Will toy makers be disrupted by tablet PCs

Barbie to step aside

Smartphones and tablet-PC have already disrupted or is disrupting many different business. The potential to disrupt several other businesses is huge. Has the turn now come to toy makers?

The Christmas spirit is not what it used to be – the world’s toy makers are growing increasingly concerned that children are choosing electronics such as tablet PCs over traditional toys like dolls and board games.

The hottest gift for children this holiday season is not going to be a doll or a toy truck. It’s a tablet. Whether a new Kindle Fire, or a hand-me-down iPad, analysts predict 2012 will be the year children as young as three-years-old will unwrap tablets at trendsetting rates. And that has the traditional toy companies scrambling to stay relevant.

In the last year, the image of a toddler trying to swipe a print magazine page like a tablet has become a real-life viral meme.

Now that parents are likely to upgrade their own devices to the new Apple iPad mini or another of the various gadgets released for Christmas, many will be more than willing to pass their old one on to their children.

The main danger for toy is not just that their physical products are being displaced, but the amount of time children are spending with technology devices has skyrocketed, leaving less need for other toys anyhow.

Kids want to play grownup. And what better imitation of mom’s and dad’s obsessive behavior than plunking away on a tablet.

Will this trend force Barbie to step aside?

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Will toy makers be disrupted by tablet PCs — http://www.torbenrick.eu/t/r/uwc

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