STUDIOS LOOKING TO TOTS TO DRIVE LICENSED TIE-INS

ANNE SHERBER

NEW YORK -- If the playthings at the American International Toy Fair last month were any indication, the studios have committed themselves to hooking new audience members, early. Really early.

Movies and videos aimed at 2- and 3-year-olds, along with their ever-expanding complementary licensed merchandising campaigns were everywhere at the toy industry's annual confab, held here last month.

Among the many companies out to mine the next small thing was Golden Books Family Entertainment here. The company announced at Toy Fair that it had established a new division, Golden Books Home Video and Audio, to market the company's video, audio, book and tape products.

Cindy Bressler, senior vice president and general manager, said the new division will develop video product from Golden Books' store of classic children's characters. Among the company's first efforts will be video and audio titles based on the 1942 classic Pat the Bunny.

The video, like the book, will be aimed at infants, and will be available in the spring of 1999, Bressler said. The merchandising campaign, which will include plush, bedding, bottles and apparel, will begin to roll out immediately.

Other popular book-based characters from Golden that will make the leap to home video include The Pokey Little Puppy and The Saggy, Baggy Elephant. Bressler estimates that the videos will carry suggested retail prices in the $9.95 to $12.95 range.

Scholastic Entertainment, New York, also has crafted an extensive licensing and merchandising campaign around a property aimed at very young children.

According to Peter Van Raalte, vice president of Scholastic Consumer Products, the company has decided to make a concerted licensing effort to promote Clifford the Big Red Dog because of a spontaneous uptick the company noticed in the property's book sales. Scholastic is developing a TV series based on the characters and has newly licensed a wide range of products including plush, pull toys, bean bags and puzzles.

Also in the works for older babies and toddlers is a video release and merchandising campaign for Nickelodeon's "Blues Clues," which, in addition to the standard plush and playsets, includes software aimed at children age two and three.

Another evergreen property for small children that received a big push at the Toy Fair was Barney. In honor of his 10th anniversary, the big purple dinosaur will be starring in "Barney's Great Adventure: The Movie," a theatrical release from Polygram, New York, due April 3. It will feature a new Barney character, Twinken.

Lyrick Studios, Richardson, Texas, has licensed a great many consumer products to coincide with the film's release. Included in the product mix will be diapers from Luvs that will feature free, peel-off stickers on the outside of the package, activity books, and a $9.98 suggested retail soundtrack and several low-cost plush figures.