The Licensing Letter

Activision

TLL’s November Licensing Roundup

Yellow Submarine Celebrated With Pure Silver Collectible Precious Sound and B.H. Mayer's Kunstprägeanstalt have teamed up to release a limited-edition, solid silver Yellow Submarine collectible inspired by the iconic film and song. The agreement for the licensed collectible was brokered by The Beatles licensing agent, Bravado International. Crafted from one ounce of .999 … [Read more...] about TLL’s November Licensing Roundup

Court Denies Injunction on Microsoft Acquisition of Activision

By Gary Symons TLL Editor in Chief A court in California has denied the Federal Trade Commission's request for an injunction on Microsoft's acquisition of Activision. The software giant announced on Jan. 18 this year that the parties had agreed to the terms of a deal. It would see Microsoft acquiring Activision Blizzard for $95 per share, in an all-cash transaction valued at … [Read more...] about Court Denies Injunction on Microsoft Acquisition of Activision

Netflix Snags Senior Producer From Disney+, While Facing Lawsuit for ‘Poaching’ Employees

Netflix has confirmed the hire of Dan Silver, VP of Non-fiction Originals at Disney+, to become its Director of Documentary Feature Films, reporting to Lisa Nishimura, VP of Independent Film and Documentary Features. The move comes as Netflix coincidentally faces another lawsuit—this time from Activision—over its allegedly aggressive hiring practices. Silver was a highly … [Read more...] about Netflix Snags Senior Producer From Disney+, While Facing Lawsuit for ‘Poaching’ Employees

44 Entertainment/Character Brands Make the $100 Million List

Karina Masolova, additional reporting by Glenn Demby and Marcy Magiera Forty-four entertainment/character properties make our list of brands that generate over $100 million in retail sales of licensed merchandise in the U.S. and Canada—accounting for a total of $41 billion in sales worldwide in 2015. See the full list here. Three brands cleared $1 billion in the U.S./Canada … [Read more...] about 44 Entertainment/Character Brands Make the $100 Million List

New Players Enter the eSports Area

By Karina Masolova Turner's Cartoon Network EMEA is the latest company to enter the eSports arena with a single elimination live tournament based on its upcoming mobile game app Adventure Time Card Wars Kingdom in partnership with Machinima. Let's Play Flooping Card Wars! will stream on Machinima's Twitch channel on July 15, when four of the gaming culture site's top … [Read more...] about New Players Enter the eSports Area

Licensed Properties Play at E3

Seventy thousand-plus people, including 20,000 fans, flocked to the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles last week for the digital entertainment industry's annual parade of video game properties, both new and well known. The hot topic of the show was Virtual Reality (VR) with Sony announcing that its PlayStation VR headset for PS4 will become available Oct. 13, … [Read more...] about Licensed Properties Play at E3

Activision Latest to Launch TV/Movie Studio

By Karina Masolova Activision Blizzard made its latest move in a series set to position the company as a multi-platform entertainment franchise power. The video game development company launched its own TV and movie studio, Activision Blizzard Studios. It joins companies like Mattel and Hasbro, whose in-house studios are set grow their overall business. On the other side of the … [Read more...] about Activision Latest to Launch TV/Movie Studio

Unlicensed Use of Trademark Brands in Video Games

EA shows Bell Helicopters in its Battlefield 3 video game Activision depicts the "Delta Force" logo in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 In Sony's Gran Turismo 6, race cars pass under a bridge displaying the Virag® trademark Video games look and feel more realistic when they depict brands from real-life. But using a trademark brand without a license can also result in … [Read more...] about Unlicensed Use of Trademark Brands in Video Games