The three-year agreement, which marks the fourth property licensed by the LEGO Company, gives the company the exclusive right to produce and sell construction toys based on the television show, currently a smashing success in the United Kingdom and headed to the United States in January 2001.

Bob the Builder currently is viewed in four countries, and has plans to air in more than 80 countries around the world by the end of 2001. In the United States, Bob the Builder will run twice daily, five days a week on Nick Jr., Nickelodeon's top rated pre-school programming block.

The LEGO Company currently plans to produce a minimum of five different LEGO DUPLO sets based on themes, vehicles and characters from the Bob the Builder series, available at retail in fall of 2001. The toys, designed for children ages two-six, will be a fun, interactive and natural way to bring the construction-themed world of Bob the Builder to life in construction toys that spark the imaginative minds of children.

``The LEGO Company is highly selective when it comes to licensing partners. Our strategy is to focus on very few international properties where there is a clear opportunity for synergy,'' said Peter Eio, Executive Vice President of Global Markets for the LEGO Company and President of LEGO Systems, Inc. ``Bob the Builder has all the attributes that make up a classic pre-school license and the link between the construction theme and construction toys makes for a perfect match. We look forward to a strong long-term relationship with HIT Entertainment,'' Eio continued.

``We're thrilled to be working with the LEGO Company, the world leader in construction toys, and believe that Bob the Builder makes a perfect partnership. Bob is demonstrating all the characteristics of a children's classic and this deal marks another important milestone in establishing HIT as a significant player in the global marketplace,'' said Peter Orton, Chief Executive of HIT Entertainment.

In the United Kingdom alone, Bob the Builder regularly receives 50% of pre-school audience ratings. That performance is being matched in Japan, where the show is broadcast on Tokyo 12, as well as in Germany and Australia, where Super RTL and ABC are recording a similar success stories.

LEGO Systems, Inc. (LSI) is the Americas (North America and Latin America) division of the LEGO Company, a privately-held firm based in Billund, Denmark. The LEGO Company employs more than 2,000 people in the Americas - approximately one half of whom work at LSI's 203-acre headquarters in Enfield, Connecticut. LSI manufactures more than 2.7 billion LEGO� elements each year. The LEGO Company is committed to the development of children's creative and imaginative abilities, and its employees are guided by the motto adopted in the 1930s by founder Ole Kirk Christiansen: ``Only the best is good enough.''

Bob the Builder is made at the studios of HOT Animation. HOT is a wholly owned subsidiary of HIT Entertainment PLC.

Established in 1989, HIT Entertainment PLC is one of the fastest growing rights owning companies in the world. The company floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1996 with a capitalization of $29 million and is now worth over $650 million. HIT's catalogue of characters include Bob the Builder, Kipper, Percy the Park Keeper and The Three Friends & ...Jerry.

[Posted 9/21/2000]