THE LICENSING AWARDS Comedian Russell Kane will reveal the winners of this September’s Licensing Awards. The event takes place in The Great Room of London’s Grosvenor House Hotel on September 11th. Tickets are selling fast, so to secure yours contact Clare at Createvents on 01252 781178.
MATTEL TEAMS WITH HTI Mattel Consumer Products has awarded HTI the licence to produce a collection of sporting goods for Barbie, Hot Wheels and Monster High. The deal will see HTI offering branded bikes, accessories and protection equipment. Mattel: 01628 500000
DK PICKS UP LEGO
GOLDEN BRICK Lego and Dorling Kindersley marked the billionth brick to go into a DK Lego book with a special party at last month’s Bologna Children’s Book Fair. The actual brick will be included in Lego Harry Potter Characters of the Magical World from DK. Lego: 01753 495000
4KIDS TO REPRESENT
JULES VERNE 4Kids Entertainment has picked up the rights to The Extraordinary Adventures of Jules Verne. With the show due to air from spring 2013, the licensing programme will kick off with toys, games, interactive and collectables the same year. 4Kids: 020 7297 5980
PAUL ROBINSON HEADS
TO A2E2 Former Kidsco CEO, Paul Robinson has joined A Squared Elxsi as president of international. Brand licensing is in his remit and he will look to develop the merchandise and consumer products programme for Build-A-Bear outside of its existing retail presence. www.a2entertain.com
CPLG eyes up toy success
Mix of characters, movies, older skewing brands and sports properties widens stable… by Samantha Loveday
THE NEW category manager for toys and games at CPLG believes the agent has some key properties in its portfolio which can make a real impact in the sector this year. Tom Roe – who looks after toys and games across the UK for both entertainment and sports at CPLG – told ToyNews that the firm currently has a really strong portfolio of rights. This includes the Chapman stable
(Fifi, Roary, Little Charley Bear and Raa Raa the Noisy Lion) plus Power Rangers and Sesame Street. Roe can also see potential in a number of big name movies, including Despicable Me 2, Star Trek 2 and Fast and Furious 6, while some major toy deals are in the offing for Ubisoft’s video games brand, Rabbids. From a sports perspective, England Rugby is currently a big focus.
ROE: “There’s a well-executed mix of traditional toys and technology going on now” Even older skewing properties such
as The Only Way is Essex and Downton Abbey have made solid inroads into the toy sector. “There is a real and well-executed mix of traditional toys and technology going on now – the interactive features on Tomy’s wonderful Raa Raa the Noisy Lion is a
great example of this,” Roe explained when asked about emerging trends in the sector. “Augmented Reality is another area that we are watching closely. We think there could be some great applications with some of our properties and are currently exploring a variety of possibilities.” CPLG UK: 020 8563 6400
InspirationWorks grows girls lines
INSPIRATIONWORKS is rolling out a number of new electronic learning products featuring key licences this year. The firm is continuing to grow its Disney Princess range, introducing a Disney Princess Magical Tea Set, which includes two teacups, a teapot and spoons. The £19.99 product joins other items such as the Magical Smartphone, Secret Treasure Box and Magical Secret Book in the Disney Princess collection. Autumn/winter will see the launch of the Tatty Teddy Secret Wardrobe. A special key unlocks the wardrobe to reveal a 30-page Secret Journal, while
New ranges include the Disney Princess Magical Tea Set and Peppa’s Flip-Up Phone...
it also comes with a pen, torch, stickers and customisable jewels. The firm continues to enjoy success with its Peppa Pig electronic learning items. Peppa’s Flip-Up Phone has
seen a sales surge in Q1 2012; the character speaks when the call key is pressed and by pressing the picture key her image appears on the screen. InspirationWorks: 01582 455841