Despite assurance from Apple Computers Inc earlier in the year that it would not be getting rid of the Pippin games and internet console (CI No 3,098) Japanese toy maker Bandai Co has finally stopped manufacturing the product. Bandai started selling Pippin in March last year under license from Apple, and took over active Pippin development from Apple last October. Bandai is blaming the demise of Pippin on poor sales and is predicting record financial losses for the company as a result. It is thought that Bandai is trying to get rid of unprofitable business before its supposed merger with Sega Enterprises Ltd in October (CI No 3,094). However, Bandai hasn’t ruled out the possibility of Pippin going back into production at a later date. Apple also licenses Pippin to Norwegian software company Katz Media AS, part of finance company Olympia Finans AS. Pippin missed its chances as one of the earliest internet terminal devices and set-top boxes on the market.
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