The document discusses LEGO CUUSOO, a crowdsourcing platform where LEGO fans can submit their ideas for new LEGO sets. If an idea reaches 10,000 supporters, it undergoes a LEGO review process where it is evaluated on factors like brand fit, licensing, and market potential. Successful ideas can be turned into real LEGO products. The document talks about the rapid growth of CUUSOO and some of the challenges around determining who owns ideas and what types of licensed properties fit within LEGO's brand. It concludes by discussing upcoming plans like the next review cycle and continued community and website development.
1. LEGO CUUSOO
What happens when you throw open the
doors to the proverbial LEGO factory?
June 15, 2012
Tim Courtney
Senior Consultant, New Business Group
tim.courtney@LEGO.com
@timcourtney
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 12:46) -----Thanks, Brad, for having me here this morning. I'm here to tell you the story of where the LEGO Group has taken ----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----Thanks, Brad, for having me here this morning. Hi everyone. I'm here to pick up the story where Brad left off. Today at the LEGO Company we have a platform called LEGO CUUSOO, that gives any of our fans the opportunity to see their ideas become an actual LEGO product.
When I was young, I would draw up designs and send them to LEGO. Susan Williams would write me back and tell me that they could not accept my unsolicited idea.A year ago I would have been sitting in these seats with you listening to Paal Smith-Meyer present about CUUSOO.It’s been quite the transition going from a fan’s perspective to learning how TLG works and representing TLG.
When I was young, I would draw up designs and send them to LEGO. Susan Williams would write me back and tell me that they could not accept my unsolicited idea.A year ago I would have been sitting in these seats with you listening to Paal Smith-Meyer present about CUUSOO.It’s been quite the transition going from a fan’s perspective to learning how TLG works and representing TLG.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----Here are some of the products we co-created with fans, starting with the Blacksmith Shop.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----We also sought out the best LEGO MINDSTORMS builders in the world to help us determine what parts and functions would go into our first major re-release of LEGO MINDSTORMS, the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT kit. We involved our consumers directly in the product development process, and they told us the elements they wanted the most. This helped us bring something to market that struck a chord with the mass market in a way it couldn't have otherwise. We're privileged to have passionate fans who both tell us what they want and evangelize the LEGO brand on their own.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----We're looking for our fans to share their LEGO ideas with us...
How do you make it so everyone who has great ideas can participate?We’re looking to capture a broader variety of ideas.
How do you make it so everyone who has great ideas can participate?How do you make it so the most popular items rise to the top?
How do you make it so everyone who has great ideas can participate?
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----It officially launched at MineCon, a convention held in Las Vegas last November. But what's more interesting is Mojang had already built up a large, passionate community of people playing their Alpha and Beta releases, and they funded their startup by actually charging access to the Alpha.
Started in 2000.They hold a design competition for the best t-shirt artwork and print and sell the winning designs. They're one of the most notable and successful companies built with a business model of crowdsourcing.This model solicits ideas from the community, leverages the community to upvote the best designs (measuring demand and providing market research), pays the artist, and then sells the product back to the community and to a consumer audience.
Started in 2000.They hold a design competition for the best t-shirt artwork and print and sell the winning designs. They're one of the most notable and successful companies built with a business model of crowdsourcing.This model solicits ideas from the community, leverages the community to upvote the best designs (measuring demand and providing market research), pays the artist, and then sells the product back to the community and to a consumer audience.
Started in 2000.They hold a design competition for the best t-shirt artwork and print and sell the winning designs. They're one of the most notable and successful companies built with a business model of crowdsourcing.This model solicits ideas from the community, leverages the community to upvote the best designs (measuring demand and providing market research), pays the artist, and then sells the product back to the community and to a consumer audience.
Crowdsourced product designInventor and Contributors share in credit and revenue
Partnership with CUUSOO System, tested in Japan for two yearsExpanded globally to test the concept on a large scaleDifferent from Threadless, Kickstarter, and Quirky as we are taking a traditional business and opening a portion of it to crowdsourced ideas.Open innovation - allow external ideas to shape new developmentsSharing risk and reward
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----CUUSOO is a Japanese word that roughly translates to "wish."
