New York Times
Septe
Nickelodeon, citing research that shows younger
children are adopting more sophisticated technology,
is introducing a line of consumer electronics branded
with personalities from some of its most popular
shows. SpongeBob, for example, is used for an alarm
clock and a portable media player, among other things.
The merchandising effort also reflects a bid by
Nickelodeon, part of Viacom, to sell more expensive
products that will appeal to core fans as they age.
“We’re finding that kids have one foot entrenched in
kid-dom and another entrenched in technology and
things you might normally associate with adults,” said
Leigh Anne Brodsky, president of Nickelodeon and
Viacom Consumer Products.
To differentiate the merchandise from the many
Nickelodeon-branded products already available, the
cable network and its licensing partner, Imation, are
pushing retailers to stock the items amid their
higher-end electronics.
“We want to remind consumers that these are
sophisticated items and not toys,” said Steve Moss,
chief marketing officer at Imation, which is based in
Oakdale, Minn.
To some consumers, they may look like toys. They range
from a $59.99 Dora the Explorer digital camera to a
$249.99 15-inch flat-screen television that resembles
the lead character from the cartoon “SpongeBob
SquarePants.” The liquid-crystal display is shaped
like a sponge and rests on two oversize plastic shoes.
The brightly colored line, which also includes a DVD
player and a digital photo frame, will arrive in
stores like Best Buy and Wal-Mart this month.
Over the last decade, Nickelodeon has built a
multibillion-dollar licensing business on the backs of
its hit cartoon characters, selling everything from
SpongeBob macaroni to Dora the Explorer jewelry. But
media analysts say efforts to delve into more
expensive items — and children’s technology gear in
particular — have lagged behind those of some
competitors.
Although Nickelodeon has sold SpongeBob CD players and
Dora clock radios for years, the items were not
presented as a complete line and lacked the
sophistication of the new items. “The challenge is
moving up the age ladder and targeting older kids with
higher quality products,” said Ross Rubin, who tracks
consumer technology trends for the NPD Group.
The business is competitive, with rivals like the Walt
Disney Company aggressively rolling out products. In
the fall of 2005 it introduced a digital media player
called Disney Mix Stick, which was successful enough
for the company to decide to expand within the
category. Last month Disney announced the arrival of
its own flat-screen TVs and digital video cameras.
Ms. Brodsky of Nickelodeon said that an internal
study, conducted this year among children age 8 to 14
and their parents, indicated that the youngsters were
not satisfied with the available branded consumer
electronics. “These days, the kids are the chief
technology officers of their families and they want
products that reflect their knowledge,” she said.
According to NPD’s most recent study of children and
consumer electronics trends, the average age that
children begin using consumer electronics devices
declined from 8.1 years in 2005 to 6.7 years in 2007.
The study, conducted in June, showed that children
begin using electronic devices when they are 7, with
children as young as 4 starting to tinker with
computers.