The Licensing Letter

Trademarks/Brands

M&A: New Faces, Same Places

Contact the editor at karina@plainlanguagemedia.com Penske Media Corp. (PMC) purchases the last remaining 49% stake in Rolling Stone from BandLab Technologies, giving it full ownership over the magazine brand, including all event and licensing rights, as well as the parallel entity Rolling Stone Intl. Other PMC properties available for licensing include Variety, Deadline … [Read more...] about M&A: New Faces, Same Places

Going Corporate: 2019 Toys/Games Built on a TM

Contact the editor at karina@plainlanguagemedia.com Lest TLL neglects to honor those corporate trademarks/brands with influence in the toys and games space, here are some of the top highlights amongst those branded offerings we spotted on the floor at New York Toy Fair: The Smithsonian expands its a widening line of STEM toys aimed at older kids from Sakar. The line includes … [Read more...] about Going Corporate: 2019 Toys/Games Built on a TM

Global Corporate TM/Brand-based Sales Up 2.6% to Reach $37 Billion in 2017

By: Karina Masolova, karina@plainlanguagemedia.com Licensed retail sales of corporate trademark/brand-based merchandise were up 2.6% worldwide in 2017, according to TLL's Annual Licensing Business Survey. The U.S./Canada was responsible for nearly 80% of the total $36.8 billion in sales for that year, with territory sales up 2.5% from 2016 to reach $29.2 billion in 2017. In … [Read more...] about Global Corporate TM/Brand-based Sales Up 2.6% to Reach $37 Billion in 2017

Soft Goods, Home Lead Domestic Corporate TM/Brand Licensed Sales in 2017

By: Karina Masolova, karina@plainlanguagemedia.com Licensed retail sales of corporate trademark/brand merchandise grew 2.5% to reach $29.2 billion in 2017, according to TLL's Annual Licensing Business Survey. The biggest drivers behind the roughly $710 million increase in sales were soft goods like apparel and accessories; home-related goods like domestics, furniture, and … [Read more...] about Soft Goods, Home Lead Domestic Corporate TM/Brand Licensed Sales in 2017

Licensed Trademark/Brand-based Ecommerce Sales Jump 5.8% in 2017

By: Karina Masolova, karina@plainlanguagemedia.com Discounters, supermarkets/grocery, and ecommerce made the biggest gains in share of licensed retail sales in 2017 in the U.S./Canada, according to TLL's Annual Licensing Business Survey. Licensed retail sales of corporate trademark/brand merchandise grew 2.5% to reach $29.2 billion in 2017 within the U.S./Canada. A large part … [Read more...] about Licensed Trademark/Brand-based Ecommerce Sales Jump 5.8% in 2017

M&A & Restructuring

Newell Brands continues its restructuring efforts under an expanded accelerated transformation plan, which includes the divesting of two more brands and applying all after-tax proceeds (an estimated $10 billion) from its divestitures to debt. Jostens and Pure Fishing are added to the chopping block along with non-core businesses Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Rubbermaid … [Read more...] about M&A & Restructuring

Experiential: Live Shows, Tech & Film

This fall, Feld Entertainment and Universal Brand Development bring DreamWorks Trolls The Experience, a 12,000-square-foot 90-minute immersive walkthrough adventure, to New York. The live location-based experience marks the first collaboration in a multi-property relationship that will develop and create other large-scale and mobile pop-up immersive experiences. DreamWorks … [Read more...] about Experiential: Live Shows, Tech & Film

Corporate TM/Brands Up 2.7% in 2016; Food/Bev & Tech Lead

By: Karina Masolova, karina@plainlanguagemedia.com Retail sales of corporate trademark/brand-based licensing were up 2.7% worldwide in 2016, according to The Licensing Letter's Annual Licensing Business Survey. The U.S./Canada made up almost 80% of retail sales worldwide in 2016, and, in fact, grew at a faster rate than the rest of the world. The U.S./Canada counted $28 … [Read more...] about Corporate TM/Brands Up 2.7% in 2016; Food/Bev & Tech Lead