What technology did Kenner add to many 1999 Star Wars action figures for dialogue?

Kenner added CommTech chips to many 1999 Star Wars action figures to provide character dialogue.

The system was created for merchandise accompanying Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. A small electronic reader, sold separately, could scan the figure’s chip and play prerecorded lines associated with that character.

CommTech was a major selling feature of the 1999 toy range because it connected a physical action figure with electronic sound. Packaging and advertising highlighted the technology, making it easy for shoppers to distinguish those figures from earlier Kenner products.

The system is often confused with later Hasbro interaction systems. Force Link, for example, used a different technology and appeared years later. CommTech belongs specifically to the late-1990s Episode I merchandise program and is associated with the first wave of modern Star Wars electronic figures.