Raving Toy Maniac

LEGO Systems Builds Eighth Consecutive Year of U.S. Sales Growth

-Brand relevance and play pattern at an all-time high as company's 2012 sales increase by 26%-

AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL TOY FAIR, NEW YORK (February 8, 2013) -- LEGO Systems, Inc., the North American division of the world's leading construction toy brand, achieved its eighth consecutive year of double-digit U.S. consumer sales growth in 2012, increasing category and overall toy industry shares over record performance in 2011.

2012 U.S. Year-End Highlights (Source: The NPD Group / Retail Tracking Service)

• Continued year-on-year growth trend in the U.S. as consumer sales grew +26% to reach $1.32 billion.
• Increased U.S. total toy market share to 7.9%, up +1.6 share points over 2011, maintaining rank as America's third largest toy manufacturer. The company's share of the total U.S. toy market has quadrupled in five years.
• Grew share of U.S. Building Sets category +5.3 points to 84.6% in a year of increased category competition.
• Gained +12.1 share points to reach 51.4% of the Preschool segment of U.S. Building Sets.

LEGO Systems Unveils 250 New Building Sets at American International Toy Fair

- Builders of all ages will be inspired by endless LEGO possibilities, from new preschool play options to classic themes and new licenses to the introduction of the most advanced LEGO® robotics product ever -

NEW YORK, Feb. 7, 2013 -- American International Toy Fair -- LEGO Systems, Inc., makers of the world's leading construction toys, will unveil its largest collection of build and play toys ever – 250 new products – at the American International Toy Fair in New York City. With new products launching throughout the year, children of all ages and interests will find a LEGO® building set or theme to spark their building creativity, inspire storytelling and role play or keep them engaged in imaginative play for hours. New items are on display in Booth #1351 in Hall 3B of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center from February 10-13.

The LEGO Group Announces Building Sets Inspired by Disney's The Lone Ranger

NEW YORK, American International Toy Fair (February 7, 2013) – The LEGO Group today announced an upcoming collection of LEGO® construction toys inspired by the Disney/Jerry Bruckheimer Films' feature film The Lone Ranger, which debuts in theaters July 3, 2013. Scheduled to launch this April, six new building sets will bring the action and stories of the film to life in LEGO form, and will include iconic characters such as John Reid (aka The Lone Ranger), Tonto and the horse, Silver.

"We are thrilled to once again collaborate with Disney Consumer Products to create construction toys based on a live action film," said Jill Wilfert, vice president licensing & entertainment at The LEGO Group. "We have not offered a LEGO western theme in over 10 years, and The Lone Ranger provided the quintessential inspiration with familiar characters, stories and scenes, allowing us to develop authentic and exciting models for children and adult collectors alike."

Disney at American International Toy Fair 2013

(RTM note - this is a long one, with lots of nifty gems mentioned, such as the LEGO Lone Ranger license...)

GLENDALE, CA (Feb. 5, 2013) - Innovation, creativity and powerful storytelling are the hallmarks of the 2013 toy line from Disney Consumer Products (DCP).

Some of the most innovative toys are from the new Monsters University toy collection and include features like sound and light detection technology and facial sync technology to allow for more interactive play than ever before, while The Little Mermaid and Disney Junior toy lines incorporate music and character voices to bring the products to life.

Sparking imagination, these toys capture the magic of playtime with evergreen play patterns. Here is a highlight of the top products from DCP at Toy Fair 2013:

DISNEY/PIXAR ANIMATION

Monsters University
Mike Wazowski and James P. Sullivan are an inseparable pair, but this was not always the case. Monsters University tells the story of how these two mismatched monsters overcame their differences and became the best of friends.

LEGOLAND® California Resort Builds Largest Expansion In Resort's History!

CARLSBAD, Calif., Jan. 17, 2013 -- LEGOLAND® California Resort's General Manager Peter Ronchetti announced new additions, a national Junior Concierge search and employment growth with new jobs to come when North America's first LEGOLAND® Hotel opens April 5. "With annual additions, LEGOLAND California Resort is a multi-day destination proving the need for this multi-million dollar hotel," said Ronchetti. "With the Hotel comes new jobs and our HR team is filling 250 positions. Not only has the Resort grown tremendously since opening in 1999, but we have truly heightened the economy in the area providing up to 1,610 Model Citizens (employees) averaging 5% growth annually since 2004. Our employment numbers have increased 62% in the last eight years!"

