Jupiter Cantab Ltd was formed by Steven Vickers and Richard Altwasser in 1982. They produced the Jupiter Ace computer.
Jupiter Cantab Ltd went into liquidation in 1984. The machine, all stock and FORTH rights were then taken over by Boldfield Computing Ltd who also commissioned some software for it, including various games, database, and spreadsheet software. Documentation to this fact exists and is held by the current owners of the brand.
The rights to the Jupiter Ace remained with the original directors of Boldfield Computers Ltd, having been specifically excluded from the sale of Boldfield’s IT solution business in 2006, and documentary proof of this also is held by the current brand owners. Boldfield Computing Ltd as is (still trading) and its current owners/staff, had no knowledge or connection to the Jupiter Ace brand, as this IP and brand moved with the original directors of the company.
During 2015 Andrews UK Limited purchased the brand from the original directors, as well as the remaining physical stock, and archive of Jupiter Ace items. Full documentation of this purchase is held by the current brand owners.
Further to the purchase of the Jupiter Ace brand, Andrews UK Limited, registered ‘Jupiter Ace’ as a UK trademark, both in terms of the name ‘Jupiter Ace’ and the Jupiter Ace logo. This finally bringing the brand full circle to its rightful place, as one of the original UK retro computer brands. The CEO of Andrews UK Limited – Paul Andrews – has previously brought to market other retro brands and computer consoles successfully.
Andrews UK Limited also – are/have made arrangements with numerous UK computing museums in the North, Midlands, London and East of England to have on loan various Jupiter Ace artifacts to display at these locations for the benefit of the nation.
Andrews UK Limited aims to work with various online and physical archive resources, to allow access to the older assets of the Jupiter Ace, while sympathetically cultivating, protecting and growing the Jupiter Ace brand moving forward.