News for Oct. 24, 2004

Top-Earning Fictional Characters

10/24/04, 10:19 am EST - Xoanon

NEW YORK - There is real money being made in the land of make-believe. Not to mention in Middle Earth, 100 Acre Wood and in a galaxy far, far away. According to our calculations, the top-ten fictional characters grossed more than $23 billion worldwide last year. Traditional media companies like The Walt Disney Co., Viacom and AOL Time Warner grabbed the lion's share of that revenue, but firms ranging from videogame makers to consumer-products giants are also cashing in. [More]