Hasbro Quarterly Conference Call, Summary as to WOTC

[AllisterH]

Charles, may I ask one thing though.

When you say that D&D is one of WOTC's biggest brands, do you mean specifically the RPG or the IP itself.

I was always under the impression that while the IP itself was very valuable, the RPG wasn't as valuable compared to say the novels or the miniatures.

p.s. What brands DOES wotc actually cover now?
Duelmasters (japan only? Don't see duelmasters in the states/canada), M:TG, D&D, Avalon Hill and Heroscape?

 

[Drkfathr1]

A note on Heroscape: haven't seen it in local stores lately. Not sure what that means. Could just be the Louisville region, but I'm not thrilled with the fact that is seems to be quietly disappearing.

So what are D&D's expectations? With a new edition coming out this year I would think it would be "selling like gangbusters", and hopefully it is.

 

[CharlesRyan]

Further caveat: I haven't been a WotC employee for almost three years. Things change, and what I know about the company may no longer be accurate.

When you say that D&D is one of WOTC's biggest brands, do you mean specifically the RPG or the IP itself.

I was always under the impression that while the IP itself was very valuable, the RPG wasn't as valuable compared to say the novels or the miniatures.

It's probably not appropriate for me to get too specific. Suffice it to say your impression isn't accurate. Furthermore, the RPG sits at the strategic centre; content decisions are primarily made and executed through the RPG. The other categories follow.

p.s. What brands DOES wotc actually cover now?
Duelmasters (japan only? Don't see duelmasters in the states/canada), M:TG, D&D, Avalon Hill and Heroscape?

Maple Story (I think; we don't have it here in the UK). Star Wars. Eye of Judgement (though I think that's now defunct).

 

[Schmoe]

Here are some factoids about D&D's relationship to WotC and Hasbro from someone who knows*:

Hasbro is a very large company with literally hundreds of brands. Some (like Transformers) are huge. Others are quite small. D&D is probably about average.

D&D is not WotC's biggest brand. It is, however, one of its biggest brands. It is strategically important and has sales across multiple categories and channels. It is not a red-headed stepchild simpering quietly in a corner. It is not unknown to WotC or Hasbro senior management.

Hasbro is a very large company with literally hundreds of brands. It does not employ a cadre of "suits" to look over the shoulders of the people in charge of those brands. The Tonka team isn't ordered to do this or that by the "suits," and neither is the D&D team.

In other words, as hard as this is to believe, things that happen with D&D happen neither because the brand is shunned, nor because the Hasborgs "made" WotC do them.

The Hasbro quarterly conference call focuses on factors that drive substantial ups and downs in Hasbro's recent and future performance. Brands that perform within expectations are rarely mentioned--no matter how large or small they are. If D&D isn't mentioned, that's because it's doing what's expected of it.

This concludes Charles's traditional quarterly rant about peoples comments on the Hasbro conference call.

* Technically, someone who used to know. Haven't been in the building for a few years. But still well connected.

Thanks for bringing some sanity to us all. While I haven't seen it recently, it's sometimes tough to read all the negative corporate-bashing that can accompany these discussions.