Found this article. Not sure if it has been posted before:
Disney Consumer Products (DCP) today announced that 2006 will be the best year ever for boys. Driven by the tremendous success of Disney*Pixar's "Cars," the establishment of "Pirates of the Caribbean" as a long-term franchise and the ongoing popularity of "Power Rangers," Disney is reaching boys with everything from die-cast, action figures and bikes to MP3 players, video games and books.
"With the strength of our entertainment, we knew 2006 would be the year we became a power house boys player," said Andy Mooney, chairman of Disney Consumer Products. "Similar to DCP's girl's portfolio, which is the best in the industry, our boy's portfolio offers everything from the whimsical 'Cars' and 'Toy Story' characters to the heroic rite of passage that is 'Power Rangers' for younger boys, to the cooler, more aspirational 'Pirates of the Caribbean' brand for the older boy."
"Power Rangers" - DCP's #1 Boys Brand
DCP kicked-off its year experiencing strong demand for "Power Rangers" action figures, its perennial boy's property, during the Holiday 05 season. In 2005, "Power Rangers" was ranked second in the action figure category behind "Star Wars," according to The NPD Group. Next year's theme will be called "Power Rangers: Operation Overdrive." "Power Rangers" airs more than 65 times each week in over 40 territories worldwide, and continues to expand worldwide with successful launches in Italy, India and other countries this year.
Disney*Pixar's "Cars" - phenomenal success
The tremendous anticipation of "Cars" before the film was released combined with the huge box office opening resulted in record-breaking retail sales for merchandise based on a Disney*Pixar theatrical film. The film's humor, story and character personalities were incorporated into its products, which featured many category firsts for a Disney*Pixar film, including the first power ride-on, kids electronics line and bedroom suite. Currently, "Cars" is recording 10 to 1 more retail volume than "Finding Nemo" at the same point in its release. DCP plans to expand and refresh product with new creative style guides for fall and beyond. Large retailers have already committed to "Cars" feature shops for the entire months of November and December to maximize the DVD release.
"Pirates of the Caribbean" - evergreen boy's franchise
On July 7, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" will release to theaters and reignite a pirate frenzy that started in 2003. "Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl" recorded more than $650m in global box office sales, and "Dead Man's Chest" is one of the most highly-anticipated events of the summer. With ongoing entertainment support, DCP is positioning "Pirates of the Caribbean" as an evergreen boy's franchise, comparable in opportunity to its "Disney Princess" franchise for girls.
Since the audience for "Pirates of the Caribbean" is so broad, DCP looked to create innovative product and edgy creative designs for multiple consumers. Toy licensee, Zizzle's Black Pearl playset was already chosen for Toy Wishes "Hot Summer Toys" list, a high-end apparel and jewelry line tied into the current Pirates fashion trend will launch to specialty stores, and Disney Publishing developed the largest live-action publishing series ever -- including the latest novel, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" (junior novel), currently on the New York Times children's best-seller list. "Pirates of the Caribbean" product will be featured in all key categories represented at major retailers worldwide.
"Toy Story" - 10 Years Strong
And let's not forget about Woody and Buzz. Ten years from its initial release, the "Toy Story" franchise continues to show growth at retailers like Target, which showed double-digit growth in "Toy Story" merchandise sales this year. Additionally, "Toy Story" is the best-selling boy's property at
Disney Store North America, with new Buzz Lightyear and friends product in all key categories featured in more than 100 stores.
