June 2011

Ruckus Media Group Announces Two New Apps

Ruckus Media Group announced new children book apps. The titles include Spot the Dot and Chuck and Friends: Friends for the Long Haul.

Spot the Dot is an app that is part book and part game, plus a learning tool for preschoolers. The app, based on the work of pop-up master and author/illustrator David A. Carter, challenges toddlers to find various colored dots in numerous interactive backgrounds. The dots’ locations are randomized for different play experiences each time. Carter’s Bugs in a Box series has sold 6.5 million copies worldwide.

The levels continue to get more challenging as the game is played. The app also includes tips for parents who wish to expand game play, teaching their child about shapes and counting.

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Street Surfing Introduces Whiplash Pink

Active girls will love the challenge of the Whiplash Pink, an innovative new scooter that can be self-propelled so that feet never have touch the ground.

The Whiplash, by Street Surfing, LLC, incorporates Wave board technology with an exclusive caster design, flexing deck, and folding handlebars. Girls of all ages will be attracted to the Whiplash’s fashionable pink, white, and black design scheme, combined with the lasting fun of mastering its Wave board abilities. Girls can also ride the Whiplash Pink like a traditional scooter.

The Whiplash Pink retails for $69.99 and is available at Kmart and Amazon.com.

Imperial Introduces New Licenses to Bubble Lines

Imperial Toy—a maker of licensed and non-licensed kids’ bubbles, seasonal products and novelty toys—has announced new licenses for its popular bubble toys, with products launching in 2012 and beyond.

Imperial has teamed with Disney Consumer Products for a new comprehensive line of magical bubbles and bubble accessories based on Disney characters, including Disney Princess, Toy Story, Cars, and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, to launch starting next spring. Each product line will include basic bubbles, bubble toys, bubble wands, and dip and blow sets.

Go Bubbles, a new licensed bubble line, will also be released next spring. Go Bubbles stand over 18 inches high and deliver a continuous stream of bubbles when pushed down by a child (geared towards ages 3-5). Licenses include Little Tikes Cozy Coup, Disney Princess Carriage, and Hit Entertainment’s Thomas the Train.

New DVD Release from The Laurie Berkner Band

Children won’t have long to wait until Party Day!, The Laurie Berkner Band’s second music video DVD, hits stores on July 26. The successful children’s music band can be seen regularly on the Nick Jr. channel as the band is continually featured on the series Jack’s Big Music Show. The band’s 2006 DVD, We Are…The Laurie Berkner Band, is a quadruple-platinum selling hit that solidified the band as children’s music stars.

Party Day! will be a musical adventure as Laurie (lead vocals, guitar), Susie Lampert (keyboards), Adam Berstein (bass) and Bobby Golden (drums/percussion) travel to a costume party, a birthday party, and a pajama party. The DVD also comes with a five-track bonus CD that features a new, acoustical version of the hit song “My Family.”

For information on 2011 tour dates, click here.

To sample a few of the new Party Day! tracks, click on the links below:

“Come On In”

“Where Is The Cake?”

K’Nex Announces Mario Kart Wii Building Sets Contest

Mario fans across the nation will be on the lookout for a golden ticket. K’Nex, the construction toy company, has announced its new officially licensed Mario Kart Wii building sets with a tie-in contest.

The contest, which ends today (hurry!), allows fans to register online to receive a free Mario or Luigi K’Nex figure. A total of 300 figures will be distributed on each day of the promotion.

Five of the 10,000 figures will include a Mario figure plus a “Golden Ticket” that entitles the winner to a special prize package. The package includes a Wii console, the entire K’Nex Mario Kart Wii product line, and a trip to tour the K’Nex headquarters in Hatfield, Penn.

The K’Nex Mario Kart Wii building sets allows fans to build tracks with accessories and obstacles for their favorite Mario Kart Wii characters. For more information, complete rules, and to enter the sweepstakes, click here. There’s no purchase necessary to participate in the contest.

Photo Credit: grettajohns.blogspot.com

Licensing Deal For “Dorothy Of Oz”

Summertime Entertainment has signed a master toy licensing agreement with Bandai America Incorporated through its exclusive licensing agent, Travis James LLC, for the upcoming 3-D CGI animated musical feature Dorothy Of Oz. The line of Bandai toys will include dolls, play sets, plush, role play, trading cards, and more. The toy line is set to launch in conjunction with the movie release in summer 2012.

Max & Ruby Partners With Fisher Price, Inc.

Nelvana Enterprises has announced that Fisher Price, Inc. will act as the master toy partner in the U.S. for the popular bunny duo Max & Ruby. Fisher Price has developed a full range of toys, including plush, play sets and bath toys, that will be available next spring with a full launch in fall 2012. The Max & Ruby books, from author and illustrator Rosemary Wells, have sold over three million copies, and Max & Ruby DVDs (Nickelodeon Home Entertainment) have sold nearly 2.4 million copies. The brand is a top-rated show on Nickelodeon and it is also going on tour as a stage show by KOBA Entertainment this year.

Hit Entertainment Names Licensees For New Barney Products

Barney is back with new licensees for products that will attract both young and old fans of the popular television show. Braha has obtained the license to create Barney plush puzzle mats while a Barney-inspired pillow will join the line of Pillow Pets from Ontel Products Corporation and CJ Products, LLC. Rasta Imposta is designing an adult Barney costume to complement the child’s costume they already produce. Yoostar is adding Barney & Friends to its library of content, allowing users to insert themselves into video footage from the show. Other apparel and accessories licensees include At Full Speed, Bio World, Classic Imports, Concept One and Planet Sox.

Moshi Monsters Toys Exclusively At Toys “R” Us

Mind Candy and Spin Master, Ltd have announced a partnership to expand the online gaming hit Moshi Monsters into a line of toys, to be carried exclusively at Toys “R” Us. The product offerings will include six plush Moshi Monsters characters, as well as 32 Moshling (monsters’ pets) minifigures, all available in late July. To integrate the toy experience with the online world, the toy design includes secret redeemable codes and special trial memberships. Future merchandising will include trading cards produced by Topps and books from Scholastic, Inc.

Mega Nabs Warcraft, Starcraft Licenses

Mega Brands and Blizzard Entertainment have announced a licensing partnership to create Warcraft– and Starcraft-themed construction sets that will be available next summer. The gaming hit World of Warcraft remains the most popular online multi-player, role-playing game in the world, while the second installment in the Starcraft series (Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty) is the fastest selling, real-time strategy game of all time. The first construction toy sets from this deal will be based on iconic locations, characters, and vehicles from the two games.