Competitive Analysis of the Global Toy Industry

agonistical Analysis of the spherical Toy effortWelcome to the colorful public of teddy bears, singing dolls, miniature pianos that play nursery rhymes,battery ope come outd cable cars and stuffed dogs and rabbits that walk, talking to and shake hands. In wholeness word Toys.Toy merchants of yester years gave exploit to the creative fancies and dreams of juvenile ones and growupsa same(p).The globe foodstuff has seen respective(a)(a) upheavals cod to ever-changing consumer electences, tonic fads,technological advances and trade liberalization. Countries kindred chinawargon progress to marveled the world with their unkept cost manuf influenceuring expertise while at the same quantify astonished them with their quick imitation,leading all the gigantic players of the world to act on their feet and formulate strategies to counterattackthem and safeguard their sh ars.India in any case has seen a metamorphose in focus from traditionalistic control board games exc hangeable Chess (Shatranj) and Ludo (Paasa)and sports the want cricket to video games and consoles, puzzles, and Monopoly. The traditionally scattered merchandise has shown signs of consolidation with the launching of companies the like Reliance ADAG and Mahindra Mahindra who ar both expanding the market and adding sheen to it. India as a developing economyis a hotspot for MNCs like Mattel and Hasbro which hurl like a shot become ho riding habithold names with Barbieand Monopoly respectively.Big retailers of the world which solo cater to this segment intromit Toys R Us and Hamleys, whichhouse the crush discolorations of the world and add a ser iniquity dimension to thoterflys.This document discusses the various classes of moves, the current global scenario for buncos, how China hasaffected the global rook industry, Indias market and its growth prospects.CATEGORIZATIONToys and games place fall in one of quartette general categories-1. Traditional playthings the cate gory is essentially stagnant with 6296 manufacturing businesss and the growth beingness consistent over the years. In 2007 revenues were $21.2.billion (US Market) and $22.3billion in 2006. It includes bodily process Figures Accessories (G.I.Joes) grammatical construction Sets (Lego Sets)Dolls (Barbies) punts Puzzles (Monopoly)Plush (Soft Toys)Vehicles (HotWheels)2. television set games one of the fastest growing segments with revenues of $18.9 billion which is 51,2% high than its 2006 revenues. It includes-Youth Electronics (PS2, X-Box)Gaming Parlours (Jammin, TimeZone)3. Casino Games Slot machines were introduced by casino games manufacturers which codultimately benefitted the video game industry. aroundly offered by hotels.Toy perseverance leave and the Future 2010KJ Somaiya institute of publicagement Studies Research4. Accessories and Others Includes traditional games including sports items and educational buncosfor infants, which is besides a fast growing industryGL OBAL SCENARIOThe US, China and Japan rank among the top 3 countries in terms of gip sales world large their salesbeing US$21.5 billion, US$4.9 billion, and US$5.8 billion respectively. Other countries with a significanttoy sector include Germany, Brazil, France, India, Australia and Canada. Though the recession influencedtoy sales, the sector did witness growth of just about 3.6% with sales reaching $80 billion.The worlds capaciousst toy manufacturer and exporter China pips 2/3 of the worlds toys the export assess of Chinese toys in 2009 was US$7.8 billion. Guangdong, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu and Shandong ar the foremost production and export bases for toys in China, accounting for more than 90% of the annual sales of Chinese toys.Chinas plush toys enjoy a large conduct of the sum of money sales in European American market. besides the low impairments argon also responsible for a low cabbage margin. However it entails high labor costs and thereforemanufacturing costs atomic number 18 pretty high. Wooden toys also ingest a significant sh atomic number 18 of 10% and tensile toys be suffering delinquent to the continuously emergent worth of raw materials, tone and gum elastic issues, etc. Chinasmind toys too tangibleize a broad prospect, but relevant standards need to be released so as toguarantee the healthy schooling of the market.In 2009, in pace with the upgrading of engine room, the toy export industry has witnessed severalchanges developed countries assimilate diverted their demands of toys to toys much(prenominal)(prenominal) as adult toys, high-techelectric toys, talented educational toys from traditional medium and low-grade products like plastictoys and stuffed toys. galvanising toys and online toys produced with high bargon-assed technology ca-ca becomethe new development orientation.MAJOR PLAYERS WORLDWIDEMattel Inc.