Wow - nearly a quarter million views and 98.1% thumbs up on the first video about saving the Commodore brand! Thatās incredible. Thank you for all the love and support.
As expected with news this big, a few questions/concerns have come up too. And I get it - some folks have been rug-pulled by "YouTubers" or Commodore IP owners before, and Commodore means a lot to all of us.
Making a whole new video right now would take time away from actually doing the thing - and the short answer is "I'll prove it via execution" - but until then hereās a tidy FAQ to answer the most common questions.
Happy Father's Day to those celebrating it today!
Q: Any updates?
A: I plan to post Part 2 on 28 June. There is so much I want to say but am not allowed to yet for contractual reasons, but it was time to start telling the story of what I've been doing for 7 months. Please hang in there, we've all waited 30 years, a couple of weeks won't hurt. Much.
Q: Are you asking fans to pay for Commodore so that you can personally own it, without any personal risk? / Why can't I own a piece of Commodore?
A: Of course not. At 27:27, some viewers misunderstood my explanation, and thatās on me. I mentioned our pitch to StartEngine but I didnāt clearly explain how platforms like that work. Itās not a donation so we can own it - fans invest and receive actual shares. If you support at $100, you own $100 of Commodore. The idea was for the community to truly own part of the company. To have a share certificate on your wall. That's why the thumbnail said "Let's Buy Commodore" and the title said "Can *We* Save Commodore".
We chose StartEngine because its founder, Howard Marks, co-founded Acclaim and Activision Studios, worked with Jack Tramiel, and really understood the vision. After 23 emails and 4 pitches, they were very interested but ultimately declined due to their 1% acceptance rate and concerns about a non-US company.
So far we have not found a viable alternative, for the same reasons, but it remains the #1 preferred route, as it always has been. If not, we'll find another way to give anyone who supports something tangible and meaningful to hold and own.
The goal was simple: fans proudly owning a real stake, maybe even seeing it grow if things took off. I rushed past that point in the video, and Iām sorry if that led to confusion or negative assumptions. This venture has been a lot to juggle, but Iāll do better at keeping everyone in the loop within the time limits of videos.
(As for risk - letās just say we unlocked a Level 2 homeowner bonus round with the bank to get this far [achievement unlocked: mild financial terror]. Itās been seven months of intense work, often two major partner meetings a day, and time away from my two-year-old daughter. This is a huge undertaking. Most of it is commercially sensitive, and Iāve only shared about 1% so far, but it was time to start telling the story. Itāll all become clear. But no - weāre definitely not doing this without risk.)
Q: Are you just milking this for 4 videos before revealing it didn't work out.
A: Ruining my entire career just to make 4 videos would be a spectacularly bad idea - especially when Iāve made over 500 videos in 7 years without needing that. So no, thatās not the plan. I look forward to proving thatā¦ say, 5 videos from now. ;)
Q: What gives you the right to decide who can or canāt use the Commodore name? Wonāt enforcing trademarks just create enemies and hurt the community?
A: Anyone can use the name - we're not going to come after creators who have Commodore in their channel name or such like. We're not doing a Nintendo. Remember, the messaging in my video is clear. This is for the fans, by the fans. Use of the logo for profit though; that's going to be a friendly conversation to be had.
If Commodore is refounded, it has to operate like a proper business, and protect the brand we all love. Like Jack Tramiel did, small projects would likely get licenses for free from me. But even the friendliest brands quality-check products before licensing them. As I mentioned at 11:49, we donāt want another Commodore Shredder or Gravel In Pocket. If we let anyone use the name without care, thatās exactly what weād get. And I hope we can all agree, nobody wants that. We need to do this properly or not at all. So expect a fan-friendly licensing model with quality control.
Q: If Commodore International is gone, how can new products be considered truly āCommodoreā?
A: What if we owned the 47 trademarks going back to 1983, when Jack Tramiel was CEO? Thatās the plan. But beyond that, what if we worked with original Commodore management, engineers, reps, tech support, and product devs? What if we collaborated with the SID chipās creator on new SID chips, or with the Music Maker creators on a new version? (Just examples.) What if we helped reassemble the ROMs into Commodore? What if we even merged with Amiga? These are all goals. At some point along that path though, it stops being a reboot and starts being Commodore again. Thatās the vision I began outlining in part 1. I want Commodore back.
Q: Is rebooting Commodore a sound business decision, or just a personal dream?
A: Why can't it be both. It would be the dream of so many in the retro community, so it shouldn't be a surprise that yes of course it is partly a personal dream. But I hope we can all agree that many people's dreams turn into very sound businesses, even more so because there is genuine passion and love behind the execution. And Iād much rather build something with love than focus on tearing others down who are trying to.
Q: Are you only doing this because YouTube monetization is harder now?
A: Iām genuinely unaware of any changes to YouTube monetization policy. Thatās not what this is about. As explained at 12:34, this began when Sean Donohue emailed me in October 2024 about reviewing a new licensed Commodore. That unexpected message, combined with events I explained from a few years earlier, set everything in motion. If someone believes I somehow orchestrated that due to my single-handedly predicting future YouTube trendsā¦ I honestly donāt know what to say. Me have okay brain but me not that smart.
Q: How can you make money from Commodore without over-licensing or diluting the brand?
A: By focusing on quality. Which ties back to the earlier question about deciding who can use the logo. If we only license carefully curated products that honour the brandās legacy. Instead of mass licensing, we build flagship products in-house and selectively partner with creators who get it right. And there are a lot of them. Fewer, better releases mean stronger long-term value. Of course, this all only happens if we complete an acquisition at all.
Q: Can nostalgia alone sustain a business like this long-term?
A: Of course not. I talked about this at 19:21 in Part 1. I'm starting to think some people didn't watch the video before diving into doubts ;) In the Part 2 video I will set out what has been the vision for months. Two feet firmly planted in two markets: Retro & Future. "Honouring our legacy, innovating the future." Commodore has always been about promising the future, only we'll be doing it with a twist. More in Part 2 in 1-2 weeks.
Q: Is there really enough demand for Commodore beyond nostalgic Gen X and Boomers?
A: All I can say to that is read the sheer weight of comments under the video :)
Q: Aren't your commenters just a captive audience of your own fans and not representative of the true retro community?
A: Over 60% of viewers of that video werenāt even subscribers (see attached), and 98.1% of them gave it a thumbs up. Iāve never seen so many grown adults admit they cried at the end. That tells me this dream resonates far beyond any ācaptive audience.ā The vision is real, and weāre already working to bring it to life for everyone who loves Commodore.
Q: How can we get involved and help?
A: If you are an angel investor please reach out at perifractic.com/modore - We are looking for other ways and will share more news in June or July, thank you! (This is not an offer to sell securities. Any investment is offered only to verified accredited investors under Rule 506(c).)
Q: I'm a journalist and would like to chat
A: Cool! Please reach out at perifractic.com/modore
Thank you for reading. I am happy to answer any other constructive questions in the comments below.
Commodore means a great deal to me, and if you watched the video, I hope you saw that I truly understand why it means so much to you too. I wonāt let you down. Just give us more than one announcement video before writing the whole thing off and deciding we've failed - deal?
To chickens with lips!
-Peri
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Proud and excited to be narrating the Audio Description for this incredible series. Thanks for having me back Lucasfilm! š watch video on watch page
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