Lego Says 2015 Was Its ‘Best Year Ever,’ With Huge Sales JumpLego Group reported astounding revenue growth for 2015, up 25% from the prior year as it estimated the company's popular construction sets and toys reached an estimated 100 million children.The strong performance built upon years of success as the Danish-based toy maker has cultivated a very loyal following by selling a mix of traditional Lego sets and licensed properties linked to Star Wars, The Avengers, Batman and other popular franchises. Lego's results also extended a strong sales jump in 2014, when toy sales were up 13% as results were greatly boosted by the company's first major motion picture film, "The Lego Movie.""This has been the best year ever for the Lego Group," Lego Chief Executive Jørgen Vig Knudstorp told analysts during a video presentation. Vig Knudstorp was so enthusiastic about the results that he leaped into the air in front of the press, saying "If I could sing and dance, I should be singing and dancing because it is a fantastic number of results."
Lego's growth has been astonishing. It reported annual sales of about $2.3 billion in 2010 and just five years later, reported revenue of about $5.2 billion (those figures were converted from the Danish krone).What's fueling the growth? Parents are putting greater emphasis on toys that inspire learning, especially under the umbrella of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Lego has also benefited from blockbuster films like the latest Star Wars, as well as a greater push to address the girls' market.But also notably, Lego can't yet claim the title of world's largest toy maker. Barbie and Hot Wheels maker Mattel (mat) is still larger, with $5.7 billion in revenue for 2015. Mattel's sales have faced challenges however, dropping 5% last year. Transformers and My Little Pony owner Hasbro (has) ranks third in the toy aisle, with $4.45 billion in revenue.The toy industry is in a period of strength as it benefits from big sales from two hot Walt Disney (dis) properties: "Frozen," a princess-themed movie that drove demand in 2014 and "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," which lifted sales late in 2015 and should be a strong tailwind for this year as well.
Shop LEGO From a galaxy far, far away… LEGO® Star Wars™ provides exciting opportunities for your child to develop construction skills and relive the excitement of the films or create their own imaginative adventures. Shop Now > Fire up your child’s imagination with a Fire Brigade setting, construction site or recreate a police car chase through a city street. LEGO® City allows your child to replicate the action and adventure of the world they see outside with LEGO®. Shop Now > A world your child will love. Expand your child’s growing creativity with endless colourful scenarios of animals and everyday life with the classic LEGO building experience. Hours of imaginative play for your child. Shop Now > For small hands with BIG imaginations. The perfect toy for your child’s development. Twice the size of ordinary LEGO® and brightly coloured LEGO® DUPLO® is your child’s introduction to the fun world of LEGO®. Shop Now > Your child will discover how easy and fun building LEGO can be with LEGO Juniors.
Designed around simplicity, drawing on everyday scenes plus imaginary ones with superheroes and princesses. Shop Now > Explore the exciting world of the DC Universe heroes and villains with LEGO® DC Comics™ Super Heroes such as LEGO® Batman. You and your child will love constructing and creating this world of action and adventure together. Shop Now > Enter the world of the all new LEGO® NEXO KNIGHTS. Shop Now > Develop children’s creativity with LEGO® Classic. Sets contain ideas to help them get started, plus LEGO Classic spans so many different age groups, there’s fun and imagination for the whole family. Shop Now > Build castles, towers, carriages and treasure chests from your child’s favourite classic fairytales or with Cinderella, Ariel, Merida, Rapunzel and imagination your child can create a new fairytale. Shop Now > Your child can create a range of realistic vehicles and buildings that look just like the world around them. Cars and planes in bright LEGO colours designed for growing imaginations.
Each set can be rebuilt three different ways for limitless fun. Shop Now > Based on the hit TV series, LEGO Ninjago is an exciting world of ninja battles against the forces of evil. Building is just one part of the fun as your child can also play the Spinjitzu game with friends, creating an interactive, fun and social experience for growing minds. The release date for Gerard Butler's 'Geostorm' also was pushed back again. Warner Bros. has pushed back the release of the LEGO Movie sequel to February 2019, nine months later than originally planned. The LEGO Movie 2 had been set to hit theaters on May 18, 2018; it will now open Feb. 8, 2019. Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who directed the first film, are producing the follow-up with Dan Lin and Roy Lee. The franchise is growing, with the LEGO movie Ninjago due for a Sept. 23 release and a Lego Batman movie slated for May 2017. While the original date for LEGO 2 meant a prime summer release, The LEGO Movie dazzled when opening in February 2015 on its way to earning roughly $470 million globally, proving that family animated films can thrive in winter.
Gerard Butler's Geostorm, which already was pushed back three months last fall, is being delayed again to Oct. 20, 2017, to be released in 3D and Imax. Writer-producer Dean Devlin is directing the sci-fi adventure film. Live by Night, directed by and starring Ben Affleck, moves from October 2017 up to Jan. 13, 2017, and the Ed Helms and Owen Wilson-starrer Bastards, originally slated for a November release this fall, will move to Jan. 27, 2017. The Hangover cinematographer Larry Sher is making his directorial debut with the comedy.It's very possible that you've already heard about LEGO® Life over the past months, as it was rolled out in the UK late 2016. Today, however, we're really excited to share its official launch across 8 countries (U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Germany, Denmark, Austria and Switzerland), with availability in more countries to follow in 2017 and 2018. For those of you who don't know, LEGO® Life is a new, safe social network for kids under 13. The app based experience, available for iOS and Android, both on smartphones and tablets, will allow our younger LEGO builders to connect online with other young fans of the brick.