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----Here's a look at what the homepage looked like for the Japanese version.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----Here are some of the original ideas we received on the Japanese platform. You can see a working LEGO candle, a stacking outlet system, an alarm clock, and the funniest one I see on the bottom left actually has a call out pointing to the fact it has "real water" in the moat.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----This is the artwork he submitted. He was trying to depict his LEGO version of a deep sea submarine called the Shinkai 6500. It's goes deeper than any other submarine in the world that carries a live crew.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----Here is the Shinkai in it's final box.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----Once the model reaches the 1000 supporter threshhold, it goes into a review process. A team at LEGO reviews the model, builds the business case, and decides whether or not we are going to produce it.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----Here is a view of the Hayabusa box.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----After LEGO CUUSOO succeeded in Japan, we decided to open it up to the global market. For Japan, we required 1,000 people to support a project to be considered. For the global market, we raised that number to 10,000.We opened LEGO CUUSOO to the global market in October of last year.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----And here's a look at the LEGO CUUSOO homepage. Users quickly get an idea of what they can do -- they can browse models, support ones they like, and create their own projects too.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----After LEGO CUUSOO succeeded in Japan, we decided to open it up to the global market. For Japan, we required 1,000 people to support a project to be considered. For the global market, we raised that number to 10,000.We opened LEGO CUUSOO to the global market in October of last year.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----It officially launched at MineCon, a convention held in Las Vegas last November. But what's more interesting is Mojang had already built up a large, passionate community of people playing their Alpha and Beta releases, and they funded their startup by actually charging access to the Alpha.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----It officially launched at MineCon, a convention held in Las Vegas last November. But what's more interesting is Mojang had already built up a large, passionate community of people playing their Alpha and Beta releases, and they funded their startup by actually charging access to the Alpha.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----We were surprised when the Minecraft project caught the attention of Mojang and their fans. Minecraft is a construction game and it has many similarities to LEGO as a building toy. Once Mojang linked to the LEGO CUUSOO project, it actually brought our servers to their knees because the traffic was coming in so quickly.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----Here's a shot of the Minecraft concept model on the new LEGO CUUSOO site. In the orange box, you can see the word "Achieved." This is usually a ticker that tells you the number of votes.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----So, Minecraft, our third LEGO CUUSOO project, reached the required 10,000 supporters for the new global platform within two days, where it took the second model I showed you, the Hayabusa, 77 days to reach 1,000 in Japan.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----In less than two months, someone submitted a project based on the popular game Minecraft.Minecraft is a very popular new game that lets you mine for raw materials and build in a 3D world.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----Here's a shot of the Minecraft concept model on the new LEGO CUUSOO site. In the orange box, you can see the word "Achieved." This is usually a ticker that tells you the number of votes.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----Here's a shot of the Minecraft concept model on the new LEGO CUUSOO site. In the orange box, you can see the word "Achieved." This is usually a ticker that tells you the number of votes.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----I'm going to recap just a little bit about what Brad just shared. Then we'll move into what LEGO CUUSOO is, and I'll tell the story of how it started in Japan and what we've seen now that we've succeeded there and launched our global beta. We'll then conclude with the promise and the opportunity we give our fans, and share some of the ways we are fostering user engagement on the platform.
Crowdsourced product designInventor and Contributors share in credit and revenue
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 13:20) -----We're looking for our fans to share their LEGO ideas with us...
What makes a good project? Is it the model? Should we just vote up the best MOCs on CUUSOO?
It’s a bit more than that. LEGO CUUSOO builds an audience around a concept, and a good project has to be a good fit for a LEGO product.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----It officially launched at MineCon, a convention held in Las Vegas last November. But what's more interesting is Mojang had already built up a large, passionate community of people playing their Alpha and Beta releases, and they funded their startup by actually charging access to the Alpha.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----It officially launched at MineCon, a convention held in Las Vegas last November. But what's more interesting is Mojang had already built up a large, passionate community of people playing their Alpha and Beta releases, and they funded their startup by actually charging access to the Alpha.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----It officially launched at MineCon, a convention held in Las Vegas last November. But what's more interesting is Mojang had already built up a large, passionate community of people playing their Alpha and Beta releases, and they funded their startup by actually charging access to the Alpha.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----It officially launched at MineCon, a convention held in Las Vegas last November. But what's more interesting is Mojang had already built up a large, passionate community of people playing their Alpha and Beta releases, and they funded their startup by actually charging access to the Alpha.
Cuusoo – 20.000 brugere1300 projekter/ideer----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----It officially launched at MineCon, a convention held in Las Vegas last November. But what's more interesting is Mojang had already built up a large, passionate community of people playing their Alpha and Beta releases, and they funded their startup by actually charging access to the Alpha.
----- Meeting Notes (1/31/12 09:08) -----After LEGO CUUSOO succeeded in Japan, we decided to open it up to the global market. For Japan, we required 1,000 people to support a project to be considered. For the global market, we raised that number to 10,000.We opened LEGO CUUSOO to the global market in October of last year.
Uncharted Territory
1:1 business model, mass customization
Compared to what we’re doing, it’s like a coloring book.
LEGO CUUSOO gives you this pallette
Crowdsourced product designInventor and Contributors share in credit and revenue
Design by Me is 1:1, where LEGO CUUSOO asks people to submit a concept that will make an attractive, marketable mass product.
When you open the doors, who knows what kinds of things people are going to submit?
We need your participation. You need to participate to get what you want, too.