Fly with Hello Kitty

Hello Kitty takes to the skies as revealed in Hello Kitty characters to take flight over Houston. Taiwanese carrier EVA Air next summer will launch nonstop service between Taipei and Bush Intercontinental Airport with a jetliner painted with the iconic Kitty White. Other carriers that have co-branded their planes include Alaska Airlines, with Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Donald Duck; Japan's All Nippon Airways, with the Pokémon franchise; Air New Zealand with a Hobbit theme; and Finn Air, with Angry Birds.

Grumpy Cat's Owners Are Smiling

Grumpy Cat has a plethora of licensed products including a series of best-selling children's books, greeting cards, Friskies cat food, a line of coffee drinks called 'Grumpucchinos', and a featured film. As reported in Grumpy Cat made nearly $100 million? Not quite, owner says, the earnings have been spectacular. What has your cat done for you lately?

See What's Hot in Sports Licensing

The Sports Licensing & Tailgate Show will be held January 14-16 in Las Vegas. The show hosts about 300 exhibitors selling products licensed by more than two dozen sports leagues and licensors. See a description of the show in the article Sports Licensing & Tailgate Show Sizzles.

LIMA and UCLA Offer: 'Licensing Entertainment: Strategies for the Global Marketplace'

The first UCLA dedicated course for licensing professionals is described in the article LIMA launches first licensing focused course with UCLA. The 12 week course will be led by licensing and marketing veteran, Kenneth K. Markman, CEO of KKM Global Brand Strategies. Featured speakers will include Elie Dekel of Saban Brands, George Leon and Greg Economos of Sony Pictures Consumer Products, Henry Stupp from The Cherokee Group and Tim Kilpin from Mattel. The course will be held at UCLA on Tuesday evenings from January 6th to March 24th, 2015.

When You Think of Hollywood, Think of Toys

Star Wars has become a  $27 billion franchise thanks in no small part to a plethora of licensed toys. The toy market thrives in Southern California as reported in Hollywood helps make Southern California center of toy universe. Toys licensed from film, television, and other media franchises account for nearly 30% of the toys. Toy makers are well-aware of the need to develop media related to their toys. Lego has thrived since establishing licensing deals with Star Wars and Harry Potter. Since 2009, Hasbro has produced shows that are distributed threw its own network. Following the trend, Mattel has created an in-house studio to develop media content to promote new toys.

Christmas Shopping Guide

A handy guide for your Christmas shopping is found in The Best Collectible, Toy and Game Gifts Of 2014. If your budget is limited you can buy Disney Infinity Marvel Figures at a bargain price of around $14, or the R2-D2 Sixth Scale Figure for $149.99.  There are also several nice LEGO sets such as LEGO Superheroes The Tumbler for $324, or  LEGO Creator Palace Cinema for $149. If price is no object, then you can purchase QMX's Enterprise NX-01 Artisan Replica for $3995, or QMX's Serenity Film-Scale Artisan Replica for a mere $7495.

Sacramento Kings in Ugly Christmas Sweaters

When I look at the Sacramento Kings wearing ugly Christmas sweaters in Sacramento Kings take tacky photos in ugly Christmas sweaters I don't know whether to laugh or cry. See for yourself.

'Frozen' Remains Hot

As reported in How Disney turned 'Frozen' into its hottest cash cow, consumers have spent more than $1 billion in Frozen merchandise over the past year. There are about three million 4-year-old girls in North America which about matches the number of Frozen dresses that have been sold. This intriguing article reveals how this has all been accomplished.

Holy Spidey Batman!

Spider-Man conquers Batman as revealed in Spider-Man/Marvel Tops Batman/DC In Licensing. Spider-Man generated $1.3 billion in sales of licensed products in 2013. Batman was a distant second at $494 million. Marvel is churning out an increasing number of licensed products. In 2009 Marvel shipped under 1,000 licensed products. That was increased to 5,000 products in 2013.