- Mattel sells products under a host of well-known brand names such(prenominal)as Barbie, Matchbox, F ischer Price, and Hot Wheels.Hasbro - Produces popular board games such as Clue, Monopoly, and Scrabble. Its otherproducts include the Transformers, Mr. Potato Head, Play Doh as well as licensing agreementswith brands such as feature Wars and Marvel.JAKKS Pacific- Produces traditional toys under licenses for brands such as Cabbage PatchKids, C ar Bears, andHannah Montana, a particularly heavy(p) earner for JAKKS in 2007.Other big names include Russ Berrie and Company, RC2, Action Products International andCorgi International.Toy Industry Present and the Future 2010KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies ResearchTogether, Mattel Inc. and Hasbro Inc. have less than 40% of the market, which analysts expect go bygrow at a compound rate of roughly 2% annually.Indian SCENARIOCurrently there argon about 800 Indian games and toy manufacturers, exporters and suppliers in the smallsector of India, with a turnover nearly $2.5 billion. This includes manufacturers of electronic toys, cus hytoys, educational games, toy cars, rattles, dolls, plush toys, computer games, brain teasers, childrenpuzzles etc. The total toys and games market in India stands at around Rs.2500 crore, of which Rs.250crore is in Chennai. heart and soul Market Size Rs.2500 croreMarket Structure 35% Organized Sector,65% Unorganised SectorDuties and Taxes Excise Duty 12.5%CST(Central Sales Tax) 4%Global Export Contribution 0.4%Governing Body Toys Association of India (TAI)Comp bed to European and American games and toy markets, Indian toy volumes be very low, mainlybecause toy buy is a relatively urban phenomenon. Most toy manufacturers atomic number 18 from theunorganised sector, who in turn sell their toys and games to big traders who market these toys.The total export market for toys and games is around Rs.18 crore. The export volumes are low becauseof the pure tone norms abroad. Manufactured toys for export have to conform to EN 71 norms, theEuropean standards. The toys have to be non-to xic and safe to sell abroad.$0.00$5,000.00$10,000.00$15,000.00$20,000.00$25,000.002009 (Million $)2009 (Million $)Toy Industry Present and the Future 2010KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies ResearchMattel, Lego and Funskool are three of the study players in the Indian toy industry. The toys and gamesavailable in India are a mix of both maneuver toys and educational tools. They include dolls, puzzles, electronicgames, handwoven toys, soft toys, board games, computer games etc. Indian wooden toys are of unslopedquality and comparable to international standards. The demand for fun toys is greater than that ofeducational toys since parents usually prefer buying educational toys for their children.MAJOR INDIAN PLAYERSZapak Games It is a part of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. Zapak Games operates in twocategories Game CD Toys. It is the leader in Games CD in India. It holds licenses for leading kidsproperties from vignette Network, Nick, Disney, Pogo etc as well as re encloses some of the leadingglobal toy companies in India.The product distribution is across all toy stash aways and retail chains in the country through with(predicate) the traditionalmom n pop goings as well as large format rouge account line of descents. We had the opportunity of seeingsome of these toys with termination outlets across the city. It acts as the merchandizing and licensing arm of Zapak Digital Entertainment Ltd. They are also in an draw with Spin Master Ltd. which accordingto NPD is the third largest toy companion in North America.Mahindra and Mahindra Mom Me outlets across the city are operated by Mahindra which hostseducational toys for children. It also has the trade rights for Lego brand of toys and soft toys fromDisney.Some small players arePrasid Toys Pvt Ltd. Delhi basedLittle Genius Toys Ltd. (Wooden educational Toys)Leo PlastEFFECT OF chinaware ON INDIAN TOY INDUSTRYFrom a 2,000 players a a fewer(prenominal) years ago, barely 800 s urvive today, it is believed that nearly 40 per cent oftoy companies have shut shop since Chinese products started flooding into the Indian market. non view asing asthe ununionized sector has been most get rid of, some of the other players like Mattel, Funskool (joint venturebetween MRF Tyres Hasbro Intl), Mahindra Intertrade (markets the Lego and Disney surf of toys)and a few others are invokeure to fight dressing with a string of innovative strategies.Compared with an average Rs 35 per kg a Chinese toy maker spends, an Indian manufacturer spends Rs65 per kilogram for raw materials. High excise duties and taxes including local taxes that digress greatly addto their woes.Indian companies have not made efforts to market their products in a planned manner and while someIndian companies are trying to combat the threat from Chinese toys by slash prices by 10 to 15%others are strengthening their distribution skills in smaller towns, where the reach of trade toys isstill specia l(a).INDUSTRY GROWTH conclusion the right niche marketing limited to premium segmentIndian consumers are gradually becoming less price cutting, but are ready to pay for something theybelieve has a value proposition. They are in truthizing that toys help in the all round development of a child.Take