I am happy to report that we have more than a hundred titles available for the PS2 in the North American market, and we expect that to grow to about 280 titles by the end of the year.

CAVUTO: Are more people playing these things -- I know Microsoft had to pull some of these flight simulator games, post the terrorist issue -- but, you have not experienced anything like that?

HIRAI: The industry as a whole has a very bullish outlook for the holiday season and that, I think, is a function of the fact that many people are looking to spend more quality time at home hopefully playing video games.

CAVUTO: But not as many violent video games, right?

HIRAI: I think that we are very proud of the fact that we have a lot of family-oriented video games. We have a title that is coming out, really family oriented.

CAVUTO: But the violent ones aren't selling, are they? It is like almost an edict by parents, "No."

HIRAI: Well, I think, as in years past, the parents are looking at the ESRB and figuring out which games are appropriate for the kids in the family.

CAVUTO: All right, Kaz Hirai, I want to thank you very much, the president & CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America.

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