Learn from Gene Simmons of Kiss

Gene Simmons of Kiss recently published a book Me, Inc: Build an Army of One, Unleash Your Inner Rock God, Win in Life and Business. A review of the book and some sage advice from Simmons are contained in What your business can learn from the king of rock 'n' roll mayhem. Simmons manages over 3,000 licensed merchandise items, a realty show, a professional sports team, a restaurant chain, and a record company. This seems to go along with his philosophy "It/s better to be an octopus than a fish. If an octopus loses a tentacle to a predator, the octopus will survive with seven tentacles left for itself".

How the Virgin Brand is Leveraged

A revealing story about the Virgin brand is contained in Virgin group: Brand it like Branson. It turns out Sir Richard Branson manages very little of the Virgin brands. He is primarily an investor, not a manager. Josh Baylis, chief executive of Virgin Group Holding (VGH), states "His attention on a day-to-day basis is not on the operational aspects of the businesses". Of the 80 businesses with the Virgin name, VGH has a direct stake in less than half. VGH receives significant revenue from fees it charges companies for licensing the Virgin name. It does not always work. Some flops include Virgin Brides, Virgin Cola, Virgin Cosmetics, Virgin Limobikes, Virgin Net, and Virgin Vodka.

Polaroid Finds a Way to Succeed

Polaroid is making a comeback as revealed in Taylor Swift helps with ongoing Polaroid photo resurrection. Polaroid has gone through two bankruptcies and sizable downsizing. It is now relying largely on trademark licensing to survive. The Polaroid brand is being associated with ground-breaking tech products developed by other companies. The Polaroid Cube camera, developed by Ammunition, is one such product.  Polaroid CEO Scott Hardy says simply "our role is a curator of innovation".

Hello Kitty Has Her Own Convention

Hello Kitty Con? Time magazine reported on the first Hello Kitty convention in Hello Kitty at 40: Sexist Throwback or Empowering Icon?. About 25,000 Hello Kitty fans were expected to attend the Hello Kitty convention in Los Angeles. Hello Kitty is one of the best selling characters, selling an estimated $8 billion annually in licensed merchandise. The 4-day convention was sold-out. Read the article if you want to know why Hello Kitty does not have a mouth.

'47 Brand Supports America's Wounded Warriors

I'm sitting here wearing a '47 Brand Cal football cap. I'm pleased to learn that '47 Brand supports Operation Hat Trick, a program that generates awareness, support, and funding for the recovery of America's wounded warriors. See ’47 Brand and Operation Hat Trick Continue to Support America’s Active Service Members & Veterans. The program was created after hearing that the number one thing wanted by wounded service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan was a baseball hat that would cover swelling, bandages, and treatment.

Hasbro Transforming 3D Licensing

The revolution in 3D printing is enabling anyone to enter into licensing arrangements as revealed in the article From the mag: Hasbro ratchets up user-generated licensing efforts. Hasbro has teamed up with Shapeways to create a website SuperFanArt where artists can market and sell their 3D creations. For example, a sandstone figure of Pinkie Pie from the TV show My Little Pony sells for $45. Currently SuperFanArt is looking for 3D designs for Transformers, G.I. Joe, Monopoly, Dragonvale, Scrabble, and Dungeons & Dragons.

6 Important Tips for Licensing Your Brand

There is a good checklist to review in the article 6 Important Tips for Licensing Your Brand. In the article, Marty Brochstein, SVP at LIMA, provides six important tips along with a short statement describing why the tip is important. The six tips are: 1) know your brand; 2) choose good partners; 3) timing is everything; 4) find your edge; 5) find the right retailer, and; 6) define your success. If you're doing well at all six, you probably don't need the tips.

Batman Still a Popular Halloween Costume

$2.8 billion will be spend on Halloween costumes this year according to Halloween costume sales soar as the holiday approaches. This is up from $2.2 billion in sales last year. As you might expect, costumes from Disney's Frozen are "flying off the shelf". Some of the other popular officially licensed costumes include: Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Batman. Batman is celebrating his 75th year anniversary. That's much older than most people reading these words. Batman does not look 75.

Baseball on the Ski Slopes

So what does baseball have to do with skiing? Quite a lot according to MLB puts team logos on skis, boards. You can now get the team logo of all 30 MLB teams on skis or snowboards. MLB is looking for new ways to offer licensed merchandise to its fans. Overall MLB licensed products sales exceeded $3 billion last year. Sports Licensing from all sources had $907 million in revenue last year on retail sales of $16.9 billion. If you want MLB team skis or a snowboard be prepared to pay more than your usual team gear. Team skis start at $649 and the snowboards start at $549. Think I'll stay with a hat.

