JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (Nasdaq:JAKK), leading U.S. toymaker and
master toy licensee for Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®),
announced today a sub-licensing agreement with Mixed Marital Arts (MMA)
collectibles company, Round 5 Corp. to share UFC and MMA talent.
The agreement will allow both companies access to the biggest MMA
fighters in order to manufacture, market and distribute action figures
and related products under the UFC umbrella.
As a result, both companies now have access to a significantly larger
MMA talent pool, including Randy Couture, Andrei Arlovski, Matt Hughes,
Jake Shields, Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin, Brock Lesnar, BJ Penn and
other top MMA fighters.
"This is truly a match made in heaven and we are excited to enter into
this agreement with Round 5,” said Jeremy Padawer, SVP Boys
Entertainment Marketing, JAKKS Pacific. "As the master toy licensee for
the UFC, JAKKS can now offer MMA fans an entire world of action figures,
accessories and other collectibles encompassing the most notable
fighters in the fight world. The synergy between JAKKS® and Round 5®
will ensure cohesive and comprehensive merchandise offering at retail
that will benefit all parties involved, including JAKKS, Round 5 and the
UFC, as well as the MMA fighters themselves, and most importantly, MMA
fans.”
JAKKS’ new UFC line of toys and collectibles is expected to be available
at retailers nationwide starting this Fall, with plans to roll out the
newly acquired talent beginning as early as Spring 2010. Along with the
full line of deluxe articulated action figures, JAKKS also expects to
offer Octagon playsets, accessories and role play toys based on the
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), PRIDE® Fighting Championship and
World Extreme Cagefighting® (WEC®).
"We want to provide fans with the most complete and authentic line of
UFC products,” said UFC President, Dana White. "This agreement with
JAKKS Pacific and Round 5 brings the biggest players in the MMA action
figure world together - now our fans will have access to the best and
most diverse line of action figures.”
Damon Lau, President, Round 5, stated, "We are thrilled to partner with
JAKKS and UFC, and we are confident that our teamwork will produce a
more comprehensive product offering for MMA fans. In addition, JAKKS and
R5 will facilitate marketing and distribution efficiencies at retail to
increase exposure of our core product offerings. We are very excited to
expand our line of 6” display collectible figurines and 10” display
collectible statues with more of the biggest names in MMA.”
About The Ultimate Fighting Championship®
UFC is the largest live pay-per-view provider in the world and the
fastest growing main stream sports organization in history. Owned and
operated by Zuffa™, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas,
Nev., UFC® produces over twelve live pay-per-view events
annually that are distributed residentially through North American cable
and satellite providers including iNDEMAND Networks, DIRECTV, DISH
Network, TVN Entertainment, BellTV, SaskTel Max™, Shaw
Pay-Per-View, Viewers Choice, and WOWOW in Japan, and Premiere Combate
and SporTV in Brazil, and via the Internet worldwide on Yahoo! Sports,
and commercially through Joe Hand Promotions in the U.S. and Canadastar
in Canada. In addition to its North American distribution, UFC
programming is distributed in over 100 countries and territories
throughout the world.
Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The Ultimate
Fighter®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa® , The Octagon™ and
the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered
trademarks, registered service marks, trademarks, trade dress and/or
service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC and licensed to its affiliated
entities and other licensees in the United States and other
jurisdictions. All other marks referenced herein may be the property of
Zuffa, LLC, its affiliates or other respective owners.
About Round 5
Round 5 (www.Round5MMA.com),
headquartered in Markham, Ontario, Canada, is the MMA industry’s fastest
growing worldwide collectible figure company. Committed to developing
intricately detailed figures, Round 5 strives to remain true to the
sport of MMA and its personalities.
About JAKKS Pacific, Inc.
JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAKK) is a leading designer and marketer of
toys and consumer products, with a wide range of products that feature
some of the most popular children's toy licenses in the world. JAKKS’
diverse portfolio includes Action Figures, Art Activity Kits,
Stationery, Writing Instruments, Performance Kites, Water Toys, Sports
Activity Toys, Vehicles, Infant/Pre-School, Plush, Construction Toys,
Electronics, Dolls, Dress-Up, Role Play, and Pet Toys and Accessories,
sold under various proprietary brands including JAKKS Pacific®, Child
Guidance®, Color Workshop®, Creative Designs International™, Disguise™,
EyeClops®, Flying Colors®, Funnoodle®, Girl Gourmet™, Go Fly a Kite®,
JAKKS Pets™, Kids Only®, Pentech®, Play Along®, Plug It In & Play TV
Games™, Road Champs® and Tollytots®. JAKKS is an award-winning licensee
of several hundred nationally and internationally known trademarks
including Cabbage Patch Kids, Disney, Graco®, Nickelodeon, Ultimate
Fighting Championship, Warner Bros., World Wrestling Entertainment.
JAKKS and THQ Inc. participate in a joint venture that has worldwide
rights to publish and market World Wrestling Entertainment video games.
For further information, visit www.jakks.com.
This press release may contain forward-looking statements (within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) that
are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about JAKKS
Pacific's business based partly on assumptions made by its management.
These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve
risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict.
Therefore,
actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed
or forecasted in such statements due to numerous factors, including, but
not limited to, those described above,
changes in demand for
JAKKS' products, product mix, the timing of customer orders and
deliveries, the impact of competitive products and pricing, and
difficulties with integrating acquired businesses.
The
forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date on
which they are made, and JAKKS undertakes no obligation to update any of
them to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release. ©
JAKKS Pacific, Inc. All Right Reserved.
© 2009 JAKKS Pacific, Inc. All Rights Reserved.