"Until now, dead Tamagotchis in Germany have had to make do with a virtual funeral on the Internet or suffer the indignity of burial in a dustbin. But youngsters mourning the loss of their beloved cyberpet can at last give them a proper send-off, courtesy of Rainer Stelling. For a small fee, he'll hold a special funeral oration, with a Tamagotchi laid out in a coloured jam jar, before cementing it forever into a special memorial wall. For a slightly larger fee, he'll also play the Japanese national anthem as the Tamagotchi is laid to rest. This week alone, he's presided over three such funerals for bereaved customers in Hamburg. And, when he's not burying Tamagotchis, Rainer Stelling makes a living babysitting them for schoolchildren and students too busy to look after their demanding electronic pets. What Rainer Stelling doesn't tell his customers is that he's still baffled by the pets' appeal. He thinks Tamagotchis are completely and utterly useless."