Mattel Forges Chinese Partnerships

Mattel has a significant presence at the China Licensing Expo as highlighted in Mattel showcases portfolio at Brand Licensing Hall 2014 event in Shanghai. The China Licensing Expo is taking place in Shanghai thru Oct. 16th. Mattel's consumer products team has grown significantly in China over the past three years. They are conducting consumer research to determine what resonates with Chinese consumers. One of their research findings reveals that Chinese parents expect children to 'play with a purpose'. Consequently, Mattel developed a program to focus the use of their products to develop four key areas considered critical for girls' growth. Devin Lau, senior director, consumer products, Asia, notes that Mattel pursues "a long-term approach towards business partnerships and have been working with leaders in key markets for many years now".

Bob the Builder Gets Makeover

Bob the Builder keeps changing as detailed in A Makeover Coming for ‘Bob the Builder’.  In past years he 'has gone on a diet, endured a lot of plastic surgery, moved to a new home, ditched his overalls and developed a whole new personality'. In order to remain relevant, Hit Entertainment is releasing a new 'Bob the Builder' where there 'will be new sidekick characters, a new setting ... and new actors voicing the leads'. Meanwhile, Betty Boop just rolls along.

And the Winner of the Most Valuable Sports Brand Is ...

Forbes compiles a list of the most valuable sports brands. Four categories are considered - business, events, teams, and athletes. Within each category the 10 most valuable sports brands are determined. The resulting list is published in The Forbes Fab 40: The World's Most Valuable Sports Brands 2014. Nike heads the list as the most valuable sports business brand with a value of $19 billion.The top event brand is the Super Bowl which last year generated an estimated $518 million in revenue. The New York Yankees are the most valuable team brand with a worth of $521 million. The top athlete brand belongs to LeBron James bypassing Tiger Woods. LeBron's brand is worth $37 million.

How Disney's Frozen Did It

An intriguing question is asked in How did Disney's Frozen get toys so right?. There does not seem to be a simple answer to the question. Some suggest the success is a result of an enchanting story, superb animation, and a film that parents, children and grandchildren can all view together. Others believe the Frozen soundtrack captivated families and girls throughout the world. Or maybe it is the two princesses looking out for each other. And then there is the huge success of the song Let It Go. Whatever the reasons, Frozen merchandise sales are off the charts. And with new Frozen product releases coming out this year and the next, no thaw seems in sight.

Marilyn Monroe Dazzles Again

A lawsuit has been filed over 'Virtual Marilyn' as reported in Marilyn Monroe Estate Sued Over Threats to 'Virtual Marilyn' Character. The lawsuit could affect holograms, avatars, and computer-generated imagery of dead celebrities. Advances in holograms and digital graphics has produced enormous interest in promoting deceased stars. A lot of money is at stake, as exemplified by the $30 million yearly licensing income of the Marilyn Monroe estate. According to Wikipedia, celebrities who have already been digitally cloned include Bill Clinton, Fred Astaire, Ed Sullivan, Elvis Presley, Bruce Lee, Audrey Hepburn, Anna Marie Goddard, and George Burns.

European Licensing Market - Everything You Want to Know

A review of the European licensing market is presented in BLE Primer: Top trends in the European licensing market. One major trend is the increase in licensee, licensor and retail consolidation. The article cites emergence of mega-licensees such as Hong-Kong based Li & Fung. Li & Fung has recently purchased multiple manufactures and licensing agencies. The advantages of such consolidation are presented including the ability to offer licensors attractive pan-European deals. Another trend is the rise of rise of discount and grocery chains across Europe which boost licensed categories in this retail market. Finally, the article reviews the impact of several major licensors including Disney, Hasbro, Nickelodeon, and eOne.

