Extinction is merciless, and it’s coming for the dinosaurs once again. Earlier today, Hasbro has announced they were unable to secure new deal with Universal Pictures for the Jurassic Park license and 2017 will be its final year producing items for the brand. CNBC covered the latest investors call, and reported the following:
The company, which makes a significant part of its revenue through licensed products, revealed that it would no longer handle “Jurassic Park” licensing after 2017 during its earnings conference call. Earlier, the company had posted quarterly profit and revenue that outpaced analyst estimates.
“We have had a many year relationship with Universal; we will no longer handle ‘Jurassic Park’ because they are unable to arrive at a mutually beneficial financial arrangement on that brand,” Brian Goldner, CEO of Hasbro, said during the call.
“Jurassic Park” was a headwind for the boys’ category in the latest quarter, and it would continue to have an impact into the third and fourth quarters, Goldner said.
This is fairly depressing news. It’s no secret that Hasbro’s Jurassic World offerings were underwhelming, and a severe step down in quality compared to their past lineups. However, Hasbro has been the license holder since the original Jurassic Park (if you count them as Kenner due to their acquisition of the brand). I personally cannot think of another toy company out there capable of easily producing a toy line worthy of Jurassic Park’s action figure legacy.
While toy manufactures like NECA could do good things with the Jurassic brand for collectors, they would not create a line nearly as expansive as the past. This means removable dino-damage, vehicles, capture gear, and large, affordable electronic Tyrannosaurus Rex items are less certain going forward. Today’s news will mark a fairly large tonal shift for Jurassic toys, and it is likely the future lines will not be nearly as mainstream.
While Hasbro retains the Jurassic license up until the end of 2017, it is unclear if they will proceed with their plans of releasing toys. It is possible that both the 2016 ‘Dino Hybrids’ and 2017 ‘Raptor Squad’ line will see cancellations.
Update: Mattel is now in charge of the ‘Jurassic World’ license. Learn more!
Thanks to Brad Jost of the Jurassic Park Podcast for the heads up!
Source: CNBC, Wall Street Journal
