April 11, 2022 - As global brand licensing agency Beanstalk celebrates 30 years in licensing, we are taking a closer look at the various aspects of the agency that have led to its success. Tinderbox, a division of Beanstalk, is dedicated to working with digital brands to realize their potential in the world of consumer products. Tinderbox addresses the market need for a brand licensing agency specializing in extending digital properties – from interactive gaming to all categories of apps including games, entertainment, and lifestyle. License Global spoke with Dave Tovey, Director, Brand Management and Head of Tinderbox, to learn more about what makes Tinderbox unique and invaluable to clients.  

License Global: Tell us about where the gaming market is right now and where it is going?  

Dave Tovey: The gaming market is at an incredibly exciting stage with many developments taking it to the next level that will ultimately change the core of the industry.  

Cloud-based streaming technology is a big part of this; online subscription services such as Xbox Game Pass allow users to play hundreds of next-generation console games on their mobile devices and soon Smart TV’s without the need to own the physical game or even a console or PC.  

With this transition to cloud-based technology, you can’t ignore the metaverse. Companies such as Meta, formerly Facebook, are investing billions of dollars into their platforms. However, many other platforms have been around for years and are doing it very well. For example, Roblox has existed since 2006 and in January 2022 it had nearly 55 million daily active users. Many major gaming franchises such as Call of Duty Warzone, can also be viewed as a metaverse. Millions of players are partaking in large-scale community events online, and you can expect these platforms to evolve, adding more social interactions and commercial opportunities to engage and grow their userbase.  

In terms of new commercial opportunities NFTs will play a key part in this experience, adding a whole new unique proposition over standard downloadable content. Questions do remain on NFTs regarding regulation, trademarks, and sustainability, however the momentum is behind this category, so these issues will be solved over time.  

How is Tinderbox more agile than other agencies as it relates to the digital media space? 

Tinderbox was created to service clients with digital media brands that needed a more nimble approach to licensing, coupled with strong strategic experience, licensee and retailer relationships and robust back-office operations. We anticipate changes in the gaming space and leverage our expertise to maximize opportunities for clients as well as for the agency. The Tinderbox team are experts in all things digital. An example of this is esports: a few years back we anticipated the growth in popularity in esports and knew it would become mainstream and ripe for licensing. Within a short time, we began representation of Electronic Sports League, ESL, the world’s leading esports company, and quickly secured partners within apparel and consumer electronics. 

What are the opportunities for licensing-in big brands into games, the metaverse or NFTs?  

As gaming continues to transition to an always-on service, developers are increasingly looking at new ways to keep players engaged or attract new ones, and licensing in of famous IP to be featured in games has become a big part of this. Recent examples include the Rambo cross-over in Far Cry 6 or the Call of Duty Warzone Halloween event featuring Scream and Donnie Darko bundles. These partnerships create compelling opportunities for all brand owners and in the not-so-distant future, the licensing of IP in the digital space will be a core part of any licensing program.   

But you don’t just have to partner with some of the biggest games to reach a digital audience -- the metaverse provides opportunities for simultaneous experiential, digital and physical brand engagement with current and future consumers. Brand owners are creating compelling, immersive experiences in platforms such as Roblox or Decentraland that are generating strong market awareness and revenue via virtual items or NFTs. When looking at NFTs, IP owners should give consumers a compelling reason to own another piece of the brand, creating smart and unique offerings that have strong synergy with the IP and drive long-term appeal within the community.  

Tinderbox is strategically positioned to capitalize on these market changes. Through our long-term expertise and strong contact base in the world of digital, we can assist brand owners from various industries to take their next big step into the new age of digital.  

What are some of your latest achievements in the gaming space for consumer products and why do they stand out? 

Xbox consumer products launched into the European market in early 2020 and the response since has been phenomenal! In partnership with Microsoft, we have been able to establish the brand as an evergreen for both kids and adults in categories such as apparel, gifting and home. The brand's strength has also allowed the program to succeed in non-traditional categories, such as the Xbox Mini Fridge, a sell-out over Christmas 2021, or celebration cakes, where the controller-shaped cake is the number one-selling licensed item in its category in the UK.  

As well as finding true success with gaming properties at mass retail, we are also able to activate fan favorite licensing programs within the pop culture and specialist community. Through our partnership with the Xbox Game Studio, Rare, we have extended their heritage and current properties, such as Sea of Thieves, Banjo-Kazooie, and Killer Instinct, into multiple categories including figurines, soundtracks, plush, and even arcade cabinets. Many of these products have caused quite a stir on social media and fanzine platforms, with strong sales following.  

Walk us through how gaming brands require a different approach to consumer products at retail? 

The gaming franchises that we represent, whether it’s Call of Duty, Halo, or Sea of Thieves, are always on and supported with constant updates and content drops in-game. This means that there are often multiple tentpole events per year as opposed to just one, as one may see in the entertainment industry.  

A great example of this is the Call of Duty franchise. The brand continues to perform very strongly at retail; however sometimes it isn't possible to sync these in-game events with product launches at traditional retail. Therefore, with Activision, we partnered with The Hut Group/Zavvi to create print-on-demand fashion capsule collections that can launch with the latest franchise beat. The most recent example of this was for the Call of Duty Vanguard apparel collection that came bundled with exclusive downloadable content for the game. You can expect many more collections to drop throughout 2022 to coincide with major events within the franchise world.  

To ensure maximum success, we always plan out these promotions well in advance; however, print-on-demand does allow you to act quickly and be current when needed. A notable example of this came from Sea of Thieves -- for International Women’s Day they designed some specific artwork which was celebrated by the community, and within a day the design was available as a T-shirt on the official e-commerce store.  

What licensing rollouts does Tinderbox have planned for 2022 and 2023? 

All of our clients’ core franchises have exciting plans over the year which will make their games bigger than ever, and we look forward to helping this growth through the power of licensed partnerships.  

As we transition into the next stage for our clients Xbox and Activision, momentum is very much behind the brands with further expansion across Europe and in pan-regional retailers with curated collections at the forefront of gaming activity throughout 2022 and 2023, plus expansion into new aisles with every day and seasonal category launches.  

For our most recent client, Ubisoft, we manage their Just Dance franchise across Europe. Just Dance is the number one music gaming franchise of all time, with 11 titles, 80 million games sold, and more than 138 million registered players worldwide. The franchise has a largely female player base across gen alpha, Z, and young millennials, with many using the game as a form of social expression, to exercise or connect with their friends. These strong attributes of the franchise have allowed us to create a unique opportunity for retail, delivering a true fashion-forward and female-focused gaming program, which taps into the trends of athleisure and self-expression. We have already made great in-roads with the fashion launch, with listings already placed in the Nordics with more to come from the UK and France towards the end of 2022.