Angry Birds Loses 63 Million Players

A good news, bad news story is reported in Angry Birds has lost 63m players since 2012 (but it still has 200m left). The good news is that Angry Birds still has 200 million players, the bad news is that 63 million players have been lost since 2012. Since Angry Bird's launch in 2009, the Angry Birds games have been downloaded over 2 billion times. Rovio's response is to release new Angry Birds games including Angry Birds Stella, Angry Birds Transformer, Angry Birds Epic, and Angry Birds Go. Rovio is faced with a classic problem of trying to follow-up a huge success.

The Shelby Brand is Alive and Well

The diversity of the Carroll Shelby brand is presented in Carroll Shelby Licensing Inc. Carroll Shelby logos are on  a variety of products including die-cast cars, clothing, video games, and golf carts. You can still purchase a Shelby vehicle at Shelby American. There also is a Shelby Store where you can buy Shelby Parts, apparel, and merchandise.The popularity of Shelby vehicles was aptly demonstrated in 2007 when a 1966 Shelby Cobra sold for $5.5 million at auction. In 1995 Shelby American opened its new headquarters in Las Vegas. When in Las Vegas, you can take a free guided tour Monday thru Saturday.

Trends in Producing Successful Toys

The article BLE Preview: Toy Stories examines trends in the children's licensing and merchandising business. As reported in the article, sales of licensed entertainment merchandise accounted for $2.66 billion in royalty revenues in the U.S. and Canada. But one difficulty facing those in the licensing and merchandising industry is the reluctance of retailers to work with new, unproven brands. According to Marie-Laure Marchand, "Retailers are looking for sure-fire hits ...". Another aspect in today's marketplace is that "more and more alliances are being formed early-on between retailers and independent producers". These alliances are used to implement a balanced approach where all facets of a new brand are considered including physical and digital products, live events, theme parks, and video games.

Book a 60s Pan-Am Flight to Nowhere

I road a train yesterday to the Los Angeles Union Station. You can't help but think what train travel must have been like in its heyday. A lot more glamorous than today. The same could be said for air travel. Now a new attraction, Air Hollywood, let's you experience 60s' air travel, see - Pan Am Experience: Vintage airline meals in 747 from the 60s. You don't go anywhere, but board a restored 747, and enjoy a dinner and movie like you would have 50 years ago. Flight attendants dress as they would have back then, and passengers are encouraged to do likewise. At the end of the "flight" passengers can shop for Pan-Am memorabilia and licensed merchandise.

Ford's Mustang Pony Gets a New Life

What is more iconic that the Ford Mustang logo? Yet Ford has decided to redesign the logo as revealed in Pop Artist Burton Morris redesigns Mustang logo as part of Ford's #mustangunite campaign. As part of the celebration of the Mustang's 50 year history, pop artist Burton Morris is redesigning the famous pony logo. Actually there will be 10 Mustang pony emblems each decorated with the flag of one of 10 countries. Check them out, they are really cool.

The Lion King Conquers The Phantom of the Opera

Here's a surprise.  'The Lion King' earns all-time box office record. With gross revenue over $6.2 billion "The Lion King" is now the most successful box office ticket of all time. "The Lion King" recently surpassed "The Phantom of the Opera". The article notes that "The Lion King" brought in more revenue than any single Harry Potter film, the movie "Titanic", or any of the "Star Wars" movies. These comparisons do not include sales of posters or CDs and other merchandise.

Girl Scout Cookie Beer?

The Girl Scouts license more than cookies as detailed in Girl Scout Cookie Nesquik Will Help You Survive Until Girl Scout Cookie Season. The Girl Scout flavored milk comes in several flavors including Thin Mints and Caramel Coconut. Other Girl Scout licensed products are: Girl Scout Cookie Crunch Bars, Girl Scout Cookie Lip Smackers, Girl Scout Cookie Coffee-Mate, Girl Scout Cookie Bryers Ice Cream, and Girl Scout Cookie Beer. Hold on a minute! That last one is not true. A San Francisco brewery has created Girl Scout Cookie Inspired Beers, but they are definitely not officially-licensed. Too bad.

Can't Afford a Porsche? Get a Porsche Design BlackBerry.

