Commentary
The amusement trade’s IP driven era charges forward
The amusement industry’s investments in IPs and brand licenses are not new, but the movement is expanding at a faster pace in a more media intensive consumer marketplace.
August 7, 2023 by Kevin Williams
IP and branded properties have become one of the important elements of the amusement scene, with game developers drawing on IPs from various media. Keeping track of the various developments is a challenge.
Sega Amusement International has scored a huge success with "Bop It! Arcade" based on the Hasbro toy.
But as the push for branded properties has expanded, game executives cannot ignore the turbulent nature of the brand market, which is most likely a driving force behind brands' diversification into the location based entertainment scene.
Hasbro, for instance, recently announced it will be laying off 20% of the staff from its film production division Entertainment One, known as eOne. This is part of some 1,000 job cuts across the corporation, following a drop in revenue reported.
As Hasbro redefines its focus with moves into LBE, it is planning to sell off its eOne operation, which has worked with Paramount on big spectaculars based on its IP, most notably with the robot franchise that sees the latest film, "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts," released in cinemas soon. Media speculation indicates that Lionsgate will be the most likely suitor for the film production operation.
Cinema shakeups
The movie IP sector for its part has its own shakeups. It was recently revealed that Warner Bros. Discovery was in final negotiations to sell off more than half of its storied films, music and television assets for some $500 million, one of the most far-reaching sales of properties across the entertainment sector.
Warner studios and assets shared with Universal are reported to be involved, although there is no confirmation at this time of the possible purchaser of these assets. This deal will include properties owned and operated by HBO, TNT, Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, CNN, Discovery and Quest to name a few.
Many observers feel this could be the beginning of such developments from other studios, as the reality of current financial conditions hits home.
The Cinema Foundation, a non-profit arm of the National Association of Theatre Owners, reported earlier this year that some 2,000 theater screens were lost across the country on account of the global health crisis.
As previously reported, movie-to-video game tie-ins have gained steam for the mutual benefit of both industries, exemplified by this year's release of "Gran Turismo — the Movie," presenting a story of a gamer's rise in professional racing based on the smash hit PlayStation series.
Game developer Immersive Gamebox recently partnered with Columbia Pictures Location Based Entertainment and Sony Pictures Entertainment to introduce "Ghostbusters: The Cursed Collection," the latest IP license to be added to its immersive enclosure experiences, along with "Squid Games," "Paw Patrol" and "Angry Birds."
Other media tie-ins
Video game tie-ins with other media are also expanding.
Andamiro USA has offered a cable TV channel tie-in with its basketball-themed arcade game, "Tic Shaq Toe" based on Kartoon Channel's "Shaq's Garage."
Videogame studios, meanwhile, continue to push their own game IPs.
Examples include Nintendo with "Zelda" and "Pokemon"; Sega with "Sonic the Hedge Hog"; LAI Games with "Rick & Morty"; Konami with "Frogger" and "Bomberman" and Riot Games with "League of Legends."
One of the more interesting developments is Attraktion!, an Austria game developer known for its media based attractions, which introduced immersive enclosure content with "PlayNeo" and with its license of the "Angry Birds" IP — a tracked enclosure game based on the hugely popular Rovio Entertainment property.
Helsinki, Finland based Rovio was also in the news following its acquisition by Sega in yet another example of how important IP is for the retention of future audiences.
In yet another example of IP branding, Sally Dark Rides, the Jacksonville, Florida based maker of ride experiences, celebrated the immanent opening of its "Uncharted" dark ride, developed in partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment and based on the popular console release that saw its debut on the big screen in 2022. It is soon to open at PortAventura World in Spain as the world's first dark ride roller coaster, developed in collaboration with Intamin, the global amusement ride maker.
The amusement industry's investments in IPs and brand licenses are not new, but the movement is expanding at a faster pace in a more media intensive consumer marketplace.
(Editor's note: Extracts from this blog are from recent coverage in The Stinger Report, published by KWP and its director, Kevin Williams, the leading interactive out-of-home entertainment news service covering the immersive frontier and beyond.)
About Kevin Williams
Along with advisory positions with other entrants into the market he is founder and publisher of the Stinger Report, “a-must-read” e-zine for those working or investing in the amusement, attractions and entertainment industry. He is a prolific writer and provides regular news columns for main trade publications. He also travels the globe as a keynote speaker, moderator and panelist at numerous industry conferences and events. Author of “The Out-of-Home Immersive Entertainment Frontier: Expanding Interactive Boundaries in Leisure Facilities,” the only book on this aspect of the market, with the second edition scheduled for a 2023 release.
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