Discover Board Games Licensing vs. Self-Production of Your Toy or Game

Licensing vs. Self Production
and Promoting of Your Toy or Game

Some Disadvantages of Self Production:
- You get to pay for everything- or use O.P.M. (other peoples' money)
- If your using O.P.M.- you'll have people to report to
- There's a lot of money to risk!
- You'll have a lot of responsibilities including: product development, engineering, manufacturing, importing, graphics, packaging, selling, marketing, warehousing & shipping
- It requires a lot of work and coordination
- You get to protect your own product
- Don't forget about liability insurance!

Okay,- more confused than ever? So which is better- Licensing or Manufacturing your own product? The answer might vary. It all depends on your product and you. Some products lend themselves to both. You might produce and distribute your own product in the United States, for example, and license the rights to your product outside the US. Another strategy is to first produce and sell your own product in an effort to "raise public awareness" hoping to later license this game at a higher than usual royalty rate to a major manufacturer. Trivial Pursuit did this and negotiated a royalty rate more than twice the average rate!

For self-promoting you can't beat Discover Games. They're service is invaluable to the inventor. If you're self-promoting your game, it must be a Toy Fair to get the necessary exposure.