Bburago saved by Maisto?

"Bburago's fate revealed
A few months ago, we reported that Bburago, Italy's pioneer in the 1:18 field, was being liquidated. It appears that the new owner will be Maisto.
Information on the deal is sparse, and what exists is printed mostly in Italian. Wading through the handwringing about how globalization is tearing at the fabric of Italian life, northern Italian newspaper La Padania online (translated through Babelfish), reports that Maisto has taken control of the company's assets, at a cost of 21.5 million Euros--considerably less than what they were hoping to raise. Maisto is described as "the classic multinational example" when it comes to globalization, with headquarters in Fontana, CA, and offices in Hong Kong and Thailand.
Maisto is also marketing a set of unassembled 1:64 scale die-cast model kits focusing on the Ferrari marque. (Mattel still holds the exclusive worldwide license for assembled die-cast in a variety of scales; model kits are considered a different licensing category and therefore get around Mattel's stranglehold.) With Bburago's extensive tooling library of 1:18 scale Ferraris, and Maisto's success with smaller-scale Ferrari kits, there could be some synergy there in the future.
Maisto replied to our inquiries with a brief "can't confirm or deny," which tells us negotiations might still be ongoing; indeed, La Padania online reports that there is still some discussion about the fates of the 57 families who were put out of work when Bburago closed its doors."
- By Jeff Koch