The massive marketing event that is “Force Friday” began, fittingly, with an “Only on GMA” event: live pictures from around the world–and the Good Morning America studio in Times Square–as boxes of new Star Wars toys were unveiled to crowds of energized kids and their ready-to-spend parents.
ABC parent Disney has spared no opportunity to buzz up the launch of the newest Star Wars film, The Force Awakens, which is still more than three months away. In a show of synergy, GMA’s “exclusive” built excitement ahead of a midnight product launch. CNBC reports its “unprecedented”:
At 12:01 Friday, Disney Stores, Toys ‘R Us stores, and Walmarts are opening their doors for a frenzy of “Star Wars” toy sales. Amazon—along with DisneyStore.com—is offering new products and deals.
AdvertisementAnalysts are calling this an “unprecedented global merchandising campaign.” The event “has the potential to meaningfully accelerate the division’s revenue and profit growth,” said JPMorgan analyst Alexia Quadrani. She projects a 200 percent increase in “Star Wars” global licensing and retail store sales and said it could lead to roughly $500 million in incremental revenues and $200 million of incremental operating profit in Disney’s fiscal 2016.
The marketing push even found its way into the ABC News Twitter feed:
#BB8 stopped by the ABC News office to explore our strange world: http://t.co/i0reIo04Zj
https://t.co/WAp6jq8GGT
— ABC News (@ABC) September 3, 2015