The article Why Is Porsche Still Putting Its Name on BlackBerrys? poses a good question. Before answering that question, another question comes to mind. Why did Porsche put it's name on a BlackBerry in the first place? The article's author, Kyle Stock, tries to answer both questions. He explores different co-branding examples, and gives Aston Martin and Jaguar high marks for their efforts. By the way, you can get a Ferrari Surfboard for only $1,700 (shipping expenses, sales taxes and custom duties not included).

Authorized Merchandise from Top Music Acts Now Available with Merchbar

Merchbar Launches with Curated Merchandise From 3000+ Top Music Acts. The Merchbar iPhone app offers licensed merchandise from over 3000 top music acts, including The Beatles, David Bowie, The B52s and Beck. There are over 100,000 items of officially licensed merchandise. They even have Bob Marley and Elvis.

NFL Player Endorsements Can Easily Be Pursued by Brands, Large and Small

See how Robert Griffin III approves endorsements on his smartphone in the article How NFL Players Are Winning the Game for Micro Endorsements. The NFL players association launched a website Activate  that enables players to quickly evaluate endorsement opportunities. Now, more than 1,800 NFL players can market themselves to the public. New York punter Steve Weatherford, hardly as well known as Peyton Manning, recently signed a sponsorship deal. Small brands benefit by being able to register on Activate and pursue opportunities with NFL players.

TV Shows Sell Millions in Licensed Merchandise

As reported in Scandal’ Inspires Clothing Line at The Limited another TV show has led to a new line of licensed merchandise. The Scandal ABC drama will return for its fourth season on Sept. 25th. A collection of clothing based on Scandal is being introduced by The Limited. The article notes that series like Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones have generated an estimated $100 million a year in retail sales.  A popular children show can generate $250 to $500 million in retail sales.

Will There be a Judge Judy Online Store?

Orange is the New Black is a comedy-drama series first released on Netflix on July 11, 2013. An online store now exists for the series as reported in An official online store has opened for Orange is the new Black. The store is found at Orange Is The New Black. The site offers apparel, media, and accessories. Makes you wonder just how prevalent this development will become. Will we see online stores for other popular TV shows? Seems like a golden opportunity.

Microsoft to Sell Bed Sheets?

Do you suppose Bill Gates ever intended for Microsoft to get into selling bed sheets? It could happen. Microsoft may be purchasing Mojang as reported in Report: Microsoft makes $2 billion offer for 'Minecraft' studio Mojang . Mojang created the Minecraft game that has sold over 50 million copies. Of course, this it what Microsoft is after. But Minecraft has innumerable licensed products including bed sheets, t-shirts, action figures, and foam swords. So probably without intending it, Microsoft will find itself benefiting from the sale of all sorts of licensed merchandise.

Movies Move Merchandise

Lego has become the biggest toy company in the world as reported in  How Can Mattel, Inc. And Other Toymakers Beat Lego?. Lego got a huge boost with the release of The Lego Movie. Mattel, on the other hand, had a 7 percent decline in the first half of this year. Not surprisingly, Sony Pictures and Mattel announced a Barbie live-action movie. Barbie will play a Mary Poppins-like character. Can Mattel replicate the success of the Frozen movie?

Will China Be the Same After the Simpsons Arrive?

The Simpsons are on their way to China, see -  'The Simpsons' Gets "First Official China-Based Home". The show will be subtitled in Mandarin. That should be interesting. Imagine trying to translate the many vulgarities and double entendres. It would be fun to have the mandarin translation translated back into English. I'm not sure you would have any idea what they were talking about.

How to Catapult a Brand to Superstardom

The title of the article Create a brand new world with packaging does not do justice to the article's content. Unless the term 'packaging' includes the overall brand storytelling and marketing. It's much more than the physical packaging. The author, Ted Mininni, presents a compelling argument for inviting customers to become co-creators of a brand's story, so that they become immersed in their favorite properties. Think Star Wars, Disney Princesses, Hasbro Transformers, and the NFL. Lego is presented as a case study in how to do things the right way. An extremely interesting article.

