Groove Bricks reports that Chinese Lego store Toabao has put up images of several Lego dinosaurs that allegedly will be included in the 2015 Jurassic World Lego sets. These look like updated molds of the dinosaurs that we saw in the Lego Dino theme so I think they may be right. Will the nemesis in the new movie be an albino T-rex that desperately needs a trip to the dentist for a cleaning? I'm guessing this dino is the rumored Diabolus Rex or D-Rex, the genetically modified Tyrannosaurus Rex, crossed with a Velociraptor, snakes and somehow a cuttlefish. The standard Tyrannosaurus that we've seen before but with different coloring. The construction looks identical to the old T-rex. Some new Velociraptors in various colors; A fan favorite because they are so clever. It looks like we get four different characters. A new Coelophysis that is very bright though no articulation in the jaw. You're reading Leg Godt, the blog with the latest Lego news and the best sets in the web.
Follow us on Twitter or Facebook.As one potential war in China heats up, another is officially over, at least according to one brand. “LEGO and BanBao Have Ended Their War” is the title of the press release sent out by BanBao Europe. The announcement celebrated a settlement between there two brands under which the duo will “seek a fair competition based on respect for each other’s position.” If one didn’t know any better, it might sound as if Banbao — less well known as Guangdong Jumbo Grand Plastic Moulding Industrial Co., Ltd. — had finally settled a corporate dispute between equals. But Banbao was a lot less conciliatory in more private statements. Banbao, the brand name of plastic building toys is a chip off the old Lego block. If by “chip off” one means “knock off.” Lego has long had a contentious relationship with intellectual property law and its courts over exactly how much one can own the idea of a toy block and Banbao is just one of the companies that has challenged the iconic brand after building its brand on a segment Lego more or less invented.
The bad blood between China’s Banbao and the Dutch Lego goes back to 2011, when Lego first sued Banbao. Denmark’s Lego has beefed with international rivals before. In 2010 the brand lost a lawsuit with Canada’s Mega Bloks over Lego’s 1999 attempt to trademark its product. On appeal, the European court ruled that Lego’s trademark was invalid as “industrial design” products like bricks did not warrant IP protection. But the 2011 suit against Banbao wasn’t about its block system, but instead about Banbao’s packaging, which Lego charged was intentionally confusing. No surprise, Banbao’s price point is significantly lower than Lego’s. A side-by-side comparison put together by the blog Mark Matters (at top) more or less makes Lego’s case. Making the best of a ruling against it, Banbao’s press release pledges “to respect the ruling of the Dutch court.” “The BanBao products will now further show the BanBao logo, the packages are adapted to show a distinctive BanBao design and the product designs differ from LEGO products.
BanBao has further developed a new character (ToBees) with a distinctive design that is still compatible.” But over on Banbao’s official site the brand comes off as far less respectful. “BanBao does not need an introduction anymore. The brand with the well-known building bricks had obtained a competitive position within the building brick market. That was until Lego started, and won, a lawsuit against BanBao. This was a major setback for the growing brand, but now they are back and it appears they will be able to operate stronger within the building brick market. BanBao has been present in the building brick market for 2 years now, and has gained a lot of sales channels in a short period of time. There was however, demand from retailers and consumers to gain a clearer brand identity. Something BanBao already was working on for some time.
Still too many people considered BanBao as a copy. Therefore, the BanBao management wanted to create an own identity as soon as possible.
Unfortunately for BanBao, Lego was one step ahead of them and started a lawsuit against BanBao…” See, banbao was the innocent victim of Lego’s lawyers being just too darn fast. Meanwhile, Lego was dealing with its own new skirmish. After pledging to not give up on girls, the brand released a product line called “Friends.” That landed in hot water with some feminists who considered the line sexist. It looks like Lego won again though as sales of the line have tripled, quite possibly aided by the controversy. Below, a closer look at Banbao from a consumer POV:This Firm Is Spurning Huge Chinese Valuations to Go Public in the U.S.Chinese logistics company ZTO Express is turning up the chance of a much more lucrative share listing at home in favor of an overseas IPO that lets its founder retain control and its investors cash out more easily.To steal a march on its rivals in the world's largest express delivery market, it is taking the quicker U.S. route to raise $1.3 billion for new warehouses and long-haul trucks to ride breakneck growth fueled by China 's e-commerce boom.
