When I went to study in Japan I had to field a lot of strange questions and requests from people. One of the most asked-for souvenirs was the infamous Hello Kitty Vibrator.
When my cousin came to visit we even went looking for one- but we never found it. And now, thanks to the Asian Sex Gazette, I finally know why. Finally, I can sleep at night.
The emergence of the Hello Kitty vibrator as a cult adult item caused friction between Sanrio and Genyo, and Sanrio ordered the company to stop making the units. Genyo refused, since it had paid a lot of money to license Kitty for their products. There seemed nothing Sanrio could do, since they had approved the item for sale (see the official Sanrio sticker on the boxes). The answer came when the Japanese tax authorities raided Genyo on suspicion of tax evasion. It seems that some creative accounting was going on between the president of the company, a Mr. Nakamura, his vice president, and the owner of the factory in China where the units were made. All three were arrested, and Sanrio had the excuse needed to yank Genyo’s license. They seized the molds used to make the vibrators and destroyed them.
Extra: Everyone should check out the picture Curzon posted in the comments section.