JCPenney Seeks to Become a Major Player in Sports Merchandising

Numerous articles in recent years have chronicled JCPenney's troubles. Although recently they seem to be doing better. Today JCPenney branched out in a new direction as reported in JCP Targets Sports Fans With New E-Shop. JCPenney partnered with Fanatics the largest online retailer of officially licensed sports merchandise. The new JCPenney website is called the Sports Fan Shop. Over 300,000 licensed products from all major sports are found on the website. I've always liked JCPenney. I wish them well.

Hello Kitty is a Third Grade English Girl. Say What?

I'll bet you think Hello Kitty is a cat. I sure did. But Sanrio says Hello Kitty is an English third grade girl named Kitty White as explained in Hello Kitty Is Not a Cat; Can We Live in Such a World?. In fact, Hello Kitty has her own pet cat named Charmmy Kitty. I'm like the grandfather in the movie Moonstruck, I'm Confused.

Horton and the Kwuggerbug and More Lost Stories

The title of this post is the title for the second collection of Dr. Seuss's forgotten magazine work. Early in his career Dr. Seuss published a series of illustrated stories for children in magazines. Random House is now publishing those stories. More about Dr. Seuss is revealed in Inside Dr. Seuss Inc. Dr. Seuss has had phenomenal success with Seuss movie adaptations alone grossing more than $1.1 billion worldwide. Sales of Dr. Seuss books are still going strong with sales of 4.8 million units last year.

Ford Mustang 50 Years Old and Looking Good

More than 9 million Mustangs have been sold in the past 50 years. They still look sharp as you can see in First Ford 2015 Mustang rolls off line in Flat Rock From The Detroit News. Mustang merchandise makes up 40 percent of Ford's $2 billion licensed merchandise retail sales. Doing the math that's $800 million, marking the Mustang as an elite licensed product brand.

Wolfgang Puck is on a Roll

Five good suggestions are found in 5 Brilliant Business Lessons from Wolfgang Puck. Wolfgang Puck has had remarkable success promoting his brand. His lessons are: cook up something new; listen to your customers; be unpredictable; TV is just a tool, and; stay hungry. He's 65 and still going strong. Now he is looking at getting into the hotel industry. Don't count him out.

Elvis is Alive!

Elvis is Alive! Sort of. You see Elvis Presley™ Virtually Comes Back To Life . Pulse Evolution Corporation is set to develop a virtual "King of Rock 'n' Roll". This will include "holographic" performances in live shows. Has Elvis left the building? Apparently, not yet. Thank you very much.

Education Doesn't Matter, Touchdowns Do!

Steve Almond in College Football Is Ruining Education argues that college football is doing more harm than good. In his view football has become more important than the essential educational mission of a university. For example, he points out that up to a third of Division I football players do not graduate. The impact of athletics is easily seen when ESPN in 2012 paid $7.3 billion to broadcast college football playoffs for the next 12 years. Mr. Almond estimates total revenues for the nation's 125 major programs at a gazillion dollars. That's a big number.

Pitfalls to Avoid in Brand Licensing

A useful list is found in The 10 Most Common Brand Licensing Mistakes. The first three mistakes seem to have a common theme, trying to do too much. The first three are: 1) biting off more than you can chew; 2) getting in over your head, and; 3) creating unrealistic expectations. If you turned this list around and made it a list of 10 goals for properly managing brand licensing, you probably would be on your way to success.

Lego by the Numbers, 650 Billion Pieces and Counting

The article  After 80 years, LEGO continues to innovate, inspire generations of builders has a list of impressive numbers about Lego. For example: laid end to end, the number of Lego bricks produced in 2012 could circle the Earth 18 times; with an estimated worth of $14.6 billion, it is now the world's most valuable toy maker, and; 45.7 billion Lego bricks were produced in 2012 (about 5.2 million per hour). Many franchises have been converted to Lego block form including: Star Wars, Disney Princesses, Lord of the Rings, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and the Simpsons. You can even find Elvis in Legos.

Tour the World in October

Now's your chance to see Europe, China, and the Middle East. You just have to convince your boss that you need to attend the important licensing shows in October. You can start with Brand Licensing Europe 2014 (BLE) Oct. 7-9 where London Gears Up for Biggest BLE Ever. It's then off to the China Licensing Expo in Shanghai from Oct. 14-16. Finally, you fly to Dubai for Licensing Dubai held Oct. 27-28. I'm sure somewhere someone has convinced their boss that this is a good idea.