Its competitors SF Express, YTO Express, STO Express and Yunda Express all unveiled plans several months ago for backdoor listings in Shenzhen and Shanghai, but ZTO's head start could prove crucial, analysts and investors said."ZTO will have a clear, certain route to raise additional capital via U.S. markets, which their competitors, assuming they all end up quoted in China , will not," said Peter Fuhrman, CEO of China -focused investment bank China First Capital.With a backlog of about 800 companies waiting for approval to go public in China and frequent changes to the listing rules by regulators, a New York listing is generally a quicker and more predictable way of raising funds and taps a broader mix of investors, bankers and investors said."ZTO will have a built-in long-term competitive advantage - more reliable access to equity capital," Fuhrman added.U.S. rules that allow founder Meisong Lai to retain control over the company and make it easier for ZTO's private equity investors to sell their shares were some of the main reasons to go for an overseas listing, according to four people close to the company.
U.S. markets allow a dual-class share structure that will give Lai 80% voting power in the company, even though he will only hold 28% of the stock after the IPO.Most of Lai's shares are Class B ordinary shares carrying 10 votes, while Class A shares, including the new U.S. shares, have one vote. China 's markets do not allow shares with different voting power.ZTO's existing shareholders, including private equity firms Warburg Pincus, Hillhouse Capital and venture capital firm Sequoia Capital will also get much more leeway and flexibility to exit their investment under U.S. market rules. In China , they would be locked in for one to three years after the IPO.As concerns grow about a weakening Chinese currency, the New York IPO also gives it more stable dollar-denominated shares it can use for international acquisitions, the people close to the company said.For more on the IPO market, watch Fortune's video:Demand for the IPO, the biggest by a Chinese company in the United States since e-commerce giant Alibaba Group's $25 billion record in 2014, already exceeds the shares on offer multiple times, two of the people said.
That underscores the appeal of the fast-growing company to global investors, despite a valuation that places it above household names United Parcel Service Inc and FedEx Corp .The shares will be priced on Oct. 26 and start trading the following day.ZTO is selling 72.1 million new American Depositary Shares (ADS), equivalent to about 10% of its outstanding stock, in the range $16.50 to $18.50 each. The range is equal to 23.4-26.3 times its expected 2017 earnings per share, according to people familiar with the matter.By comparison, Chinese rivals SF Express, YTO Express, STO Express and Yunda shares trade between 43 and 106 times earnings, according to Haitong Securities estimates.UPS (ups) and FedEx (fdx), which are growing at a much slower pace, trade at multiples of 17.8 and 13.4 times."The A-share market (in China ) does give you a higher valuation, but the U.S. market can help improve your transparency and corporate governance," said one of the people close to ZTO. "Becoming a New York-listed company will also benefit the company in the long-term if it plans to conduct M&A overseas and seek more capital from the international market."
China 's express delivery firms handled 20.7 billion parcels in 2015, shifting 1.5 times the volume in the United States, according to consulting firm iResearch data cited in the ZTO prospectus.The market will grow an average 23.7% a year through 2020 and reach 60 billion parcels, iResearch forecasts.Domestic rivals STO Express and YTO Express have unveiled plans to go public with reverse takeovers worth $2.5 billion and $2.6 billion, while the country's biggest player, SF Express, is working on a $6.4 billion deal and Yunda Express on a $2.7 billion listing.ZTO plans to use $720 million of the IPO proceeds to purchase land and invest in new facilities to expand its packaged sorting capacity, according to the listing prospectus.The rest will be used to expand its truck fleet, invest in new technology and for potential acquisitions."It's a competitive industry and you do need fresh capital for your expansion, in particular when all your rivals are doing so or plan to do so," said one of the people close to the company.