PAWTUCKET, R.I. -- Aug. 21, 2003 -- Contender Entertainment Group (CEG) has appointed Hasbro, Inc. to be the master toy licensee in North America for its hit preschool property Tractor Tom. Hasbro plans to launch the first Tractor Tom toys across North America in the second half of 2004.
Tractor Tom has become the UK hit of the summer with strong early toy sales in the UK, as well as sales of both videos and books. The video released by CEG has become the best-selling video of an animated ITV show in the past five years.
"We were immediately struck by the thematic farm play pattern, charming characters and adorable vehicle play of the Tractor Tom property," said Ira Hernowitz, senior vice president of marketing for Hasbro's preschool division. "We think the fun and magic of the Tractor Tom characters will translate beautifully into a toy line that preschoolers will embrace."
Contender Entertainment Group Managing Director Richard Bridgwood said, "We're delighted that Hasbro has become our toy licensee for North America. With such great licensees on board we have taken a huge step forward in our strategic aim of ensuring Tractor Tom is the long term character brand for preschool farm play."
About Hasbro, Inc.
Hasbro (NYSE:HAS) is a worldwide leader in children's and family leisure time entertainment products and services, including the design, manufacture and marketing of games and toys ranging from traditional to high-tech. Both internationally and in the U.S., its PLAYSKOOL, TONKA, MILTON BRADLEY, PARKER BROTHERS, TIGER and WIZARDS OF THE COAST brands and products provide the highest quality and most recognizable play experiences in the world.
About Contender Entertainment Group
Contender Entertainment Group (CEG) was set up by Richard Bridgwood in 1995 and is one of the UK's fastest growing media businesses.
In December 2002 CEG entered the Sunday Times Virgin Atlantic Fast Track 100 companies at position 51. The list represents Britain's top 100 fastest growing privately owned companies.
In the past year the company has almost doubled its turnover organically from GBP 6.5 million to GBP 11 million and has achieved GBP 1 million profit.
CEG operates in four divisions: Videos, Books, TV and Consumer Products.
The company distributes material in four principal genres, comprising cult and classic TV, children's programming, nostalgia programming and celebrity based general entertainment. The company is a specialist in all these genres.
CEG owns Tractor Tom; the CiTV hit series, which has become ITV's best performing animated video over the past five years.
The company's vision is to 'Build Entertainment Brands'
