Hollywood2020

WHAT TEENS WANT -- look back at conference i Marina Del Rey

A look back at the Marina Del Rey conference on WHAT TEENS WANT....

By Joyce Schwarz, blogging at www.hollywood2020.blogs.com....

During the WHAT TEENS WANT conference held in October at the Marina Del Rey Marriott (just down the street from our office) I thought it VERY STRANGE that no games execs were speaking and no emphasis was on games at the conference.

There was mention of SECOND LIFE but basically in passing.

...the new study (see blog post below) that shows what teen boys want for XMAS and our recent research showing that

ENTERTAINMENT SOFTWARE ASSN study earlier this year showed that

1/3 of all parents now play video games

80 percent of those play with their kids

and 66 percent of those that play with their kids think it brings the family closer.

YET there was no GAMES SEGMENT at that conference...we wonder why???

.when I asked MTV's Christina Norman about why MTV bought Harmonix and what's up in London with their new interactive channel...

she finally chatted a bit about games....

Yet from the stats above and surfing around it appears lots is happening....

I did see in checking YPulse.com that Anastasia includes these mentions in her blog recently about gaming:

Nickelodeon wants to get into the game (no matter which console its on) (GameDailyBiz)

and this about Korea's Cyworld...

CyWorld helps brands express themselves (teams with Double Fusion to better integrate marketers into its social network) (press release)

GamePro Family (a new site for parents of gamers...The Media Post, reg, required, also reported that "1UP is also launching a video game buyer's guide that covers the top games for all the major consoles plus PCs. The guide will provide game reviews as well as information for parents about possibly inappropriate content." Update: Ypulse reader Doug sent in this site for gamer dads!)

MTV to partner with S. Korean gaming company (MTV will market the launch of Nexon's casual MMOG game titles in North America) (Reuters)

BUT I'm wondering what's up with TEENS & GAMES even more now -- and at the LA GAMES Conference there were all those studies with more PINK showing for girls/women playing games...but the xmas gifts don't reflect that ??? Hmmmmmmm

Here are some pix from the WHAT TEENS WANT CONFERENCE sitting on our desktop-

so we'll amuse you with them here.....

Rax Raz Schionning Web Director, American Apparel

We tried to pin Rax down for an interview but lost him

in the crowd at the break and then he was gone.....

Paul Orescan, Marketing Director, Geffen Records  

Slightly blurry pix (our camera was dying)

but Paul was a terrific speaker -- more on him later.....

Christina Norman .MTV..brilliant speaker-- really gets it

Everybody today is a producer....everybody dreams of being a celebrity

and validation and authenticity are key...ranking important...

Mashups and tributes -- these vehicles spawn their own epicycles...

Virtual Laguna Beach-- an example of next-gen programming....

MADE -- the TV show-- developed to create and share and validate ..

.her 15 year old daughter has already written a glowing obituary showing her life filled with success...

challenge is turning extreme behavior into a career....

Norman did add that X Box 360 gamers are playing old Atari games to find out where games started....

Talking about advertising....and programming..."Everyone in this day and age walks a thin line" ....you rhave to really see what pisses people off (yes, she said that~)

Two screen experience is important-- t

hey go to computers during commercial breaks on MTV.com,

TRL -- webcam experience lets users be in the show....

NEVER FORGET THE IMPORTANCE OF FUN....

....

Screens at the Marina Del Rey Marriott ballroom changed as Norman presented her MTV presentation-- very KEWL....don't know if anyone else noticed! (see screens photos-- almost looked like film strips-- very awesome on side of wall...

 

More about the NEXT STEP magazine and their research later...

very kewl stuff

even if their hats weren't exactly STYLISH!~~~

:SO YOU’RE TELLING ME THAT TEENS ACTUALLY READ
How are teens changing since the Millennial Generation? Chris and Kevin present on the future of teens in the post-9/11 era. They also take a look at Next Step’s 900,000 teens and how they react and engage in the media.
Kevin Sweeney, Director of National Sales, Next Step Magazine
Christopher Roberts, Vice President of Marketing & Interactive, Next Step Magazine

OLYMPIC CHAMPION SNOWBOARDER MADE A SPECIAL APPEARANCE

SPECIAL APPEARANCE
ACTION SPORTS
An Olympic champion talks about her experiences training for and competing in the Olympic Games, and how she makes choices in developing her personal brand.
Gretchen Bleiler, Silver Medalist Women's Halfpipe, Winter Olympics 2006
Interviewed by Dr. Jim Taylor, Vice Chairman, Harrison Group

Gretchen talked about the challenges of being a woman snowboarder....more on that later too...