Here they'll be able to share their creativity, be inspired, inspire others, take on challenges, and do much more in a fun and safe environment! How do you play a part in LEGO Life? And that's where you, the LEGO Ideas community, come in. We're sure you're wondering why we are excited to tell you about a social network aimed at kids under 13, given that LEGO Ideas is for you 13+ builders. For starters, it shouldn't come as a surprise that we think that LEGO Ideas members create amazing work and that it's incredibly inspiring to browse the countless projects that are submitted everyday. We think kids all over the world would be equally, if not even more, inspired by the models that you all create and we're looking forward to 2017 where we will start sharing images of some of the awesome models that you've created on LEGO Life. Who knows, perhaps there's a kid out there who'll be inspired by your work or building techniques, and go on to create the next LEGO Ideas set in the future!
In the mean time, go ahead and download the free app, available on iOS and Android, together with your kids to discover the many fun experiences it holds for them. Download the LEGO Life app today /life, or check out the article from the LEGO Life team below. LEGO Group Launches LEGO® Life, a Safe Social Network for Kids Under 13 Building on its experience with nurturing communities and extending its expertise in developing quality, child-friendly digital play experiences, The LEGO Group today announced the launch of LEGO® Life, a safe social network for kids under the age of 13. The app-centered digital experience allows young LEGO builders of all levels and interests to connect with a community of like-minded peers to express their creativity, share their LEGO creations, interact with LEGO characters, and inspire one another. The experience launches today in the U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Germany, Denmark, Austria and Switzerland, with additional markets launching in 2017 and 2018.
“The LEGO Group aims to develop digital experiences that complement and enhance LEGO play,” said Rob Lowe, head of LEGO Life. “LEGO Life creates a platform that amplifies the joy of building and pride of creation that kids experience with tactile play through the digital world in a safe way – further unleashing creativity among kids and tweens on a much broader scale.” LEGO® Life Increases the Sociability and Personalization of LEGO Play LEGO Life bridges physical and digital play experiences, innovating on the best of today’s social network features to add a social layer to LEGO play. message boards to share stories and photos about LEGO building, a richer, more dynamic social media platform such as LEGO Life is a natural next step in the evolution of LEGO community engagement. “LEGO Life provides the platform where kids and tweens can take their LEGO creations and stories and give them the audience they deserve,” added Lowe. The LEGO Life app lets kids personalize their LEGO experience through direct interaction with their favorite LEGO characters, exclusive content, an in-depth 3D LEGO minifigure avatar creator, and fun building inspiration and challenges.
LEGO Life also introduces a custom LEGO Emoji Keyboard with which kids and tweens can communicate about what they create in LEGO form, as well as comment on what their peers share. “LEGO bricks are already established as a global visual language that kids understand and use to express themselves,” explained Lowe. “The LEGO Emoji Keyboard takes this personalization one step further with a keyboard of recognizable emojis augmented by stickers and phrases that let kids engage safely within LEGO Life.” According to global research that informed the development of LEGO Life, 90 percent of kids surveyed are aware of emojis and their use in communication. When asked if they use emoji icons, approximately 40 percent of kids said “yes.” By infusing a LEGO look and feel into familiar emoji vernacular, the LEGO Emoji Keyboard helps kids and tweens inspire and support each other even though their spelling and typing skills may be still developing. LEGO® Life is a Constantly Growing Source of Inspiration
Similar to mainstream social media platforms, LEGO Life delivers a newsfeed customized to user preferences. The app encourages kids and tweens to identify and “follow” topics of interest so that their feed is populated with relevant images, challenges and more. For example, kids can choose to follow groups dedicated to certain animals, vehicles, heroes, specific LEGO themes, seasonal programs or regional topics that they find most relevant. Additionally, LEGO Life provides kids and tweens with inspiration and mentorship in fun and engaging ways. LEGO Master Builders will share creations and issue a variety of building challenges within LEGO Life to encourage building and sharing among the community. Characters such as Master Wu from LEGO NINJAGO, Emma from LEGO Friends and LEGO BATMAN™ will share building inspiration and will appear within the app to comment on member builds. New features will be continually added to the experience. As the network grows and expands, users will find other ways to customize their LEGO experience, such as earning rewards for their engagement in LEGO activities and the ability to inventory their LEGO collection, among many other things.
LEGO Life will also be available through many other LEGO touchpoints to enable as many LEGO fans as possible to experience its potential. LEGO® Life is Safe and Secure LEGO Life is a safe social network for kids under 13. It is designed to be a child’s first digital social experience, taking users by the hand and introducing them to some of the core concepts of a social network, all through the trusted values associated with the LEGO brand. As detailed in the Digital Safety section of LEGO Life, participants’ safety is assured in several ways. LEGO Life prevents kids from sharing personal information, images, or anything that could allow users to identify and locate one another. For example, when a user creates an account, he or she uses the random name generator to create a silly 3-word mix for a display name, such as “DukeCharmingShrimp” or “ChairmanWilyDolphin.” In place of real or facial photos for LEGO Life profiles, users create their avatar by selecting the LEGO minifigure or minidoll of their choice, adding clothing, hair and more to create their virtual persona.
All content and comments on LEGO Life are monitored by LEGO employees who specialize in moderation to ensure that it is LEGO Life-appropriate and child-friendly. All moderators go through brand and child safety training, and the moderation team is located in LEGO offices around the world to ensure quality, always-on service. Use of the LEGO Emoji Keyboard replaces actual text when commenting on user-generated content. Commenting is tightly controlled and pre-moderated while emoji comments are post-moderated, keeping communication simple, universal, positive and fun. Adherence to the LEGO Safety Pledge and UNICEF Standards The LEGO safety pledge is a method for parents to talk to their children about digital safety while establishing a shared commitment to ground rules for online social behavior, and LEGO Life policies and procedures adhere to these ground rules. Additionally, LEGO Group has an ongoing partnership with UNICEF through which the company received guidance as to how to ensure child safety in developing LEGO Life.