David Rosen, Sega Co‑founder Behind Genesis, Dies at 95

David Rosen, a Brooklyn-born entrepreneur who transformed a photo booth business in Japan into Sega Enterprises, died on Dec. 25 at his home in Los Angeles. He was 95, and his death was confirmed by Annette van Duren, a spokeswoman for his family.

Over a four-decade career that began in the 1950s, Mr. Rosen helped build Sega into a video game giant responsible for titles such as Mortal Kombat, Sonic the Hedgehog and N.H.L. ’94. He wrote in Play Meter in 1982 that "computer video games are a sign of the times," and he steered the company from coin-operated machines and arcade hits like Periscope into home consoles.

As chairman of Sega’s U.S. operation in 1989, Mr. Rosen oversaw the introduction of the Genesis console to North America and positioned it to challenge Nintendo by marketing to teenagers and young adults; Genesis became a visible part of 1990s popular culture. Sega’s early history under Mr. Rosen included a 1965 merger with Service Games, importing Pong to Japan and the company’s first home system, the SG-1000, in 1983.

Mr. Rosen retired in 1996 as Sega began to lose ground to Sony and Microsoft, and Sega is now part of Sega Sammy Holdings Inc.; the company purchased Rovio in 2023 and, the article notes, will mark the 35th anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog this year. His wife, Masako Fujisaki, died last year, and his family declined to provide information about his survivors.

Key Topics

Business, David Rosen, Sega, Japan, Sega Genesis, Mortal Kombat