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| Star Wars toys on show in YouTube unboxing marathon | Star Wars toys on show in YouTube unboxing marathon |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Disney is hosting an 18-hour marathon Star Wars toy unboxing. | Disney is hosting an 18-hour marathon Star Wars toy unboxing. |
| Toys tied in to the forthcoming release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the latest instalment of the science-fiction juggernaut, are being unwrapped and demonstrated on YouTube. | Toys tied in to the forthcoming release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the latest instalment of the science-fiction juggernaut, are being unwrapped and demonstrated on YouTube. |
| Amateurs have posted unboxing videos onto Google's video service almost since its inception. | Amateurs have posted unboxing videos onto Google's video service almost since its inception. |
| However, Disney's action highlights how the activity is being adopted by the companies that make and sell the goods. | However, Disney's action highlights how the activity is being adopted by the companies that make and sell the goods. |
| Clips of toys being unpackaged and played with have proven to be particularly popular on YouTube. | Clips of toys being unpackaged and played with have proven to be particularly popular on YouTube. |
| One of the site's most popular channels is FunToyzCollector, a four-year-old account that shows products being held up by an elegantly manicured pair of hands from a variety of angles. | |
| It has clocked up more than 7.7 billion views since launching, and this week alone attracted more than 75 million clicks. | It has clocked up more than 7.7 billion views since launching, and this week alone attracted more than 75 million clicks. |
| Its most popular video highlights a Play-Doh tie-in with Disney's Frozen movie, which has gained more than 337 million views alone since July 2014. | Its most popular video highlights a Play-Doh tie-in with Disney's Frozen movie, which has gained more than 337 million views alone since July 2014. |
| The Star Wars unboxing event kicked off in Sydney, followed by YouTube broadcasts from around the globe, prior to the release of the toys in shops on Friday. | The Star Wars unboxing event kicked off in Sydney, followed by YouTube broadcasts from around the globe, prior to the release of the toys in shops on Friday. |
| Why on earth would you want to sit and watch people opening boxes of toys for 18 hours? | Why on earth would you want to sit and watch people opening boxes of toys for 18 hours? |
| Unboxing videos are undeniably popular - out of the top 25 most viewed YouTube channels five are dedicated to the activity. | Unboxing videos are undeniably popular - out of the top 25 most viewed YouTube channels five are dedicated to the activity. |
| Along with DisneyCollectorBR, there's It'sBabyBigMouth, which focuses on unwrapping Kinder eggs and building the toys, BluCollection, HobbyKidsTV and another toy-fixated channel - DisneyCarToys. | Along with DisneyCollectorBR, there's It'sBabyBigMouth, which focuses on unwrapping Kinder eggs and building the toys, BluCollection, HobbyKidsTV and another toy-fixated channel - DisneyCarToys. |
| Social media expert Tom Cheesewright says the attraction is partly to do with the vicarious thrill of seeing someone open a brand new product. | Social media expert Tom Cheesewright says the attraction is partly to do with the vicarious thrill of seeing someone open a brand new product. |
| "There's the first-person hands in front of you - it seems you're there. You're seeing it unwrapped first," he says. | "There's the first-person hands in front of you - it seems you're there. You're seeing it unwrapped first," he says. |
| For many children it has become the modern equivalent of leafing through a toy catalogue, and the clips can hold more interest than cartoons or other uploaded programming. | For many children it has become the modern equivalent of leafing through a toy catalogue, and the clips can hold more interest than cartoons or other uploaded programming. |
| For marketers the idea of having their target audience watching and then rewatching lengthy clips rather than short commercials that speed by has obvious appeal. | For marketers the idea of having their target audience watching and then rewatching lengthy clips rather than short commercials that speed by has obvious appeal. |
| Who watches this stuff? | Who watches this stuff? |
| According to Google Consumer Surveys data, 62% of people who watch unboxing videos are those researching a certain product. | According to Google Consumer Surveys data, 62% of people who watch unboxing videos are those researching a certain product. |
| Its Trends analytics page also suggests that people in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are particularly likely to search for the term. | Its Trends analytics page also suggests that people in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are particularly likely to search for the term. |
| One of the earliest examples of an unboxing video upload is from 2006 when an American gamer unpacked a PlayStation 3 delivered from Japan. It was of interest to others because the console had yet to go on sale in the US. | One of the earliest examples of an unboxing video upload is from 2006 when an American gamer unpacked a PlayStation 3 delivered from Japan. It was of interest to others because the console had yet to go on sale in the US. |
| Tech products - especially smartphones - remain a popular topic. | Tech products - especially smartphones - remain a popular topic. |
| But today, clothing, lipstick, food, and even bras also get the treatment. | But today, clothing, lipstick, food, and even bras also get the treatment. |
| Lingerie firm Adore Me is one company that has taken notice. | Lingerie firm Adore Me is one company that has taken notice. |
| It recently broadcast a TV advert inspired by the activity which it said was intended to broaden its appeal with "millennials" - people born in the 1980s or later. | It recently broadcast a TV advert inspired by the activity which it said was intended to broaden its appeal with "millennials" - people born in the 1980s or later. |
| According to Google, 34% of the views for unboxing videos related to food, electronics, toys and beauty and fashion happen from October to December - in the run-up to Christmas. | According to Google, 34% of the views for unboxing videos related to food, electronics, toys and beauty and fashion happen from October to December - in the run-up to Christmas. |
| It would take more than seven years to watch all the videos on YouTube with "unboxing" in the title that were uploaded in 2014, Google says. | It would take more than seven years to watch all the videos on YouTube with "unboxing" in the title that were uploaded in 2014, Google says. |
| Where will it end? | |
| Unboxing videos can be real moneyspinners. | |
| The YouTube clips are often preceded with adverts for other products or have banner ads superimposed, meaning that they can generate millions of dollars revenue for their creators. | |
| Last year, Disney paid almost $1bn (£660m) for the YouTube channel network Maker Studios. Later in the year, Maker Studios added five toy review channels to its roster. | |
| "Toy-review channels have... become the authority on the hottest toys on the market, as well as one of the fastest-growing genres of family programming online," it said at the time. | |
| But their evolution wasn't planned or predictable. | |
| "They naturally snowballed," Mr Cheesewright says - and that snowball shows no signs of slowing down. | "They naturally snowballed," Mr Cheesewright says - and that snowball shows no signs of slowing down. |