MANILA, Philippines – Fans of Sphero's BB-8 droids and Spider-man figures will want to snap up any missing toys from their collection before it's too late.
Sphero CEO Paul Berberian told The Verge on Monday, December 17 (December 18, Manila time) it was ceasing production of its Disney-licensed products.
The report said as a result of the discontinuation, Sphero's Disney products would be labeled as legacy products and stocks would no longer be replenished.
Berberian meanwhile said app support for the legacy toys would continue for “at least two years, if not longer.”
Berberian told The Verge the effort to manufacture the Disney products grew as the toys got older and farther from the release of the movies they were related to.
“When you launch a toy, your first year’s your biggest,” Berberian said. “Your second year’s way smaller, and your third year gets really tiny.”
Comparatively, Sphero's educational lineup of robots has seen an upward trend in popularity over time, and the company is looking to capitalize by focusing on development of those robots instead.
The Verge added Sphero was developing a programmable robot with LED lights.
Sphero also acquired another company, Specdrums, which built app-controlled rings worn on a user's fingers and turns color into sound using taps. – Rappler.com