themselves around this same time, selling off their hardware division to become a multi-platform company focused on software development and online gaming. After selling the Opera hardware to Samsung in 1997, the hardware was revived in South Korea for another 2 years then discontinued again at some point in late 1998 or early 1999. The amount of systems produced after the Samsung buyout is unknown. The initial high price is considered to be one of the many issues that led to the 3DO's failure, along with lack of significant funding that larger companies such as Sony took advantage of. In an interview shortly after The 3DO Company dropped support for the system, Trip Hawkins attributed its failure to the model of licensing all hardware manufacturing and software to third parties. He reasoned that for a console to be a success, it needed a single strong company to take the lead in marketing, hardware, and software, and pointed out that it was essentially a lack of coordination between The 3DO Company, Panasonic, and the 3DO's software developers which had led to the console launching with only one game ready. Licensed systems A number of different manufacturers produced the 3DO system. The Panasonic versions are the best known and most common. Panasonic FZ-1 R·E·A·L 3DO Interactive Multiplayer (Japan, Asia, North America and Europe) The first 3DO system, which was initially priced at in the U.S. and in Japan. The price was reduced to $399.99 in the fall of 1994. Panasonic FZ-10 R·E·A·L 3DO Interactive Multiplayer (Japan, North America and Europe) Released on November 11, 1994 (a year after the FZ-1), it is a redesigned slimmer and lighter model that replaced the FZ-1 in Panasonic's portfolio. The FZ-10 featured a top loading CD tray and an internal memory manager. The controller is also smaller and lighter than the one included with the FZ-1 as it lacks a headphones connector. Panasonic N-1005 3DO CD Changer "ROBO" (Japan only) An FZ-1 custom console, fitted with a five disc CD drive. GoldStar GDO-101 Alive 3DO Interactive Multiplayer (South Korea) Released in mid-1994, this model is similar in physical appearance to the Panasonic model. GoldStar GDO-101M 3DO Interactive Multiplayer (North America and Europe) A version of the GDO-101 for foreign markets. GoldStar GDO-202 3DO Interactive Multiplayer (Korea and Europe) An updated version of the GDO-101. CD-ROM drive replaced with one similar to that of the FZ-1 style.