   YOU CAN'T BUY ME

Click on this and you'll see the motto "you can't buy me" which Harrison Group's Taylor actually found online~~

WHAT TEENS WANT FOR XMAS -- NO GAMES ON GIRLS' LISTS!

WOW big surprise from this new poll that shows what Teens Want for Holiday Presents by Joyce Schwarz, blogging at www.hollywood2020.blogs.com. Marketers and entertainment execs should check this out....according to this source-- girls want more communication devices and boys will be boys and want games and game platforms!

Parents note-- if you can't afford a new Nano -- consider these I found online:

         

Accessories are ALWAYS welcome !!!!!!!

Smart House

Gear For Your New iPod Nano Smart House, Australia - 8 hours ago For those who don’t want to cover up your new iPod Nano in a leather or silicone case

BOYS VERSUS GIRLS -- very different!

According to the press release on Business Wire...In a recent TeenSpot (http://www.teenspot.com/) survey, co-developed with its ad rep firm, Gorilla Nation (http://www.gorillanation.com/2006/), thousands of teens were asked what was on their holiday wish lists this year.

MOST REQUESTED HOLIDAY GIFTS BY GIRLS VERSUS BOYS:

The most requested holiday gifts among teen girls are: 1) iPod; 2) Cell phone; 3) Laptop; and 4) Digital Camera. For guys: 1) Playstation 3 (good luck getting one); 2) iPod; 3) Xbox 360; and 4) Nintendo Wii.

SUMMARY OF SURVEY:

Here's the complete release TeenSpot & Gorilla Nation Survey Unwraps Pricy Holiday Presents ...

In Summary though:

1) all 8 gifts requested by both boys and girls are all consumer electronics

2) only device included on both lists -- iPod

3) more consumer electronics are sold in the U.S. in the fourth quarter than in the previous three combined, and these lists show why.

FACTS HOLLYWOOD2020 found about games and toys....

In searching the web for another article Joyce Schwarz is writing we came across the following stats:

Sales of traditional toys, which exclude video games and game consoles, fell 4 percent to $21.3 billion in 2005, from $22.1 billion in 2004, according to NPD.

But online sales of traditional toys surged 32 percent in 2005 compared to the year-ago period, according to comScore Networks, an Internet research percent of company. NPD estimates that online toy sales account for about 6 percent of total toy sales.

Toy companies are becoming family entertainment companies, manufacturing not only traditional toys but DVDs, computer games and electronics according to a recent report by Medill News Service.

Electronic toys and games already take up 35 percent of the whole toy market!

. It is expected that the market of hi-tech toys is growing 15% per annum during the next decade and will reach sales of US$ 146 billion up to 2015.

Especially, the toys using nanotechnology, artificial intelligence and wireless networking will march with the fastest paces. By 2015, these three technologies will have impacted 65% of all the toys and games.

The wireless, interactive and educational toys and games will become a major entertainment alternative for adults. The toys for people over 14 years old will take 40% of the total market share in ten years.

SOURCE FOR ABOVE:

Nano Toys and Smart Toys will soar to US$ 146 billion up to 2015 ...

The electronic toys and games already takes about 35% of the whole toys ... www.nanovip.com/node/1843 - 25k - Cached -

LA TIMES FOCUS ON YOUNG PEOPLE 12-14 & MOVIES

Far Removed From the Multiplex is the title of a 2 page spread that LA TIMES is featuring today on teens and movies....it's subhead says, "With an array of devices at their fingertips, youths don't always think of theaters as the place to see a flick."

click on thumbnail to see LA TIMES poll details on home-viewing stats.

According to the LA TIMES POLL:
Nearly half (47%) of respondents ages 12 to 17 say they would watch a movie on a PC, well above the interest in doing the same on a cellphone (11%) or video iPod and similar devices (18%). A similar share of those 21 to 24 said they would watch movies on a computer, although they are much less willing to do the same on a cellphone (6%) or video iPod (7%).

Contrary to Expectations: 7 Myths Busted click on thumbnail and on link to find out LA TIMES research on 7 media myths...like did more teens vote for AMERICAN IDOL THAN PRESIDENT?......

ABOUT THE LA TIMES POLL: 4,466 minors and young adults invited to 1,904 (43%) responded to survey, 1,650 qualified including 839 minors (ages 12 to 17) and 811 young adults (ages 18 to 24). The margin of sampling error for both groups is plus or minus 3 percentage points. Note the TIMES explains that results were weighted to U.S. census figures for 12- to 24-year-olds in the United States in terms of age, race or ethnicity, gender and region, and for urban or rural residence and Internet access.The Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll was conducted from June 23 to July 3 using the Knowledge Networks' Web-enabled panel,