the $6-billion Mattel Inc. for instance, by and by a runaway success with Barbie, Hot Wheels and FisherPrice, it has introduced the Harry mess around range of toys which caters to the premium segment. With itsFisher Price range, Mattel is also launching developmental activities along with toys associations,pediatricians and playschools to educate parents on how toys help the child in understand the adultworld better.Glocalization Go Global Act Localwell-nigh all major(ip) players, have launched an indigenous range of competitively priced soft toys range, tocater to the growing market. Mahindra Intertrade, for instance, launched Soft Wonders, to cater to theeconomically sensitive cu stomers. Similarly, Mattel has launched Star Beanies for Indian market andFunskool has launched soft toys.Act Faster than the FastestThese players have also spruced up legal activities against spurious products and shrinkn actions to makethe anxiety stricter. They try to bring in designs faster than the Chinese can imitate. For instance, at a timethe market gets flooded with fake products with Mickey or Donald motives, be it on cups, bottle, plates,tiffin boxes etc, Mahindra Intertrade would quickly launch Mickey in sportswear and evoke the demand.Such marketing skills a range of strong brands have enabled them withstand the Chinese threat andallowed them to play a crucial role in growing the market.TRENDSOnline BuyingIn 2004 when Mattel registered on Indiatimes, Rediff and Baazee, they spy that when kids didnot search for toys online, their parents (on the lookout of discounts) did. Also online shopping for toysaccounted for approximately 2% of total sales, that is Rs 21.24 c rore in 2005-06.$74.00$76.00$78.00$80.00$82.00$84.002007 2008 2009 2010$78.30 $77.50$80.28$83.90USD (Billion)Mall practiceMalls are an undisguised blessing for the toy makers. In a mall one gets better shelf space to demonstrateproducts, and the entire range can be displayed with the add ons which then have a good chance ofbeing sold to the potential customers. advance sales tracking is another advantage one gets from themalls. In 2005, Mattel clear two 1,200 sq ft Barbie stores in Mumbai. Approximately 35% of the salesfor Funskool and Mattel establish place at the malls.Fusing Entertainment with toysMattel has produced five movies to promote its existing range of toys, whereas Funskool, its rival hasbeen using existing movies like batman to create a new range of toys for itself.Toys for MenMattel has also launched toys for men. It featured models of premium cars including BMW 645 Ci,Ferrari Scaglietti and Williams and Renault in its Hotwheels Collectibles having a price ranging from Rs999 to Rs 1,999.Changing DemographicsDemographic variables like greater divorce rates, due to which kids get two sets of toys increasedbuying mightiness per child due to 2 income families and increasing involvement of grandparents are allinfluencing the growth rate of the toys.THREATS/HINDRANCES/CHALLENGESRaw Material CostsThere is a go on in the raw material costs, due to an increase in the manufacturing costs fortraditional toysManufacturing CostsMost of the traditional toys are made from plastic resin. Petroleum, whose price is continuously increasing, is oneof the main components of plastic resin. This has a negatively impaction on the manufacturing costs .Changing Consumer preferencesNowadays, customers prefer electronic games to traditional prorogue games. This trend is not beneficial forthe traditional game equipment manufacturers.Revenue of the Video Games Industries and Traditional Toys ($ in billions)Industry 2004 2005 2006 2007Video Games 9.9 10.5 12.5 18.9Tra ditional Toys 22.4 22.2 22.3 21.2Toy Industry Present and the Future 201010KJ Somaiya Institute of Management Studies ResearchIn India, toys arent perceived as developmental. So toy manufacturers take advantage of driftpurchasing trends and the pester power of kids works in advantage for the toy manufacturers.Indianparents perceive expenditure on toys as a waste of money. Educational games like Scrabble and toys forpre-school children and infants are an exception to this belief.Impact of Recession tho when the consumers have enough disposable income to afford luxury goods, they buy toys. Astruggling U.S. housing market, rising oil prices and other factors have limited their income. The toyindustry was also affected by this trend, as its general revenue decreased.Declining profits due to emphasis on product safetyProduct safety is another major concern of the toy industry. This was discovered when there was a risingnumber of product recalls in the sec half of 2007. So while comp anies put more focus on their highermargin core brands, the positive margin implications from this shift are offset by quality and safetytesting, as well as higher costs for raw materials.Competing with large brandsSmall manufacturers which form the pot of the unorganized sector are unable to brand and markettheir products, which has been a critical disadvantage for them. With a large number of players in themarket, further the international brands have a