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Minecraft builds success
one pixel at a time
Open-source indie game Minecraft is no longer an underground
phenomenon. With reported revenues
of US$137.7 million in 2012, and the announcement
earlier this year that 20 million copies of the game
have been sold across all platforms, the curtain has finally risen
on creator and owner Mojang, a 31-person Stockholm-based
game studio.
The game itself, first released in 2009 on PC platforms, brings
players into a deep, immersive 3D digital environment where
they can participate in an almost limitless number of activities,
including combat, building, exploration and even crafting. Minecraft’s
challenging, customizable and constantly updated digital
landscape has spawned a hardcore and dedicated global fanbase,
particularly among kids ages eight to 12.
In 2010, Mojang took its first careful step into the world of
licensing through a deal with Lego to create playsets inspired by
Minecraft. “Lego was obviously our top choice,” says Carl Manneh,
CEO of Mojang. “The original idea actually came from our Minecraft
online community and we approached [Lego] about it.”
The days of Mojang approaching potential licensees, of
course, are gone. The company’s extremely careful approach to
licensing, coupled with fan demand for product, has put it in the
enviable position of sitting back and watching the offers roll in.
“We look at licensing as a way to strengthen the overall
brand,” says Manneh. “One thing we are afraid of is selling out.
We don’t want to overexpose
our brand.”
Accordingly, Minecraft‘s
roster of licensees is small,
but growing. Recently, Mojang
inked a major deal with
Sunrise, Florida-based toyco Jazwares
to produce action figures, electronic
accessories and papercrafts that will hit
US retailers this holiday season.
“We are essentially trying to build upon the pillars of
the gameplay,” says Bill Graham, VP of marketing and product
innovation at Jazwares. “Construction and customization of
the environment are key play patterns.”
Graham says that he expects the lines to hit both specialty
and mass retail later this year.“It’s a global phenomenon,” he
says. “It certainly is on retail’s radar at this point.”
With a publishing deal with UK-based Egmont to produce
four handbooks, a Minecraft magazine and two more books just
announced, Mojang seems to be easing its way into a more robust
program. However, Manneh insists that the company does
not yet need any third-party help from licensing agents.
“We may come to a point when licensing is consuming us,”
he admits. “If we find ourselves working with only licensing, then I
guess we would look to an outside agency to help us.” –Gary Rusak
Minecraft
owner Mojang
approached Lego for
the game’s first license,
but with 20 million game
downloads and a growing,
rabid fanbase, licensees
are now in hot pursuit
New UK
firm Box of
Awesome
plans to deliver
excitement
to kids, viral
marketing
opps to
licensors
Packaged goodness
There is just something about getting a package in the
mail. And that notion informed the development of
Box of Awesome, an innovative marketing-driven discovery
platform founded by UK entrepreneur Dylan
Collins that launched in February.
“The idea came to me because I was trying to solve the
discovery problem for brands in the kids area,” says Collins.
“There is more content every day and yet there is actually
less physical retail space. We found that both large
and small brands were having trouble communicating to
teens and tweens.”
The solution lies inside an 8.5-inch x 8.5-inch x 3.5-
inch cardboard box that Collins’s company stuffs with goods
from the likes of Topps, Random House, Panini, Nickelodeon
and Mind Candy, among others. Filled with new products
and samples, the boxes are then shipped out to a list of kid
subscribers in the eight to 14 demo.
“The brands understand that this is true word-of-mouth
marketing and that kids don’t receive something physical in
the mail very often,” he says. “It truly stands out.”
Collins’s team curates the box’s content with an eye towards
showcasing new, innovative and creative products
from well-known and undiscovered brands. “Our benchmark
for products is that they be awesome,” he says, adding that
the company’s mandate is to include one book in each box.
“The boxes are substantial in terms of weight and value.”
Box of Awesome’s brand partners pay a placement
fee for being included in the packages and also receive
research reports based on the back-end information the
company collects.
Parents can pay a nominal subscription fee (US$4.50
for two months) to guarantee that their child receives boxes
that are sent out roughly six times a year. Kids can also
sign up on the website (www.boxofawesome.tv) for free
and take their chances that they will be mailed one before
supplies run out.
Box of Awesome also encourages kids to make and post
videos on the site of them opening their box, capturing their
often excited and hilarious reactions to its contents.
To enhance its digital footprint, Box of Awesome purchased
kids digital trading network Swapit (Swapit.co.uk)
in May. Accordingly, the new company is being dubbed SuperAwesome
and will work to merge the digital and physical
marketing platforms. –Gary Rusak
38 May/June 2013