- City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
- Dubai 04:26 05:44 12:20 15:47 18:50 20:08
Model Dante Carver (L) from the US and YouTuber Einshine participate in a live internet unboxing event to reveal 48-inch and 31-inch figure models called First Order's Stormtrooper Battle Buddy and 31-inch figure model called Kylo Ren (in front of Dante) from the film 'Star Wars - The Force Awakens', at YouTube Space Tokyo in Tokyo, September 3, 2015. The live event kicks off in Australia with family video-bloggers Bratayley, and hands over to unboxers across Asia, Europe, South America and North America, ending in San Francisco on Thursday morning with Pirillo. (Reuters)
Disney, hoping to ignite fan excitement for 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' merchandise and the upcoming movie, kicked off a rolling series of toy unboxings Wednesday evening featuring YouTube creators around the world.
The toy unboxing event will span an 18-hour block, with YouTubers in Disney's Maker Studios network in 15 cities in 12 countries offering a first look at the range of merchandise from 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens.'
.
Among the first toys revealed: large-size action figures of villain Kylo Ren and a First Order Stormtrooper; Poe Dameron's X-wing fighter from Lego (pictured above); Hot Wheels' Escape from Jakku Starship playset; and the BladeBuilders Jedi Master Lightsaber from Hasbro.
The first reveal was in Sydney, Australia, by The Bratayleys, a family of digital stars affiliated with Maker, who unboxed the Jedi Master Lightsaber on a set overlooking Sydney Harbour. The event rolls through Asia, Europe, Canada, South America and the U.S. overnight into Thursday morning.
The YouTube unboxing videos will lead up to 'Force Friday': an event where retailers around the globe - including Toys 'R' Us, Walmart, Target and Disney Store locations - will open their doors at midnight Thursday, Sept. 4, to start selling the merch. The toys also will be available to purchase at DisneyStore.com.
On Thursday, ABC's 'Good Morning America' also is slated to broadcast unboxings live from New York. The toy launch will conclude in San Francisco at Lucasfilm, the home of 'Star Wars,' where a broader collection of products will be showcased.
Even for Disney, the massive merchandise launch is unprecedented, leading up to the release of the first 'Star Wars' movie in 10 years, 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens,' which hits theaters Dec. 18.
"There are always big movies every year, but this is the first time I've seen a product line launch three months before the film itself," said Martin Brochstein, senior VP of industry relations and information for the International Licensing Industry Merchandisers' Assn. He said the latest 'Star Wars' push is akin in scale to worldwide marketing events such as the release of J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" books or the launch of new Apple iPhones.
Disney chose to reveal the 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' merch in partnership Maker, given the popularity of unboxing videos on YouTube. Of the top 100 most viewed YouTube channels worldwide, 18 are dedicated to toys and toy unboxings; Maker pulls in 1.5 billion views per month on its unboxing channels alone. The toy launch presented Disney with a clear opportunity to exploit Maker's digital reach - and leverage the Mouse House's $500 million-plus acquisition of the multichannel network.
Makers stars on board for the event include traditional toy unboxers like EvanTubeHD (New York), lifehack specialists such as ExpCaseros (Mexico City) and gamers such as AlexBy11 (Spain). According to Disney, the main thing they have in common is that they are all massive Star Wars fans and can't wait to share their experiences.
While Disney's unique YouTube-centric 'Star Wars' toy launch is bound to build buzz and fanboy/girl enthusiasm for the brand, it's not clear whether the strategy will ultimately deliver a bigger sales punch than conventional marketing would have. The legions of multi-generational 'Star Wars' fans, it's safe to assume, would have opened their wallets regardless of the staggered toy-unboxing hoopla.
The initial 'Force Friday' promo is aimed at collectors and adult fans who have an affinity to the Star Wars brand, Brochstein said. The broader kid-centric market will pick up closer to the holiday season at the beginning of November, when marketing for the film will hit hyperspeed.
Disney does run the risk over-saturating the market with 'Star Wars' hype. "You have to walk a tightrope of maximizing the promotional opportunity and trying not to do too much to turn people off," Brochstein said, "If people feel that it gets to the point they feel taken advantage of, then there's a backlash."
Brent Lang contributed to this report.
Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.