The sale of Dragon Data's assets to Eurohard of Spain (issue 74) could turn out to be a bigger boost for Dragon users that first appeared.
Eurohard, and its sister company Eurosoft, were set up with the specific intention of manufacturing the Dragon in Spain as the spearhead of Spain's move into information technology.
It is Spain's only microcomputer manufacturer and has received official backing from the Spanish Government, both financially and through the support of official agencies.
In addition, Eurohard has negotiated a deal with TVE, the Spanish television station, to run a series of 30 programmes on micros that will feature the Dragon in the same way that the BBC Micro has featured in this country.
Eurohard is also bidding for a major contract to put micros into Spanish schools. As Brian Moore, managing director of the now defunct Dragon Data, put it 'as Spain's only microcomputer manufacturer I don't fancy the chances of Commodore and the like.'
If, as seems likely, Eurohard wins the contract, it will secure the future of the Dragon 32 and 64 for several years to come.
A number of UK software houses are already writing educational software for Spanish-speaking countries and there is a good prospect of software written for El Dragon appearing in English language versions.
Mr. Moore, now managing director of Touchmaster, the company that will be giving advice and assistance to Eurohard in its early stages of operation (issue 74), doesn't envisage problems over supplies to the UK.
"We have already started shipping production and testing equipment and I am confident."
As well as the rights to Dragon, Eurohard acquired manufacturing plant and a large stock of partly assembled and completed machines.
GEC, which will continue with distribution in the UK, already has a stock of Dragons ready for distribution and has bought more from Eurohard.
Eurohard is headed by Eduardo Merigo, president of VISA Spain, the banking organisation. His involvement is more than coincidence.
Spanish banks have for some time run promotional schemes to attract investors. Depending on the amount you deposit you get free gifts of bicycles, videos and cars.
The latest promotional scheme is to give away home micros. And what better than a micro built in Spain?
25th August 1984