Barely three years after launching, kids CD-ROM producer Fujitsu Interactive is poised to close its doors. Parent company Fujitsu Ltd. is shutting down the company, citing poor sales and stiffening competition in the kids CD-ROM interactive market, says FI president and CEO Shigetoshi Akasaki. Last summer, Fujitsu Interactive stopped creating new products, with the goal of licensing out its existing library of titles to other publishers. However, when it failed to interest any takers, Fujitsu

Ltd. decided to pull the plug altogether. FI’s hallmark was using artificial intelligence technology to create virtual companions, such as the dolphin in its flagship title Fin Fin, and dogs in K-9 Companion. Currently, Fujitsu Ltd. is looking to create more networking-related applications with the AI technology, says Akasaki. Akasaki will continue trying to sell the rights to the CD-ROM titles, even after the company ceases operations at the end of this month.