By Glenn S. Demby, Esq. Last week's piece about NASCAR's efforts to reach out to women and minorities included a couple of inaccuracies that we'd like to correct: Average household income of NASCAR fans is $71,000 (via Nielsen Scarborough), not under $50,000 as we reported The note about Danica Patrick's taking the poll in her "first race," is incorrect. Although Danica … [Read more...] about NASCAR Looks to Diversify Its Fan Base
Articles
The State of Girls’ Toys
By Karina Masolova 2016 promises to be bigger than ever for licensed toys and games. Category sales reached almost $7 billion in 2014, according to TLL’s Annual Licensing Business Survey, and are expected to grow this year. But amidst soaring success, girls’ toys have been seeing slumping sales, with giants such as Mattel and Hasbro reporting declines. To counter this, the … [Read more...] about The State of Girls’ Toys
Turtles, Trolls and Other Movie Licenses That Will Challenge Star Wars This Year
By Marcy Magiera With Star Wars: The Force Awakens closing in on $2 billion in global ticket sales and continuing to topple box-office records on an almost daily basis a month after its opening, it's clear the latest installment in the sci-fi epic will continue to drive licensed merchandise sales throughout 2016—and beyond. Once The Force Awakens leaves theaters, there … [Read more...] about Turtles, Trolls and Other Movie Licenses That Will Challenge Star Wars This Year
MLB Continues to Score with Hot Markets
By Glenn S. Demby, Esq. Like the other major pro sports leagues, Major League Baseball is getting better at making hay on hot market sales of licensed merchandise commemorating special events. These opportunities must be seized quickly while fan emotions are still ripe. MLB's biggest hot markets are the post-season and mid-season All Star Game which, since 2003, has … [Read more...] about MLB Continues to Score with Hot Markets
Tis the Season for Acquisitions
By Karina Masolova Companies were treating themselves this holiday season, with number of acquisitions making headlines. Here are some of the top buys: Sequential Brands Group restructured its agreement with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in a new 10 year contract to acquire all outstanding shares of the media company. Sequential expects to generate nearly $3.75 billion in … [Read more...] about Tis the Season for Acquisitions
Who’s News
Nickelodeon promoted Jennifer Caveza to SVP Toys & Business Development and Jon Roman to SVP Boys' Toys & Business Development. Across the pond, Nickelodeon U.K. has appointed Alison Bakunowich as General Manager to replace Tina McCann, who is stepping down from running the children’s TV network. Discovery Consumer Products brought on Felicia Tuan as Regional Director … [Read more...] about Who’s News
Top Sports Stars of 2015
This is a golden age for pro sports in North America. You can see it in not only the record TV ratings and attendance figures, but also at the cash registers. Retail sales of licensed sports goods topped $14.1 billion in 2014. Sports properties now account for 14.1% of all licensed goods sold in the U.S. and Canada, the third highest market share behind only corporate … [Read more...] about Top Sports Stars of 2015
Wearable Technology, VR in the Spotlight at CES
By Marcy Magiera Continued consumer adoption of connected devices and technologies, collectively known as the "Internet of Things" or IoT, is forecast to push the U.S. consumer technology industry to a record $287 billion in retail revenues in 2016, creating ample new licensing opportunities along the way in products for home and personal use. The Consumer Technology … [Read more...] about Wearable Technology, VR in the Spotlight at CES
What’s Next for the 15 Biggest Movie Franchises of 2015
As the clock ticked down on 2015, entertainment pundits focused on the galactic box office pace of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which by Dec. 30 had charged past $600 million at the domestic box-office in a record 12 days on its way to surpassing Jurassic World’s $652 million domestic tally to become the No. 1 film of the year with $686 million. On a licensing basis it was … [Read more...] about What’s Next for the 15 Biggest Movie Franchises of 2015
Star Wars Dominates Licensing Galaxy in 2015; Minions, Avengers, Peppa Among Other Successes
In the entertainment/character space, Disney’s scored with a one-two punch in 2014 and 2015, using the combination of Frozen and Star Wars to knock back most competitors. Frozen, the licensing phenomenon of 2014, showed its stamina in 2015 with sales strong enough to land multiple toys on mass merchants’ holiday hot lists. The license on every list imaginable, however, was … [Read more...] about Star Wars Dominates Licensing Galaxy in 2015; Minions, Avengers, Peppa Among Other Successes