Licensing Survey Reports Royalties Stabilized in 2010

As the Licensing Expo kicks off today in Las Vegas, the International Licensing Industry Merchandisers’ Association reported that year-to-year royalties generated from the sale of licensed merchandise remained fairly stable in 2010 at $5.065 billion despite ongoing softness in consumer spending.

The results were published in the annual Licensing Industry Survey, which concluded that although the amount of royalties collected in 2010 from the sale of licensed product declined slightly, the positive retail results at the end of last year give cause for optimism and set the tone for 2011.

LIMA’s numbers are derived from results of its annual survey of companies directly involved in the licensing business, examination of public financial documents, and interviews with licensing industry executives, with the goal of providing reliable data to help licensing professionals identify trends and growth opportunities.

Nearly half (47%) of licensing industry royalty revenues are generated in the Character segment, which includes characters from all portions of the entertainment business. This segment declined just 1% in 2010.

Other licensing news from the expo includes:

• Nickelodeon and JAKKS Pacific announced a multi-territory master toy license agreement for JAKKS Pacific to manufacture, distribute and market a line of toys and other products based on the animated action and fantasy series, Winx Club. The JAKKS Pacific Winx Club product line is scheduled to launch in fall 2012 to coincide with the premiere of the brand new CGI episodes of Winx Club on Nickelodeon and will span multiple categories, including dolls and playsets, role play, dress-up and Halloween costumes.
• Warner Bros. Consumer Products announced a partnership with underwear manufacturer Undergirl, the Juniors division of Underboss Productions, to create a line of women’s underwear and sleepwear featuring some of DC Comics’ favorite female super heroes. Among the femme fatales in the DC Comics universe are Wonder Woman, Batgirl and Supergirl. Undergirl is the leading manufacturer and innovator of Juniors underwear and sleepwear, including whimsical tanks, bikinis, panties, bras, tutus and pajamas. The partnership is set to run through 2013.