Suzy's Zoo Expands Its Presence in China

In Suzy's Zoo makes further in-roads in China details of new partnerships to sell Suzy's Zoo merchandise in China are revealed. Lawless Entertainment and Dina Asia Pacific are joining with Bei Lu in this endeavor. Lawless Entertainment and Dina Asia Pacific are agents for Suzy's Zoo, while Bei Lu has sales and marketing experience in China. Baby apparel and accessories using Suzy's Zoo characters will be developed. The merchandise will be sold in online stores and specialty shops.

Wright Bros. Take Off Again

On December 17, 1903 the Wright brothers sustained the first heavier-than-air human flight. Now, their name is being used to raise money to support historical sites, see - Dayton business banking on Wright Bros. name. Licensed merchandise using the Wright brothers name were first offered for sale last year. American-made and watches under the brand sold out.

Another $1 Billion for Disney

Recently it was reported that Disney Now Has EIGHT Billion-Dollar Merchandise Brands. According to the article How ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ Could Produce Another $1 Billion for Disney, it looks like that should be at least nine billion-dollar brands. Frozen would be the tenth. Disney bought Marvel for about $4 billion in 2009. In 2012 Marvel's The Avengers brought in $1.5 billion at the worldwide box office. Looks like a pretty good $4 billion investment.

Disney Has 8 Billion Dollar Brands

Disney is enjoying tremendous success as revealed in Disney Now Has EIGHT Billion-Dollar Merchandise Brands. How many companies would be happy to have one billion dollar brand? Disney, the world's top licensor, recorded $41 billion in licensed merchandise in 2013. The eight billion dollar brands are: Pooh, Mickey Mouse, Monsters, Star Wars, Spider-Man, Cars, Disney Junior, and Princess. Did you notice Frozen was not in the list?

Texas Longhorns Are Champs 9 Years in a Row

Texans support their university like no other, see - UT tops highest collegiate royalties list for 9th straight year. The Longhorns football team has not had the success recently that their fans are accustomed to, but the fans continue to support their team. Others making the top ten list are: Alabama, Michigan, Notre Dame, Georgia, Florida, LSU, Florida State, Texas A&M, and The University of North Carolina. Can't help but notice that the SEC conference dominates the list.

What Do Elizabeth Taylor and Albert Einstein Have in Common?

Elizabeth Taylor and Albert Einstein do have something in common. They are both among the 11 Richest Dead Celebrities on the Planet. The list includes: Steve McQueen; Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss); Bettie Page; Albert Einstein; John Lennon; Marilyn Monroe; Bob Marley; Elizabeth Taylor; Charles Schultz (Peanuts); Elvis Presley, and; Michael Jackson. The Michael Jackson brands earned a whopping $120 million in the last 12 months. More than any living artist made in the same time period.When I visited Beijing last year I took this video of young men Moonwalking in Beijing. Obviously, Michael Jackson has enduring world-wide popularity.

Hook 'em Horns in Jell-O

If you like Jell-O and the Longhorns, the product described in Jell-O Gives Sports Marketing a Shot With School Brand Molds is for you. Jell-O began last year offering school-themed mold trays for the universities of Arkansas, Florida, Michigan, and Texas. They were such a bit hit that Jell-O is expanding the program to other universities. Sports marketing sponsorship reached $763.8 million in 2013 with Coca-Cola being the biggest sponsor.

Watch the Simpsons Till You Drop

The article The Simpsons App Will Change the TV Game Forever  discusses a fundamental change in the relationship between television content and the networks. Starting on August 21st, a non-stop marathon of 522 Simpsons episodes will be aired by Fox's FXX. In the fall a new website Simpsonsworld.com and a Simpsons app will enable streaming of every episode. Fox has chosen to launch a website exclusive to their brand instead of working out a deal with Netflix, Amazon Prime, Yahoo, or Sony. It will be interesting to watch how this works out for the Simpsons brand.

Will It Be a "Frozen" Christmas?