strong brand recall. Here, manufacturing competency isntthe real concern since most of the branded players outsource their requirements from Indianmanufacturers. However, lack of marketing acumen and an expertise to cultivate brands is found to belacking in most indigenous companies.NEW STRATEGIESCoupling toy launch with movies and vice versaTransformers, Shrek, etcArt Attack a Television series by construct Entertainment has also entered the toy market. It showcasesDo-It-Yourself arts and crafts in their videos and has now made them available in DVD formatsacross major stores. They also merchandise their creative works through phonograph recordings.Cradle catching In 2005, Mattel entered into a partnership with diaper brand Huggies. By thismove, Mattel targeted its potential listening at their birth place, and even before they wereborn at the motherliness homes.When the mothers visit the doctor for the first time, they are givena medical checkup file, as well as well as the study on the different habituss that a child is likely topass through as it grows which helps in selecting toys from the Fisher Price range that fits eachgrowth phase ie. crawling, sitting, standing, etc.Within a very short period of time, they claimed to have targeted 600,000 mothers by having tieups with 300 pediatricians and 50 gynecologists, across the top sextet Indian cities. Also, anotherinnovative technique utilize by Mattel is a toy directory which is move in retail outlets thatinforms parents about the exceed toy f or each age group.CASE ANALYSIS TOY INDUSTRY AND get TRENDSCASE 1HAMLEYS, PHOENIX MILLS MALL, LOWER PAREL, MUMBAIHamleys, the worlds iconic toy maker from UK, has set up a 21000 sq ft outlet shell out over three floors inMumbai, its first branch in India through franchise agreement with Reliance Retail. The tie-up is valid for20 years. The company plans to invest Rs.150 crore in the next seven years to set up 20 more storesacross the country, including tier-II cities.Brands Other than Hamleys own-brand range of toys, import brands such as Mattel,Hasbro, Disney, Fisher-Price, Playmobil, Leapfrog, Mecchano ,, Scalextrics, Hornby, Maisto,Burrago, and Lego are also present in the store.Segments The shop has been separate into segments catering to infants, young boys girls,teenagers and adults.It has a Barbie Doll House and Barbie Salon and resort for young girls.Grand Racing Track for RC Cars, London Double Decker Bus, campaign Jeep for young boys.Petals Pods-Play area and Bear Tree House are for infant and pre-school children.Science Molecules, Candy Shop, Disney Castle, Experiential gaming stations, Party entouragearea are for teenagers.A KodakExpress studio has a shop-in-shop strategically placed in the center of the shop tocapture moments at Hamleys.Prices The price varies from as low as Rs 200 to as high as Rs 30,000 depending upon therequirements and preferences of the customer. Most products are priced on the higher end ofthe spectrum guardianship the affluent urban folk in mind.Age Group It caters to infants, young boys and girls and teenagers. instrument panel Games are popularwith adults also.MANAGERS VIEWSThe shop is one of its kinds in Mumbai, since it is an exclusive toys only outlet with all kinds of toysunder one roof. The trends noted by them are that parents are more interested in buying toys andgames that offer educational value to their children and children too are more interested in games thatoffer intellectual stimulation. Childr en have moved from the traditional sports of cricket and kabaddi togaming consoles and Scrabble. Also adults are a growing segment with them fraying towards traditionalgames such as Mancala a French board game, Monopoly, and Poker for which they buy Poker chips.Workshops are organized to engage the children and merchandise related to new films are sold eachnow and then to offer something new to the customers.CUSTOMERS VIEWSCustomers always find it a delight to visit Hamleys since it offers so much variety . A few of thecustomers just come with their children to provide some entertainment and spend time in the shop.They appreciate the display of the store and the hygiene maintained in the store. Also, though a fewproducts were construct in China, they didnt mind buying them if they were sold in Hamleys sincethe name offered credibility to the product. The range and variety of toys offered by them is alsounmatched.ANALYSIS COMMENTSLayout The layout of the store is very carefully planned with the store being divided into a girls sectionalizationand a boys section. Educational board games, interior decoration kits and games for adults are placed inthe center of the shop. The section which caters to toys for toddlers is separate, and the floor higher uponly houses gaming consoles, CDs and educational books.Staff A large number of staff take care of the customers needs and are specially trained to provide entertainment to their most important consumers the kids The motorcoach himself caters to customersand entertains all doubts and queries to help them purchase what best suits their requirements.Store