Post by The Big Daddy C-Master on Mar 14, 2016 12:27:50 GMT -5
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Two of the most popular franchises in the world are Warcraft and Star Wars. While each franchise attracts millions of fans, they are different in terms of licensing power and revenue generated for their respective parent companies. Here’s a look at the differences between Warcraft and Star Wars.
Disney Scores Big With Star Wars Acquisition
Disney (NYSE: DIS) made the $4.1 billion acquisition of Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC, creator of the Star Wars brand, to strengthen its licensing business and also to create additional movies for the popular movie franchise. With the blockbuster results of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” it appears that Disney got quite the bargain with its purchase, of which half was paid with stock and half paid with cash.
Star Wars became the most successful film merchandising franchise in 2012, with $30.57 billion in sales. More than $12 billion of those sales came from franchise-related toys alone. The success of its latest movie shows this franchise has a long life ahead, which increases brand value and shows that Disney may have clinched the deal of a lifetime.
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has grossed $924 million in North America and $1.1 billion in international markets. This put the movie over the $2 billion mark and makes it the third-highest-grossing title in the world, of all time. The movie easily became the highest-grossing movie in North America of all time and in 2015.
World of Warcraft Still a Cash Cow for Activision Blizzard
Since the release of “Warcraft” in 1994, Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI) has enjoyed success in the PC market. The company hit the big money with the release of “World of Warcraft,” the fourth game in the Warcraft series.
“World of Warcraft” is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) that users pay a monthly subscription fee to play. The game had a peak of more than 12 million monthly players before dropping to the current rate of around 7 million players a month.
Activision Blizzard reported full year revenue of $4.6 billion for fiscal year 2015, a decline from $4.8 billion in the prior year. However, the company did see success among its Blizzard properties. Blizzard hit an all-time high for monthly active users in the fourth quarter. Revenue from Blizzard in the fourth quarter also came in ahead of the previous year.
For the full fiscal year, Activision Blizzard reported product sales of $2.4 billion and subscription/licensing revenue of $2.2 billion. Blizzard contributed $1.6 billion, or 34% of the company’s total revenue, for fiscal year 2015, and “World of Warcraft” remained the number-one subscription-based MMORPG for the year. The company is aiming for $6.25 billion in revenue for fiscal year 2016, thanks to the acquisition of King Digital, maker of the popular “Candy Crush” game.
Warcraft is one of the key blockbuster franchises for Activision Blizzard. In 2015, the company commanded three of the top five spots for console game revenue. It also had the fourth-highest-grossing PC game in “World of Warcraft,” with a reported $814 million in revenue.
Warcraft Set to Break Out in 2016
The stars are aligning for Warcraft and Activision Blizzard shareholders. In 2016, the Warcraft brand will be released on the big screen, and another expansion pack for the popular “World of Warcraft” game will allow players to join in with the big-screen adventure.
The newest “World of Warcraft” expansions pack is called “Legion” and will be released in 2016. The company began taking pre-orders for the highly anticipated game in November of 2015. “World of Warcraft” has seen monthly memberships increase with the release of each expansion pack.
Activision Blizzard, primarily a video game company, would certainly appreciate it if the licensing power of Warcraft kicks in. A big push was made for the Warcraft brand at the New York Toy Fair. Licenses for figures, toys, apparel, electronics and jewelry have been signed. Licensees include Think Geek, now owned by Gamestop Corp. (NYSE: GME), Funko, and Jakks Pacific Inc. (NASDAQ: JAKK).
Strong Future for Star Wars
Star Wars played an important role in why movie-related toy sales jumped 9.4% in 2015. The toy sales of Star Wars was greater than “Jurassic World,” “Minions,” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron” toys combined.
In the first quarter, Disney reported its 10th consecutive quarter of double-digit earnings per share growth. The inclusion of revenue from “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” was a big reason for the jump. Overall revenue grew 14% to $15.2 billion. The studio segment was the biggest gainer with revenue up 46% to $2.7 billion. Consumer products revenue grew 8% to $1.9 billion, and fourth-quarter consumer product revenue increased 11% to $1.2 billion, led by Star Wars Classic-related revenue.
The fun isn’t over for Star Wars fans, nor for Disney shareholders. A second wave of toys related to “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” hits shelves in 2016, including highly anticipated toys featuring Daisy Ridley’s Rey character. There will also be more toys related to the upcoming 2016 release “Star Wars: Rogue One.”
Hasbro Enjoying the Star Wars Ride
In 1991, Hasbro (NASDAQ: HAS) acquired Tonka, the owner of Kenner. Kenner had the rights to make Star Wars toys for years, and since then, Hasbro has ridden along the coattails of the franchise as one of the best and most profitable Star Wars licensees.
Both Disney and Hasbro are profiting from their relationship. In 2013, Hasbro agreed to pay $225 million in guaranteed royalties to Disney for the rights to Star Wars merchandise through 2020. This is a small price for Hasbro to pay if the brand's sales continue to be strong. In 1999, the year of “Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace,” Hasbro saw revenue of $4.23 billion, 36% of which came from Star Wars-related merchandise. The prior year, Star Wars toys made up only 13% of Hasbro’s revenue. Hasbro will no doubt continue making toys to boost its revenue as additional Star Wars titles are released.
