In the ever-evolving world of gaming, branded merchandise is becoming an increasingly significant aspect of gaming culture, extending the experience beyond the screen and into the daily lives of gamers. From games developers leveraging their titles into merchandise lines to businesses from other industries dipping their virtual toes into the digital world with in-game offerings, there are an endless array of potential branding opportunities to be pursued. With this in mind, gaming and non-gaming businesses now have a unique opportunity to calibrate their branding strategies by strengthening their trade mark portfolios.
Strategic Brand Expansion
More and more, games developers are looking beyond gaming and exploring how their titles, characters, storylines, music and artwork can be capitalised on through novel merchandise and licensing deals. As video games continue to permeate popular culture, the opportunity for brand extension and giving fans the chance to own pieces of their favourite virtual worlds has never been greater.
Looking back, the earliest video game merchandise from the 1980’s was typically limited to small items like stickers, keyrings and action figures. In the decades since, it has become common for games developers to also offer tied merchandise in the form of clothing, bags, and small home décor items like posters and mugs. Fast forward to now, and we are seeing game titles being embodied in an ever growing range of less conventional merchandising, including fragrances, skincare, food and drink, fridges and even vehicles. We can see this in the trade mark registrations now being obtained by games developers for their most successful titles:
- Registration No. 2017471 FORTNITE, covering goods including false nails, iron gates, hammers, saddlery, furniture, cookware, and cricket bags;
- Registration No. 2170595 LEAGUE OF LEGENDS covering baby oils, cameras, pet jewellery, pre-paid telephone calling cards, wind chimes, corkscrews, bread, and beer, in addition to other goods and services;
- Registration No. 1401164 SONIC THE HEDGEHOG covering a range of goods including clocks, purses, drinking straws, piggy banks, curtains, pancakes and ice cream mixes; and
- Registration No. 2286926 NINTENDO, which covers laundry preparations, cosmetics, vitamins, batteries, clothing for pets, pillows, potato chips, tea, and non-alcoholic beverages amongst other goods and services.
While merchandise may not make sense for every game title, it is worth considering traditional and non-traditional merchandise opportunities for new and existing game titles and factoring this in to brand protection strategies. This may for instance include registering titles, devices and even character names, visual incarnations and distinctive phrases as trade marks.
Virtual Promotion & Cross Collaboration Opportunities
Savvy non-gaming businesses are taking advantage of the hundreds of millions of monthly users on games like Fortnite® and Roblox®, by using these titles to promote their goods and services. From luxury fashion houses designing virtual clothing to automotive brands creating exclusive in-game vehicles, virtual environments are unlocking new creative and commercial frontiers.
Businesses in diverse commercial areas should take note of these possible opportunities, and ensure their brands are registered for virtual versions of the goods and services they are providing in the real world.
Intellectual Property Considerations
As businesses venture into these new territories, the importance of protecting intellectual property becomes paramount. Securing trade mark registrations for the right goods and services ensures that businesses can safely explore and exploit these expanded branding opportunities without the risk or distraction of complaints of infringement, and also provides subject matter to be licensed to others. More importantly, registration also gives businesses the ability to prevent their trade marks, or confusingly similar trade marks, being used by others in their areas of interest.
Key Takeaways
Looking ahead, the virtual worlds of popular gaming titles are likely to have an ever-growing influence on real-world business decisions. We can expect to see more innovative partnerships, with gaming brands venturing into new markets and non-gaming brands seeking a presence in the virtual space.
The best thing all brand owners and businesses can do now to plan for their futures is to:
- Strategically consider and assess cross-branding and merchandising opportunities that align with their brand identities, whether these are in the virtual or real world; and
- Review and where commercially prudent seek to secure trade mark protection for the signs that differentiate and distinguish their goods and services.
After all, we would all do well to keep the real secret of George Lucas’ success in mind; “All the money is in the action figures.”
This article forms part of DCC’s Gaming & IP initiative