With Christmas only 5 months away, the article What’ll be hot for the holiday toy season? Disney’s Frozen anticipates big sales for Frozen products. This year sales of Frozen products are estimated to reach $1 billion dollars in the United States. Frozen's success far exceeds Disney's expectations. A full array of  Frozen licensed products includes DVDs, toys, games, clothes, juice, yogurt, oral care products, and fresh fruit. Suppliers report that demand exceeds supply and they are scrambling to produce more goods. It's a nice problem to have.

Happy Birthday Harry Potter!

Warner Bros. should be throwing a big birthday party for Harry Potter, see - Happy Birthday, Potter: 17 Years Later, Harry Potter is Bigger than Ever Before. Since the publication of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in 1997, Warner Bros., has brought in $7.7 billion from eight feature films based on J.K. Rowling's books. The Harry Potter brand is one of the Top 10 Best Selling Products in the World. Warner Bros. is not done yet, as revealed in Warner Brothers Creates a Harry Potter Squad. Does all this seem not quite real? If you want more Harry Potter, check out Rowling's Pottermore web community.

Win Green Bay Packers' Season Tickets

The Green Bay Packers and the Wisconsin Lottery announced details of this year's Wisconsin Lottery Packers offering, see - Green Bay Packers…LOTTERY! The Pack teams up with Wisconsin Lottery to offer scratch-off tickets. Three different scratch-off tickets are offered. The Packers and the Lottery have worked together on five previous Packers themed games. The grand prize includes season tickets and a parking pass. Do you suppose Mike Ditka buys any of these lottery tickets?

Have You Ever Wanted an LA Lakers Yoga Mat?

As highlighted in the article CIRRUS Fitness Completes Historic League Licensing Sweep, CIRRUS Fitness has reached licensing agreements with several professional sports leagues including the NBA, NHL, MLB, MLS, and WNBA. They also provide fitness equipment for several NCAA universities. The fitness equipment consists primarily of Yoga mats, Yoga mat bags, Stability balls, and Medicine balls. Since I'm a Los Angeles Lakers fan, I wish they had a Boston Celtics punching bag. Even better would be a Kevin McHale punching bag (never got over his clothesline of Kurt Rambis in 1984 NBA finals).

A Look at Walt Disney from 50 Years Ago

The article 50 years ago in U.S. Catholic: The controversial kingdom of Walt Disney  reprints an article that appeared in the August 1964 issue of U.S. Catholic. My first reaction was what was controversial about Walt Disney? But apparently some took issue with his world view. It's interesting to see a perspective from 50 years ago on Walt Disney's success. As successful as he was, The Walt Disney Company has just continued to expand. Now Disney is truly an international company just beginning to enter the enormous Asian markets.

Not Your Father's NASCAR

The article NASCAR Changes: Race, Gender, Youth Fan Base Growth Key To Sport’s Financial Future examines how NASCAR is reaching out to expand its fan base. Driver Brad Keselowski tweeted a photo of a fuel fire while a race was temporarily halted. At latest count Keselowski has 500,000 followers on Twitter. NASCAR has 70 million fans, but only 30% are between the ages of 18 to 34. However, a new generation of NASCAR drivers from non-traditional backgrounds is putting a new face on NASCAR and hopefully attracting a younger fan base.

Kim Kardashian Pockets $85 Million from App

As reported in From Kim K to Karl Lagerfeld, Celebrities are Cashing In on Branded Products celebrities are reaping large profits from licensed products. It is had to fathom how Kim Kardashian could realize $85 million from an app that the Washington Post describes as "ridiculous" and "laughable". As the old saying goes, Kim Kardashian is probably laughing all the way to the bank. Others cited as doing well are Britney Spears, Christian Louboutin, Blake Lively, Cristiano Rinaldo, Kate Boseworth, and Karl Lagerfeld.

For Only $2 milion, the First Teenage Mutant Turtles' Drawing Can be Yours

This week in San Diego, the first drawing of the Teenage Mutant Turtles is up for sale, see - TMNT creator Kevin Eastman is selling his first drawing of the characters at Comic-Con for $2 million. Somehow I think he will probably sell the drawing. Although it's hard to imagine why anyone would buy the drawing at that price. Then again the purchaser will probably sell the drawing for $4 million in a few years. Is this a great country, or what?