G-cluster Continues to Build its Cloud Gaming Catalog with LEGO® Batman™ and LEGO® Harry Potter™ Titles from Warner Bros.

TOKYO, ESPOO, Finland, PARIS and BURBANK, Calif., Jan. 9, 2013 -- G-cluster announced today the launch of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment premium games on its cloud gaming platform.

The four Warner Bros. Games that launched for the first time to G-cluster's European operator customers in December are LEGO® Batman™ The Videogame, LEGO® Batman™ 2: DC Super Heroes, LEGO® Harry Potter: Years 1-4 and LEGO® Harry Potter : Years 5-7. The games are initially available via IPTV, with versions for Windows PC, Mac, tablets and smartphones to follow.

With these new additions, the G-cluster catalog now totals more than 105 live titles and 200 licensed games from 30 game studios.

G-cluster's fully-featured white label service offers operators the most deployed cloud gaming platform that allows users to play across the TV and multiple mobile devices.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, TT Games, The LEGO Group and Marvel Entertainment Assemble To Create LEGO® MARVEL SUPER HEROES

Marvel Super Heroes Build Their Way into LEGO Games Autumn 2013 with an All-New, Action-Packed LEGO Videogame Adventure

London, UK – 8th January, 2013 – Marvel Super Heroes are assembling for an action-packed, brick-smashing good time! Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, TT Games, The LEGO Group and Marvel Entertainment announced today that LEGO® Marvel™ Super Heroes will be available from autumn 2013 for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, the Wii U™ system and Windows PC, as well as the Nintendo DS™ handheld system, Nintendo 3DS™ handheld system and PlayStation®Vita handheld entertainment system. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes is the first installment in the highly successful LEGO videogame franchise to feature famous Marvel characters.

Calling All Mini Model Builders!! LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Wants You!!

LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Westchester Launches Online Search For Imaginative And Enthusiastic Children To Serve As Attraction Ambassadors On Its Junior Construction Panel

YONKERS, N.Y., Jan. 7, 2013 -- With LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Westchester set to open on March 27, 2013 at Ridge Hill in Yonkers, the attraction is looking to build the final piece of its creative team — the Junior Construction Panel — and today launched an online search to find the tri-state area's most creative and brightest youngsters to join the panel.

LEGO® Robots Begin Worldwide March: New Smarter, Stronger LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Unveiled At CES

LAS VEGAS, Jan. 7, 2013 -- CONSUMER ELECTRONICS SHOW -- Today The LEGO Group announced LEGO® MINDSTORMS EV3, a new platform for consumer robotics designed to introduce a younger generation to the excitement of building and programming robots while adding new flexibility for its devoted following of robotics enthusiasts. Unveiled for the first time at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 is the result of three years of product development by an international team of LEGO designers, MINDSTORMS user-enthusiasts and leading technology experts. LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3, available in summer 2013, will be previewed to members of the global media at Digital Experience! on January 7 and will be demonstrated to CES attendees during the Kids@Play Summit, January 8-11, 2013, in the Venetian Hotel.

LEGO Legends of Chima Races onto Shelves In 2013

ENFIELD, Conn., Jan. 2, 2013 -- LEGO Systems, Inc. today announced LEGO® Legends of Chima™, an original LEGO property set in a mythical land of magical animal tribes who compete for CHI, a valuable energy source which gives them extraordinary powers over one another. The story comes to life through a universe of products across the company's entire play system including classic building sets, collectible social competition kits, buildable figures and board games, and will be fueled by digital gaming.

"Building upon our success with developing rich and immersive original storylines, most notable the recent Ninjago phenomenon, we're excited to launch a whole new world in LEGO Legends of Chima to spark any child's imagination and invite them to the world of LEGO building," said Soren Torp Laursen, president of LEGO Systems, Inc. "Based on the reactions we saw through our research, there is no doubt that our immersive approach to original properties will once again inspire, engage and thrill children who love to build and play with great stories."

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