The Leading Trade Publication for the Toy Industry
Check it out! New from Delta, the Disney Princess Deluxe Toy Box Bench features beautiful pastel colors, doubles as a bench, and is the perfect storage box to put away any little Princess’ toys. Available now at Toys “R” Us. http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12800252
It’s time to get tagged! Activision Publishing, Inc. has announced the sale of limited edition dog tags that will benefit the Call of Duty Endowment, a non-profit that helps veterans find jobs by assisting organizations that provide job placement and training services for veterans.
The dog tags will be available throughout the holiday season in more than 12,000 stores across the country including GameStop, Walmart, Toys “R” Us, Best Buy, and Target.
Customers will find the dog tags in dedicated Call of Duty sections and counter displays. Activision will be donating proceeds from the sales of the dog tags to the Call of Duty Endowment.
Mega Brands, Inc., is expanding the focus of its RoseArt brand through the introduction of two all-new children’s product lines: Scraps and Goo Hu. These two RoseArt product lines represent a strategic business decision to create a bridge between arts, crafts, and toys, offering products with extensive post-creation playability.
Expanding the interactivity of traditional plush animals, Scraps is a unique new line of 12 original, interchangeable plush characters that kids create by looping and buttoning together multiple pieces and parts onto pom-pom bodies. All Scraps parts can be mixed, matched, and reattached, so kids can collect their favorite characters and even create their own new characters for extended creative play.
Mega Brands has also developed a proprietary product that is part science experiment, part bouncing toy, with the launch of RoseArt’s Goo Hu. Goo Hu features two silicone-based modeling compounds that, when kept apart, remain gooey forever, but once combined create magical matter that turns into a rubbery, bouncy, and flexible form that won’t shrink, crack, break, or lose its bounce. Goo Hu combines crafting with chemistry, allowing children to use their imagination to create unique toy shapes and forms.
Both products are available at Target, Kmart, and Toys “R” Us. More information about Scraps is available at www.TheOriginalScraps.com. More information about Goo Hu is available at www.MyGooHu.com.
Just in time for Halloween, toymaker Playhut will release Mystixx Vampires dolls, four transformational fashion dolls that are popular girls at school by day and powerful vampires by night. Mystixx Vampires are 11-inch fashion doll divas named Talin, Silva, Azra, and Kalani whose personalities “turn” to fit their moods with a simple twist of their heads.
All four Mystixx Vampire dolls have different personalities that focus on characteristics like confidence, compassion, competiveness, and intelligence. These four girls come from different backgrounds and recently started at a new school together. The backstories provide a backdrop for girls’ creative play.
Each doll has two distinct faces, two complete outfits, two interchangeable wigs, two pairs of shoes, and accessories. Mystixx are sold exclusively at Toys “R” Us and at toysrus.com, and are designed for children ages 6 and up.
For more information, visit Mystixx on Facebook or check out the website.
Freeman Public Relations (FPR) has been selected by French toy maker Meccano as PR agency for the Erector brand in the U.S. market.
Freeman will be a strategic partner in the campaign to increase consumer awareness of the licensed product lines for Gears of War and Sonic the Hedgehog construction sets that are available exclusively at Toys “R” Us. The publicity programs will aim to reinforce the Erector brand among American consumers through a multi-tiered approach for each product line, incorporating elements and components of traditional and social media to build brand recognition. The Gears of War campaign will also feature a heavy social media campaign aimed at the older, dedicated fans.
New from Delta Children’s Products, the Disney Mickey Mouse Toddler Tent Bed features a high-quality plastic and metal frame. This lightweight yet sturdy bed will provide for strength and durability that will last for even the most rambunctious of toddlers. The bed is built low to the ground for easy child access and comes with side rails for safe and secure sleeping.
The bed uses a standard crib mattress, which is sold separately, and is recommended for use up to 50 pounds. Complements other Mickey Mouse items sold separately online by Delta Children’s Products. Currently sold at Toys “R” Us stores.
For more info, visit www.deltaenterprise.com.
Portal Masters everywhere will once again face the evil Portal Master Kaos in a brand new adventure in Skylanders Giants, which is poised to prove that bigger really is better when the game hits store shelves in North America on October 21 for Nintendo’s Wii system, Nintendo 3DS, the Xbox 360 game and entertainment system, and the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system.
Check out the trailer!
Toys “R” Us has announced four emerging trends it expects to impact toy-buying decisions this holiday season. Representative of these top trends are toys based on tiny tots’ favorite characters, kid-friendly tablets, “rad” playthings from the ’80s that are making a comeback, and items that offer fun light-up features.
For the latest news about the 2012 Holiday Season at Toys “R” Us, visit http://www.toysrusinc.com/press-room/r-holiday-press-room/.
Toys “R” Us has launched Toys “R” Us Movies, a new family-friendly digital entertainment service with more than 4,000 movies and shows available with no subscription. Available on ToyrusMovies.com, users can purchase, download, and stream content on PC’s, Macs, and Adobe Flash enabled devices.
Toys “R” Us Movies includes content from entertainment companies such as 20th Century Fox, Anderson Digital, Gaiam Vivendi Entertainment, Lionsgate/Summit, Magnolia Pictures, NBCUniversal, Paramount Pictures, Phase 4 Films, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Starz Media, The Walt Disney Studios, and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Users must be 18 years or older to register. Parents are provided with customizable parental controls to block age-inappropriate content.
The digital entertainment service offers new releases available for purchase nearly two weeks before the DVD release. The downloaded content will be stored in a library for future viewing. Toys “R” Us will launch the digital entertainment service on Blu-ray players, televisions, and tablets. A Toys “R” Us Movies app will also be available for tabeo free at the tabeo App Store.
Discovery Communications and Wendy’s partnered to bring an augmented reality game to Wendy’s Kids’ Meals. On October 8, Wendy’s began distributing Animal Planet-themed Kids’ Meal premiums, featuring an augmented reality overlay, with the purchase of a Kids’ Meal.
The premiums feature one of five animals: a dog, cat, parakeet, chameleon, or fish. From a dog catching a disc to a cat purring, each toy will showcase a trait of the specific animal. The augmented reality experience features the same pets received in the Kids’ Meal and allows kids to play games from a desktop, as well as a mobile device through iTunes and Google Play. Fun and educational, each game of virtual play is differentiated among the five pets and incorporates each animal’s natural play patterns.
In addition to these Animal Planet premiums, participating Wendy’s will distribute coupons for a special offer on Animal Planet products, available at Toys “R” Us. Wendy’s will support the Animal Planet Kids’ Meal promotion with extensive in-restaurant marketing in more than 6,000 Wendy’s locations nationwide, which will include signage, branded Kids’ Meal bags, and window clings, as well as a presence on Wendys.com.
The deal was brokered on behalf of Animal Planet by its North American licensing agent, The Joester Loria Group.
