The Licensing Letter

Toys and Games

Toys/Games, Food/Beverage & Apparel Lead Growth on Products Side

For the second straight year, toys/games was the fastest growing product category, posting an 8.1% increase. Growth in toy and game merchandise has mirrored (and fed off of) the success of the entertainment/character property type over the past three years. As in 2013 and 2014, connection to “A-list” entertainment properties like Frozen, Star Wars and Minions drove growth in … [Read more...] about Toys/Games, Food/Beverage & Apparel Lead Growth on Products Side

TOTY’s Top Toys Hit the Nostalgic, Tech Sweet Spots

By Karina Masolova The 113th North American International Toy Fair once again played host to the The Toy Industry Association's annual Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards. Three of the top toys are licensed—sweeping the boy's, girl's and preschool categories—with Doc McStuffins in the top stop for the preschool and overall toy of the year. Unsurprisingly, the top brand was Disney's … [Read more...] about TOTY’s Top Toys Hit the Nostalgic, Tech Sweet Spots

Toy Fair 2016

By Karina Masolova While last year’s Toy Fair was dominated by Frozen and Minions, this year their effects were felt more literally, with attendees braving sub-zero degree weather. Although the power brands are nowhere near gone, there was a greater diversity of new properties as well as nostalgia-fueled reboots, re-launches and spinoffs. Technology-enhanced play and STEAM (if … [Read more...] about Toy Fair 2016

NPD: Star Wars Toy Sales One-Third Higher than Frozen

By Marcy Magiera Star Wars, the space epic whose newest chapter has knocked down box-office records around the world, also drove sales of movie licensed toys up by almost 10% in 2015, according to The NPD Group's year-end accounting of U.S. toy sales. Connection to entertainment content was the key driver behind the growth of the toy industry in 2015, NPD found, with overall … [Read more...] about NPD: Star Wars Toy Sales One-Third Higher than Frozen

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

Toy Sales to Grow This Holiday Season With Boost from Licensing

By Karina Masolova, additional reporting by Marcy Magiera Toy sales are on the up, thanks to licensed goods, as researchers are predicting a very merry holiday season for toy manufacturers and retailers around the world. With no one brand or trend dominating this year, retailers are stocking up on a variety of toys and games—translating into financial success across the … [Read more...] about Toy Sales to Grow This Holiday Season With Boost from Licensing

The Retail Force Awakens: How Much Money Will Star Wars Make?

By Glenn S. Demby, Esq. Most movie-based entertainment properties have a limited shelf life lasting roughly as long as the film's run. Occasionally, exemplary properties like Cars, Monsters Inc. or Toy Story will drive sales for a few years after the film closes.   But Star Wars is in a universe of its own. There hasn't been a new Star Wars film since 2005. Yet the franchise … [Read more...] about The Retail Force Awakens: How Much Money Will Star Wars Make?

Entertainment, Sports Licensed Goods Lead Black Friday Deals

Hot holiday properties Frozen and Star Wars, and collegiate and NFL licensed merchandise, will be decking the halls of many retailers on one of the biggest shopping days of the year. Some of the nation's largest retailers over the past week moved to control the flow of information about their Black Friday promotions by "leaking" their own Thanksgiving weekend ad circulars … [Read more...] about Entertainment, Sports Licensed Goods Lead Black Friday Deals

3 Licensing Lawsuits to Watch

NFL Players Sue FanDuel Already on the defensive for allegedly running a gambling operation without a license in states like Nevada and New York, daily fantasy football operators have a new legal problem. A group of NFL players led by Washington receiver Pierre Garcon filed a class action against FanDuel over its unlicensed use of the players' names and images for games and … [Read more...] about 3 Licensing Lawsuits to Watch