The Appeal of Licensing to Movie Makers 

Unless you have the backing of a large studio behind you, making money from a movie is tough. Even then, productions with plenty of financial backing will have to work hard to recoup the outlay on the biggest Hollywood blockbusters. One fairly new form of income generation is the licensing of intellectual property to game developers. In this article, we discuss the connection and why studios are turning to gaming industry licensing to boost their profits. 

The Many Movie-Themed Games

Movie themed games have been about since the dawn of home consoles. One of the most famous titles, E.T, even helped start the video game crash of the eighties due to its poor quality control. However, studios are now more careful with their products. Since then, gaming has also taken many different forms. There are now casual games for mobile devices and free to play titles, as well as the big brand PC and console games. 

One unique avenue for licensing has been online casinos and slot games.  You may assume the number of slot games that have movie licenses is but a few. This is incorrect, and they can often be from movies that were released a long time ago, or you may think forgotten.  

Occasionally, these licensed slots will find their way into games that are combined with some of the most inviting mechanics. One prime example found amongst slots UK is the Beetlejuice Megaways title. Found at many reputable online casinos, it not only has an expanding reel mechanic but is familiar to those who love the Tim Burton classic and, more recently, its blockbuster follow-up. When opening a new online casino, having characters and licenses familiar to players can help bring in an audience that may not have considered these types of games before. 

Benefits of Licensing Intellectual Movie Property

While revenue generation is the obvious benefit for studios to license their property out, there are others. Firstly, licensing is a great way to reach new markets. It is not out of the realm of possibility that slot fans may play a game like Ted or Gremlins and then go and seek out the original movies. This can lead to further sales through merchandising. 

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It is also a great way for a studio to make money without spending much. After the cost of shooting a movie, when licensing out, they do very little work. The bulk of the research will already be done and in place by the developer. They just have to check over the product and then take a fee. 

The Pitfalls of Licensing

The pitfalls of licensing, particularly to a gambling company, are the obvious connotations that it brings. Not everyone believes in liberal economics for gambling. Depending on the demographic of your movie, it may not be an astute decision and could devalue your product. However, this could be the case with any industry. 

There will be more movies that are licensed to games. If studios can select partners carefully and keep their products high quality, it could continue to be a lucrative avenue for revenue generation.