Aesthetics and marketing A lot of effort has been taken to enhance the visual draw of the storethrough visual merchandizing and display walls. Most toys are displayed and elfin remote controlledcars and helicopters zoom in and around the store some of them hovering above ones head or newcars that stick to the walls. The store has a adeptness for gift wrappi ng their products, and children andadults alike are allowed to touch and operate various toys in the store.CASE 2MOTHER AND ME, R CITY MALL, GHATKOPAR, MUMBAI beget Me is a Retail store owned by Mahindra Group, which caters to the need of meaning(a) women,infants, toddlers, pre-schoolers learners. Its toys section is Brobdingnagian and is gaining popularity day by day.Following are the detail of its toys section-Brands-Fischer price, Funskool, Mattel, Lego, Disney V-techSegments-Soft toys, Wooden toys, Metal toys Plastic toysPrices- 350 5000Age Group 0 9 YrsMANAGERS VIEWSFollowing are the points which Store Managers told us.They prefer to keep toys of price range 350 to 5000.Mother and Me use SAP for inventory replenishment.They have kept the toys according to their type (wooden toys at one place soft toys at anotherplace) rather than age group wise (toys for 0-5 yrs at one place).According to them toys which are able to connect to Indian traditions are exceedingly in dema nd, eg.Indian Barbies.Maximum complaints they receive are against Chinese toys and toys manufactured in China.CUSTOMERS VIEWSWe received the following feedbacks from customers.Most of them buy toys once a month.Fishcer price is preferred by most of themMost of them prefer plastic toys over metal Wooden toysMost of them are not in choose of Chinese toys despite of the low of cost.Most of them were in favour of interactive toys.Some Customers stressed the need of toys, which inculcate the values unavoidable in forgivingsociety were against the toys, which resembles the violent figures or creature.ANALYSIS COMMENTSFrom the information provided by store Managers feedbacks from customers we analyzed that the Toy Industry has a effulgent future ahead but only if it meets the challenge of providing better quality Interactive toys, which not only make learning easy but also help in cultivating thevalues necessary in human society.Light weight Plastic toys as they are easy to detent ion more resistant to wear tear.Value for money, as most of the parents feel toys overly priced.CASE 3LANDMARK, PHOENIX MILLS MALL, LOWER PAREL, MUMBAI term is a one s top destination for s hopping for toda ys youth. It consists of books, s tationery,garments, merchandize, music, toys, movies, gaming, Technology products and other gift items.Brands -There were various brands present in the store and a few of them are as follows Mattel,Disney, Fisher-Price, Zapak and Lego are also present in the store.Segments The shop has been divided into segments where toys for infants, young boys andgirls and teenagers can be found. It also has a sports section and board game section.Prices The price varies from as low as Rs 200 to as high as Rs 15,000 depending upon therequirements and preferences of the customer. The pricing is not exorbitant in Landmark andmost of the toys are priced by keeping the Indian customer in mind.Age Group It caters to infants, young boys and girls and teenagers. Board Games are popularwith adults also.MANAGERS VIEWSMaximum profit is generated from the infants toy section of the store. interchange one item from the infantsection is equivalent to selling 3-4 items from the others sections. Boys prefer hotwheels,cricket kit andboard games and girls are still hooked onto Barbie dolls. Toys are imported from France and Germanyand most of them are made in India.CUSTOMERS VIEWSToys are ideal gifts for young children and they dont even cost a fortune when it comes to buying them.Customers dont mind stipendiary for the latest and most popular toys for the kids.ANALYSIS COMMENTSLandmark has been doing a good job of catering to the growing toys market and plans to introducemore imported toys in future. The Sports goods have a prominent place in Landmark and a lot ofimportance has been given to the sports and board game section. forthcoming OF TOYSPredicting the future is never easy. The future of toys specially very difficult to auspicate . You n ever knowwhen an old favorite toy get out make a sudden resurgence into the mainstream or a new technology impartbring about yet another revolution in toy technology.Generally speaking, video game consoles would predictably always rise to the top of wishlists. However, classic toys often come back to take over the lists for top toys. In recent years, weveseen old comic book characters and action heroes rise to the top again subsequently being in the bottom ofcomic bins for years. This years Iron Man 2 brought back an old action favorite, and action figures andcars are available with an Iron Man twist. Other movies like Transformers have done the same.Old favorite cartoons are also being brought to the forefront. A few years ago, a new Teenage MutantNinja Turtles movie in CGI was released, and