Spiderman and ice cream, who could ask for more?

Spiderman is coming to Baskin-Robbins, see Baskin-Robbins Celebrates The Start Of The Summer Movie And Ice Cream Seasons With The Amazing Spider-Man 2(TM). The Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie is being released May 2nd, and Baskin-Robbins is getting ready. The April Flavor of the Month is The Amazing Spider-Man 2(TM) ice cream. What do you suppose the Spider-Man ice cream ingredients are.

Pirates are hot!

The Pirates made the playoffs last year, and the fans are hoping for continued improvement, see - Pirates, fans enter 2014 season in winning mode. Sales of merchandise have taken an upswing. Since December, merchandise sales were 300 percent higher than in the same period last year.  Pirates' merchandise overall ranked 10th in national sales from November through January.

There's Hello Kitty in baseball

In 'A League of Their Own' Tom Hanks' character said 'there's no crying in baseball'. What would he have thought of Hello Kitty in baseball? See - Hello Kitty Chic Coming To Your San Francisco Giants. Hello Kitty is coming to all 30 MLB teams, including the (awful) San Francisco Giants, and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Disney revealed that a sequel is underway for 'Cars', and another sequel is in progress for 'Incredibles 2', see- Disney CEO reveals upcoming Pixar sequels, details on ‘Star Wars: Episode VII’. Brad Bird is developing the story for 'Incredibles 2'. Bird hopes that he can duplicate the respect the sequel 'Toy Story 2' gave to the first film.

Do you get bubble gum with digital trading cards?

Remember that pink, stale bubble gum that you used to get with baseball trading cards? It was hard to chew, but you could blow big, messy bubbles. Now Topps has digital trading cards - see Topps Launches BUNT® 2014, Fueling Growth of Digital Collecting. What? How do you blow bubbles with an IPhone? 

Major League Baseball has an official laundry detergent - Wow!

You want to get grass stains out of your pants. Major League Baseball has the answer, an official laundry detergent, see - Major League Baseball Properties And Church & Dwight Announce Multi-Year, Multi-Category Sponsorship Agreement . What's more, they may also have oral care products. So you will know how to clean your pants and your teeth.

You've got to be impressed with the marketing of the Kiss brand

Kiss announced a merchandising deal with a new company, see- Kiss Inks Multi-Year Merchandising Deal With New Company (Exclusive). There are more than 3,000 Kiss licensed products in the marketplace. Retail sales have exceeded $1 billion since 1977. Obviously, Kiss marketing has done a phenomenal job.

What's the first thing that comes to mind when Star Trek is mentioned? Beer, of course.

You have got to love the title of the article - Official ‘Star Trek’ beer announced, is not an early April Fools joke. Having an official Star Trek beer sounds like something William Shatner would dream up. He has a great sense of humor. By the way, William Shatner does wonderful work with disabled kids, using horses for therapy. I know first hand because my granddaughter benefited from this kind man.

Disney and China in the same story

Many of the daily news stories are about either Disney or China. Today's story has both. Disney is the largest licensed products company. China is the largest consumer market. Disney is aggressively marketing in China, see - Disney and Dreamworks Battle in China. If Disney can figure out how to work with the Chinese government, the potential is enormous.

Is the Great Wall is falling?

An enormous opportunity may be developing for licensed products, see - A Great Wall Is Coming Down Between Chinese and U.S. Brands . With 1.3 billion people, China presents an enticing market. The NBA and Disney definitely see the potential, as they develop their China marketing. Who else will follow suit?

Don't miss the Elvis Look-A-Like Pet Parade

The 2014 Tupelo Elvis Festival is being held June 5-8, see - Tupelo Elvis Festival named one of top 20 events for 2014. Besides Elvis music there are many top county music acts. Other events during the festival include a Miss Elvis Festival Pageant, Carnival Midway, Elvis Look-A-Like Pet Parade, Running with the King 5k and Fling with the King Disc Golf Tournament. Wish I could be there.

March Madness a look back

Today's story has a fascinating video link, see March Madness, then and now: Growing into a behemoth. It's a video of the 1939 championship game. Sure looks different from today's game. The phrase "March Madness" was not trademarked until 1989. The company that had the foresight to get the trademark earned $17 million from the NCAA when they bought rights to the phrase.

The NBA is just a toddler

It's hard to imagine that the NBA may just be in it's infancy. But it's possible. The NBA is just getting started internationally, and it looks like the skies the limit, see - NBA to Become More Popular Internationally Than Domestically .

You just gotta love Godzilla, they can't kill him off

For the last 60 years, we have been killing Godzilla. But despite our best efforts, Godzilla keeps coming back. Talk about resilience - see NECA unleashes first look at Godzilla.  Godzilla reminds you of the Bush and Kennedy families in politics. Every few years there is another one.

The Six Million Dollar Man reappears after 36 years

A Six Million Dollar Man comic book debuted last week - see Six Million Dollar Man Season Six comic book by Dynamite Entertainment gives Maskatron a back story. It has been 36 years since the Six Million Dollar Man TV show last ran.  There must be a comic book executive somewhere who found his Six Million Dollar Man action figure in the garage, and misses his youth. Personally, I always liked Lee Majors.

