Lego set to face the might of Hasbro

TRANSFORMERS fought for world domination in "Revenge of the Fallen." Now they're taking aim at Lego.
Toy maker Hasbro Inc is joining the building-block fray with a new line called Kre-O that's compatible with Lego blocks. The first products feature popular Transformers characters such as Optimus Prime and Bumblebee.
Kre-O, which will launch this autumn, is intended to grab part of the booming construction set business that Lego dominates. While total toy revenue in the United States rose 2 percent to US$21.87 billion in 2010, according to the NPD Group, building set sales jumped 13 percent.
The line will launch with 12 Transformers sets. Hasbro plans to expand Kre-Os to its other brands eventually.
Each Transformer set comes with two sets of instructions so the same bricks build the vehicle version of the Transformer as well as the robot version. Prices will range from US$6.99 to US$59.99.
Kre-Os was one of thousands of new toys competing for the attention of children, and their parents, at the American International Toy Fair trade show which opened in New York yesterday.
Hasbro said earlier this month that its net income slipped 16 percent in the fourth quarter as US demand for toys dropped off late in the year.
"Toy makers had a good year, but it wasn't the great year we expected," said BMO Capital Markets analyst Gerrick Johnson.
That could make retailers more cautious about ordering this year, which makes getting early buzz as a potential hot holiday toy important.
Hasbro previously introduced a construction set line in 2003 called Built to Rule, but it was discontinued by 2005. The Built to Rule blocks didn't hold together well and some of the sets were too difficult for their age range, Hasbro's chief marketing officer, John Frascotti, said.
The Kre-O line has better quality bricks and are compatible with Lego and the similar Mega Blocks, he said.
The new line makes sense for Hasbro, said Jim Silver, toy analyst at timetoplay.org, particularly since a new Transformers movie, "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," is set for this summer.
"Transformers is a hot boys license that hasn't entered the construction category," he said. "They've been wanting to enter the category for years."
Lego is expanding into new categories itself. Last year the Danish toy maker introduced board games, and this year it is venturing into other gaming areas with a new line called Ninjago, featuring ninjas training in an ancient martial art to fight an evil lord.
Source:Shanghai Daily