It has been quite a year for Chorion. This time last year, this leader column was championing the then forthcoming launch of The Mr. Men Show. Since then, we have also launched Famous Five: On The Case, and added a huge stable of properties to our portfolio through the acquisition of The Copyrights Group.

Now, as we finish another Brand Licensing Europe, Chorion is looking forward to a year of further growth and success, most notably from the launch of Olivia on Five, the 60th anniversary and new TV for Noddy, and the launch of the fantastic Mr. Men toy range from Fisher Price.

We are privileged to be working with some very talented global toy partners to bring our brands to life, including Fisher Price, Spin Master, Lansay, Bandai and NSR. And we are in well-progressed discussions with the best of the rest as we establish master toy deals for Olivia and our other key brands in 2009 and beyond.

The children's business is an exciting place to be at the moment - there has never been such an impressive line-up of properties in the market, nor such a wide and innovative mix of traditional and new toy product. It is this competition that keeps the market fresh and it is the high standards that drive Chorion's goal to produce magical experiences for children across quality TV and merchandise.

Who knows what 2009 holds for the toy industry, but the excitement is in knowing we will all influence the year in some way. Here's to a successful 2009 for all of us.