Talk | Toy Inventing in the 21st Century: Hard Plastic vs the Attention Economy
As surely as the digital era transformed work and home life, it changed the way kids play. Like their parents, kids are choosing technology, tablet computers and video games over traditional toys at younger ages than ever. So how do traditional toy inventors compete for a kid’s interest against iPad apps and 24 hour cartoon networks?
Atomocom founder Bill McIntyre will discuss what it’s like to be an independent toy inventor in 2012, from toy concept and design, to prototypes and pitch meetings. Bill will discuss the fascinating changes and weird quirks of the modern toy market, with how licensed characters (from Barbie to Bilbo Baggins) and properties (Transformers to Battleship) shape the industry, how toys are designed and marketed in radically different ways to boys and girls, and the latest (at times somewhat crazy) industry efforts to merge interactive technology with old-school toy brands.