Disney's Frozen - $1 Billion in ticket sales and counting

In addition to ticket sales, Disney is the largest licensing company in the world. Disney sold almost 500,000 dolls modeled after characters in “Frozen”; during a limited-edition offer in January. Mattel, a Disney licensee, has sold more than $100 million of “Frozen” toys, while licensee Jakks Pacific has sold tens of millions of dollars worth. Walt would be proud. See Disney’s ‘Frozen’ Passing $1 Billion Cements Rebound.

Tom & Jerry in Moscow

Not only Tom & Jerry, but the Teenage Mutant Turtles are also in Moscow this week. Didn't know there was a licensing show in Russia until I saw this story about Warner Bros. at the Russian Licensing Forum - Warner Bros readies for 'biggest ever presence' at Russian Licensing Forum. Now if only the Teenage Mutant Turtles could calm down Putin.

We lost Carroll Shelby, but not his spirit

Carroll Shelby died on May 10, 2012, at the age of 89. Beginning March 14th, his spirit reappears in a new movie, see - Carroll Shelby's legacy celebrated in new action movie "Need For Speed". Carroll Shelby Licensing assisted in the movie production lending authenticity and accuracy to the story line.

Highest amount paid for an exclusive licensing agreement - $1 Billion

$1 Billion is a lot of money. That's reportedly what Nike paid Manchester United for an exclusive licensing agreement, see -  Manchester United Reportedly Signs $1 Billion Licensing Deal With Nike. The previous agreement was for a paltry $507 million. General Motors previously paid $559 million to Manchester United, but it cost someone his job (see story).

A Disney-inspired Starbucks ... hmm ...

I'm sitting in a Starbucks posting this blog entry. How could I not pick a story about Starbucks? Today, Starbucks is opening a company-run store in Downtown Disney. If you're like me, when you read the article - Unique Disney-inspired Starbucks opens today at Downtown Disney - you'll want to check it out. Sounds a lot more interesting than the Starbucks that I am sitting in.

Can Disney ensnare Spiderman in its web?

Sony currently owns the rights to Spiderman, but the door is not completely closed for Disney. Sony gave up all TV rights to Spiderman in 2009, so Disney is not entirely shut out. The article - Could Spider-Man Appear in Marvel Cinematic Universe? explores Disney's options.

If you can't sell '12th Man' then sell '12th Fan'

The licensing agreement with Texas A&M doesn't allow the Seahawks to sell any merchandise with "12th Man" on it. No problem. Sell jerseys for the "12th Fan". The "12th Fan" is now a best-seller as detailed in '12th Fan' climbs to 10th in sales. Works for me.

Can you learn from something from Taco Bell?

Taco Bell Doritos Locos Taco has been an instant success. Sales have been explosive. A win-win situation where two brands came together for mutual benefit.    The article - 3 Reasons Why Co-Making Is The Future Of Branding - explores how companies can benefit by joining forces with brands from other companies.

Holy copyright fight, Batman!

Is it ok to build and sell replica Batmobiles? Or replica James Bond cars? The article - Does Warner Bros. Own the Batmobile? (Analysis) - presents this issue. The federal 9th circuit court is about to rule on a lawsuit filed by Warner Bros.' DC Comics. A lot is at stake here as the ruling will affect replicas of other movie props like light sabers and ruby slippers.

Spiderman rolls along

If you want anything with an image of Spiderman on it, you can probably find it. Just how successful Spiderman licensing has become is presented in Character World signs deal with Marvel for new Spiderman range. With a new Spiderman movie coming out in April, Spiderman's web will only getter bigger.

Disney and Hefner - two peas in a pod ... Really?

The title of the article What Disney and Playboy Can Teach You About Branding certainly wets your appetite. You might not think it, but Disney and Hefner adopted the same strategies in many areas. These areas are spelled out in this intriguing article.

Marilyn Monroe's beauty radiates at new spas

If there ever was a timeless beauty, Marilyn Monroe fills the bill. A new Orlando-based nail salon and spa is trying to project this beauty to create a national chain. The article - Marilyn Monroe Spas shoots for worldwide fame - divulges how the company plans to become the Starbucks of the nail salons. Al Weiss, Disney's former top executive in Florida, and Niki Bryan, another Orlando executive who used to run Disney resort spas, have created Marilyn Monroe Spas. As befits Marilyn, their approach is become a first-class operation in every respect. She deserves nothing less.

Toys and Video Games Intermingle

Selecting the top news story for the day was easy today. There was a paucity of licensing industry news stories. I only found one of any interest, and wouldn't you know it, the story was about Disney. But the article is worth reading. The Toys and Video Games markets are increasingly becoming intermingled. The extent of the cross-pollination is detailed in Disney Toys, Technology and Video-Games At Toy Fair 2014. Toys are not simply standalone figures but must be able to have built-in actions that reflect the video-game stories.

Tribute to Shirley Temple

I don't know if this article about Shirley Temple is the best news story of the day, but I just could not resist her picture. It's easy to see how see captivated people. The article -  Collectors Corner: Shirley Temple - covers her career, revealing her amazing popularity. Imagine being more popular than Clark Gable. May she rest in peace.

Mattel throws down the gauntlet at Lego

Mattel apparently has not ignored Lego's success. In a direct challenge to Lego, Mattel is paying $366 million to acquire Canada's Mega Brands which produces its own building toys Mega Bloks. See With Mattel, Montreal’s Mega Brands builds stronger battle against Lego. The article discusses Lego's recent surge despite the ubiquitous presence of games and apps on tablets, and smartphones. There is something to be said for being able to touch and hold a small plastic brick. Mattel wants to join the party.