Wizards of the Coast and Ultra Pro announce Partnership to product Branded Accessories
Industry leaders join forces to produce first of its kind Magic: The Gathering® - branded card and game play accessories.
August, 2006 (Renton, Wash.) - Wizards of the Coast, Inc., the world leader in hobby gaming and a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE: HAS) and Ultra Pro, the leading manufacturer and marketer of innovative archival safe-storage products in North America, today announced their strategic partnership. Together, they will produce Magic: The Gathering® - branded card and game play accessories for players of the world's first and premier trading card game (TCG). The partnership will include the production of exclusive card sleeves, deck boxes, collector binders and much more including the first Magic: The Gathering® - branded exclusive card sleeves suitable for Magic: The Gathering® tournament play. These new card and game play accessories are slated to arrive in-stores worldwide later this year.
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"Magic: The Gathering® established the TCG category with its launch in 1993 and we continue to be the pioneer in this industry," said Elaine Chase, Senior Brand Manager for Magic: The Gathering® at Wizards of the Coast. "We're committed to providing our players with the most complete and comprehensive lifestyle experience possible and entering into this partnership with Ultra Pro was simply a logical choice for us to continue that effort for our millions of loyal fans."
Until this partnership, players of Magic: The Gathering® had a variety of choices in card and game play accessories, none of which had a specific connection to the game itself above and beyond functionality. Ultra Pro's expertise and manufacturing coupled with Wizards of the Coast's vast creativity will allow these same players to house, store and transport their cards and game play accessories in a more meaningful and branded way.
"When we first sat down with Wizards of the Coast to discuss creating Magic: The Gathering® card and game play accessories, it quickly became apparent this would be both a logical and productive partnership," said Mary Sarandon, Senior Vice President with Ultra Pro. "Wizards of the Coast's long-standing reputation as the leader in the TCG category combined with their on-going commitment to providing their players the best possible game experience made this an easy decision for both companies."
About Wizards of the Coast
Wizards of the Coast, Inc., is a worldwide leader in the trading card game and tabletop role-playing game categories, and a leading developer and publisher of game-based entertainment products. The company holds an exclusive patent on Trading Card Games (TCGs) and their method of play and produces the premier trading card game, Magic: The Gathering®, among many other Trading Card Games and family card and board games. Wizards is also a leading publisher of role-playing games, such as Dungeons & Dragons®, and publisher of fantasy series fiction with numerous New York Times best-sellers. For more information, visit the Wizards of the Coast website at www.wizards.com.
Wizards of the Coast, Magic: The Gathering® and Dungeons & Dragons® are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. in the United States and other countries. © 2006 Wizards. All rights reserved.
About Ultra Pro
Ultra Pro was founded in 1952 and is the market leader of innovative storage solutions for the Gaming Industry. The company has developed and designed many products for Gamers worldwide including Deck Protectors®; Deck Boxes and the Platinum 9 Pocket Page, all of which are very important to the Gamers for the long term protection of their collections. As leaders they continue to create and offer unique products to the marketplace. Please visit their website at www.ultrapro.com.
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