Two of the most popular franchises in the world are Warcraft and Star Wars. While each franchise attracts millions of fans, they are different in terms of licensing power and revenue generated for their respective parent companies. Here’s a look at the differences between Warcraft and Star Wars.
Disney Scores Big With Star Wars Acquisition
Disney (NYSE: DIS) made the $4.1 billion acquisition of Lucasfilm Ltd. LLC, creator of the Star Wars brand, to strengthen its licensing business and also to create additional movies for the popular movie franchise. With the blockbuster results of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” it appears that Disney got quite the bargain with its purchase, of which half was paid with stock and half paid with cash.
Star Wars became the most successful film merchandising franchise in 2012, with $30.57 billion in sales. More than $12 billion of those sales came from franchise-related toys alone. The success of its latest movie shows this franchise has a long life ahead, which increases brand value and shows that Disney may have clinched the deal of a lifetime.
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has grossed $924 million in North America and $1.1 billion in international markets. This put the movie over the $2 billion mark and makes it the third-highest-grossing title in the world, of all time. The movie easily became the highest-grossing movie in North America of all time and in 2015.
World of Warcraft Still a Cash Cow for Activision Blizzard
Since the release of “Warcraft” in 1994, Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI) has enjoyed success in the PC market. The company hit the big money with the release of “World of Warcraft,” the fourth game in the Warcraft series.
“World of Warcraft” is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) that users pay a monthly subscription fee to play. The game had a peak of more than 12 million monthly players before dropping to the current rate of around 7 million players a month.
Activision Blizzard reported full year revenue of $4.6 billion for fiscal year 2015, a decline from $4.8 billion in the prior year. However, the company did see success among its Blizzard properties. Blizzard hit an all-time high for monthly active users in the fourth quarter. Revenue from Blizzard in the fourth quarter also came in ahead of the previous year.
For the full fiscal year, Activision Blizzard reported product sales of $2.4 billion and subscription/licensing revenue of $2.2 billion. Blizzard contributed $1.6 billion, or 34% of the company’s total revenue, for fiscal year 2015, and “World of Warcraft” remained the number-one subscription-based MMORPG for the year. The company is aiming for $6.25 billion in revenue for fiscal year 2016, thanks to the acquisition of King Digital, maker of the popular “Candy Crush” game.
Warcraft is one of the key blockbuster franchises for Activision Blizzard. In 2015, the company commanded three of the top five spots for console game revenue. It also had the fourth-highest-grossing PC game in “World of Warcraft,” with a reported $814 million in revenue.
Warcraft Set to Break Out in 2016
The stars are aligning for Warcraft and Activision Blizzard shareholders. In 2016, the Warcraft brand will be released on the big screen, and another expansion pack for the popular “World of Warcraft” game will allow players to join in with the big-screen adventure.
The newest “World of Warcraft” expansions pack is called “Legion” and will be released in 2016. The company began taking pre-orders for the highly anticipated game in November of 2015. “World of Warcraft” has seen monthly memberships increase with the release of each expansion pack.
Activision Blizzard, primarily a video game company, would certainly appreciate it if the licensing power of Warcraft kicks in. A big push was made for the Warcraft brand at the New York Toy Fair. Licenses for figures, toys, apparel, electronics and jewelry have been signed. Licensees include Think Geek, now owned by Gamestop Corp. (NYSE: GME), Funko, and Jakks Pacific Inc. (NASDAQ: JAKK).
Strong Future for Star Wars
Star Wars played an important role in why movie-related toy sales jumped 9.4% in 2015. The toy sales of Star Wars was greater than “Jurassic World,” “Minions,” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron” toys combined.
In the first quarter, Disney reported its 10th consecutive quarter of double-digit earnings per share growth. The inclusion of revenue from “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” was a big reason for the jump. Overall revenue grew 14% to $15.2 billion. The studio segment was the biggest gainer with revenue up 46% to $2.7 billion. Consumer products revenue grew 8% to $1.9 billion, and fourth-quarter consumer product revenue increased 11% to $1.2 billion, led by Star Wars Classic-related revenue.
The fun isn’t over for Star Wars fans, nor for Disney shareholders. A second wave of toys related to “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” hits shelves in 2016, including highly anticipated toys featuring Daisy Ridley’s Rey character. There will also be more toys related to the upcoming 2016 release “Star Wars: Rogue One.”
Hasbro Enjoying the Star Wars Ride
In 1991, Hasbro (NASDAQ: HAS) acquired Tonka, the owner of Kenner. Kenner had the rights to make Star Wars toys for years, and since then, Hasbro has ridden along the coattails of the franchise as one of the best and most profitable Star Wars licensees.
Both Disney and Hasbro are profiting from their relationship. In 2013, Hasbro agreed to pay $225 million in guaranteed royalties to Disney for the rights to Star Wars merchandise through 2020. This is a small price for Hasbro to pay if the brand's sales continue to be strong. In 1999, the year of “Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace,” Hasbro saw revenue of $4.23 billion, 36% of which came from Star Wars-related merchandise. The prior year, Star Wars toys made up only 13% of Hasbro’s revenue. Hasbro will no doubt continue making toys to boost its revenue as additional Star Wars titles are released.
