How Legos Licensed the Universe, and Ended Up Ruling Us All
J Thoendell stashed this in Film
Source: http://www.wired.com/underwire/2014/02/i...
Lego, pre-millennium: stackable bricks, generic yellow-headed characters, revenue sputtering. Lego today: Crushing the toy industry under its interlocking feet, having overtaken Mattel and Hasbro as the most profitable toymaker in the world. That’s partially due to licensing deals, which, starting in 1999, added icons like Darth Vader and Batman to the mix. Many other properties followed—and The Lego Movie, out in February, features many of our favorite modular heroes meeting for the first time. Here are some of the character lines that helped make it happen.
Stashed in: Interconnectedness!, Brands!, Star Wars!, Lord of the Rings, LEGOS!!!, Awesome, Pirates!, Harry Potter, Batman!, Infographics!, G4!, Spider-Man!, Toy Story!, Indiana Jones, Spongebob!, TMNT, LEGO, LEGO Movie
It was LEGO's ability to cross-license and cross-pollinate that led to them being a platform for the interconnectedness of all things.
The videogames really helped cement LEGO's position.
And the article doesn't really go into LEGO's own Ninjago franchise.
8:59 AM Feb 07 2014