Amiga had 70% Share in 1990 in Iraq

Before the outbreak of the Gulf War, Iraq had one of the highest adoption rates of the Commodore Amiga in the entire region. In the early 1990s, the platform reportedly reached an impressive share of the local computer market, making the Amiga a familiar sight in homes, computer shops, and among enthusiasts across the country.

Despite years of conflict and difficult circumstances, the Amiga community in Iraq managed to survive. The platform remained in active use throughout the 1990s and stayed visible in the country’s computing culture until around 1998, when its presence slowly began to decline leading into the early 2000s.

Today it is difficult to estimate how many Amiga users still remain in Iraq. However, one passionate enthusiast continues to keep the platform alive in Baghdad.

His name is Mohammed Abdul Raza Al-Nasah, better known in the Amiga community as Mados. A longtime Amiga fan with a strong interest in the PowerPC architecture, he still owns several Amiga systems and actively participates in Amiga discussion groups.

In this exclusive interview with Amitopia, Mados shares his memories of what it was like to be an Amiga user in Iraq during the 1990s — a perspective that has rarely been documented before.

So grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and join us as we explore a fascinating piece of Amiga history from Baghdad.

Who are you? And what do you work with every day?
My name is Mohammed and my nickname is mados PowerPC. I have a shop selling computers. I also have an Amiga store that you can find on Facebook. I use various of Apple Mac computers, Amiga 1200 with 68060 and Amiga 1200 with 68030. I also own a PowerBook and a MacMini with MorphOS 3.9 installed on them.

What kind of computers are you selling in your store? Do you have a website?
My store is selling many kinds of computers in Baghdad, Iraq. They are mostly Windows PCs but we also sell Amiga items too. Here is the usual computer store and here is my Amiga store on Facebook. I also have a YouTube channel.

How did you get into the Amiga?
I have the best computer in the world, and that is Amiga and Apple. It started with me getting a MSX in 1984. Then ZX48 in 1987. I managed to get hold of my first Amiga in Kuwait in 1987 and knew after that this is my home computer. Then I got my first Amiga 500 in 1990 in an Iraqi computer store. I got into the Amiga by using many of it’s very nicely made programs. They were all related to designs, movement, and sound. Amiga was miles ahead of its competitors in 1990 regarding this for sure.

On the Amiga, I started with coding on AMOS early and I am still active regarding that. I lived in Iran from 1998 to 2004. In 2004 I got myself an AmigaOne Power PC machine. I also own an Amiga CD32 and one Amiga 600 also.

Please tell How the Amiga popularity was in 1990?
In 1990 Amiga was the number one selling computer for both business and home computing in Iraq. It was bigger than both PC and Atari. However, because of AmigaOS lacking Arabic language support the computer couldn’t match the Windows PC’s from 1998 when the PC’s was selling better than Amiga computers in Iraq. If AmigaOS had the Arabic language support from the start, then it would be much more widespread for sure I think.

Getting an Amiga was easy to get hold of back in 1990 in Iraq. Amigas were everywhere. In game halls, Iraq TV, shopping malls, newspapers and in many homes. My brother worked at TV Iraq that used both Imagine and Lightwave 3D packages for Amiga etc. Amiga was biggest here in 1990.

Iraq TV Promotion made by Maddos brother which lives in the Netherlands now

Here is a very cool made promotion for Iraq TV that is looking very nice. Thanks to Maddos for letting us share this. I am sure that not so many knew about the Amiga involvement. This clip and others were made with Amiga 2000 in Lightwave 3D, Scala Infochannel and ImageFX.

You mention Scala. How about Scala Infochannel? Was it popular also in Iraq?
Yes. Businesses used all sorts of Amiga programs. Scala too yes. But all Amiga programs were used in lots of different business sectors in Iraq for sure.

Yes. Amiga was everywhere. There was a few PCs ant AtariST users too in the beginning, but Amiga had over 70% in share for sure in Iraq.

How expensive was the Amiga hardware at that time in Iraq?
In 1990 Amiga 500 was sold for $800, in 1993 Amiga 1200 was sold for $900.

How long did the Amiga keep its high share in Iraq?
Amiga was heavily used between 1990 and 2002 in Iraq. In 1990 it had 70% market, while in 2003 the Amiga usage dropped down to only 5% and now I don’t know if there is more Amiga users in Iraq than me. Amiga won over the PC in market share here from 1990 to 1997. Very few had a PC in fact. Commodore 64 was also a big hit in Iraq. Very few Commodore 128 though.

Did you have Amiga magazines in Iraq?
We only had the English Amiga magazines. We had 10 different ones at a time. CU Amiga was one of the strongest ones.

Now, I am interested to know What sort of Amiga programs do you love the most?
Yes, I love many Amiga programs. Some of them are Tornado 3D and Cinema 4D. I have all of my Amiga programs on CDs. Have also around 2300 games. Aminet CD8 is also a CD that I enjoy using. Love graphics editing programs and games on the Amiga.

What do you think of the nextgen AmigaOS 4 and MorphOS systems?
I think these are very nice. I do have MorphOS 3.9 on my PowerPC Macs. These are very nice yes.

How about Amiga user groups or meetings in Iraq?
No, we didn’t have and I don’t know about any meetings.

Fairlight even had a distro BBS in Kuwait in the 90s The sysop was Ali Lots of Amiga owners in Iraq and Kuwait in the late 80s and 90s
Did you know about this?
Yes. I even knew him before he replaced his name in 1998.

—

Thanks to Maddos for taking his time answering my questions. These answers made me richer in every way regarding knowledge of Amiga popularity in the world. It is sad to see how wars can destroy people, yet it is important to preserve the knowledge before the wars too. I hope you can take info from this interview and bring it further. Amiga was not just popular in Europe and South America as a proof in this interview.

Very little has been written about the Amiga scene in Iraq during the 1990s, making personal accounts like this especially valuable for preserving computing history.

—

More Amiga In Iraq Info

Amiga’s Rise in Iraq: The 1990 Market Landscape

“In 1990, the Commodore Amiga held an astonishing 70% market share in Iraq,” Mados recalls. “It was incredibly popular, capturing the hearts of many. While PCs existed, they were prohibitively expensive and lacked the Amiga’s superior gaming capabilities.”

The Role of Piracy and Affordability

“Piracy played a significant role in the Amiga’s widespread adoption,” Mados explains. “This made the system more accessible to a wider audience, contributing to its dominance.”

Amiga vs. PC: Technical and Cultural Preferences

“The Amiga was simply more enjoyable,” Mados states. “Its advanced graphics and sound capabilities, combined with a vibrant software library, made it the preferred choice for both entertainment and creative applications.”

I also asked David John Pleasance as a bonus question regarding Commodore and Iraq:

 “I was responsible for Iraq when I took over as GM CEL in 1990 – 1991 but remember there was a war on so I was never allowed to visit”.