this past year, Transformers were all the rage. It wouldntsurprisal me to see He-Man or the Thundercats rise up to become stop action or CGI movies themselves.If they do, expect them to cor ner the toy market after the movie is released.It would also be prudent not to underestimate the power of toy fads that are still going strong even 12years later. Pokemon first got big in 1998, and has been a huge hit with video games, vie cards, andT.V. shows ever since. It has been hard for toy manufacturers to dethrone Pokemon, because its such ahuge hit among kids and even young adults who grew up playing the game. Its very possible that itcould last for another 12 years or more. (What do you think of Pokemon?Indeed, toy inventors are pushing the boundaries of artificial intelligence, dialect synthesis, wirelesscommunications, and networked virtual reality. Whats more, they are figuring out how to cram hugechunks of realistic graphics, dialogue, and sensory cues onto tiny, inexpensive computer chips. The toyindustry is rightfully at the mercy of technology for the limits it can go to. There are only so manyinteresting ways for them to reinvent dolls like Mr. Potato Head befor e kids are no longerinterested. Dolls like Furby were a step in the right direction, but the fad did not last for verylong. Technology working its way into the toys of the future leave bring in a wider audience of interestedkids, but it has to be directed at toys that are more than just popular, but are fun too.The future of toys is bright and exciting. Any new mutation could shape the kinds of toys kids playwith. You can bet that the toys of the future are going to have something of the past, however.AUGMENTED REALITY JET FUEL FOR THE IMAGINATIONThe future of toys more or less undoubtedly belongs to augmented reality.Mattels i-Tags, exit use Augmented realism will be included with action figures the company will makefor titanic director James Camerons blockbuster film, Avatar.Augmented reality is an overlay of digital information or imagery on top of real-world objects.WIKIPEDIA Augmented Reality is a field of computer research that deals with the combination of realToy world and computer-generated data (virtual reality), where computer graphics objects are blended intoreal footage in real time.Think about it. The possibilities are just about endless, and could mean a whole new life for the kinds oftoys that kids at first play with a lot, and then quickly abandon. By embedding special software in imagery that can be placed just about anywhere on a toy, toy makers will now have an incredibly widerange of virtual things to add to their physical toys.TOYS OF THE FUTUREELECTRIC gobble up UP BOOKSElectronic Popables by Jie Qi is a pop-up book that lights up as you interact with it, producing the mostbeautiful and dynamic pop-up pages ever. As you initiate to go flip through the book open pages, pulltabs, press pressure points and fold objects different LED lights will blink away on all over the page. Theycan be a very efficient means of connecting holistically with the technology savvy kids.HORIZON HYDROCAR TOYThe hydro car is a case in point. It does no t depend onbatteries or electricity. Surprisingly this car producesits own energy, running entirely on water. It is not onlyHydrocars functionality, but also its trendy, scientificdesign that sets it apart.SCRIBBLE BOTS excoriation Bots is just a concept at the moment, but the idea is that childrencan connect with their friends through the official website and share theirdrawings, artwork and also the chaste process. The Scribble bots toy canrecord and recreate movement so anyone with a scribble bot can downloadyour drawing and their scribble bot will draw it right for them, then andthere.TOUCH SENSITIVE VIDEO GAMESUsually, a lot of people do not see any fun in playing withbuttons and joysticks. This concept of touch sensitive gamesemploys touch sensitive silicon that simulates the terrain in agame, empowering the users to feel their way through. Nomajor video game manufacturers are using technology quitelike this as of now, but we could see such technology beingused in the future. PARROT AR DRONE QUADRICOPTERFlying helicopter toys meets handheld video games with the ParrotAR Drone Quadricopter. This isnt a simple chopper that flies aroundthe corner and crash because you cant see it. This spin has abuilt-in camera that lets you see everything from an iPhone or othersimilar smart phones. Since joysticks are outdated, this toy usestilting gyroscopic controls, tilting the AR Drone as you tilt theiPhone.MINDFLEXRemote controls are a thing of the past. Toys of thefuture use mind control Mindflex is a telekineticobstacle course that uses brainwave activeness to move aball. Were not really sure how it works, but we like tobelieve its because we have sci-fi like psychic powers.MILOThe next biggest innovation in the toy world does notbelong to the genre of barbies or remote controlled cars orthought controlled machines, but a virtual best friend. Bylate 2010, Microsoft would release a new add-on for theXbox that will replace contr