Merchandising

The National Football League has launched a preemptive strike against vendors of unlicensed Super Bowl merchandise by receiving permission to seize the property. Marion Superior Court has granted temporary restraining and seizure orders to the NFL, along with the New England Patriots and New York Giants, after they requested injunctions on Jan. 25.

ShopNBC announced that Macy's home products will premiere on the network beginning Sat., Feb. 11. A select assortment of Macy's exclusive private brands will, for the first time, be offered to a television viewing audience through this initiative.

PBS, America's chronically broke public television network, was trying to make a few bucks off of its hit series "Downton Abbey" with themed jewelry. The show's creators are none too happy about it and it looks as though PBS decided to pull the line from the site entirely, meaning no more cash from Downton product for PBS. 

A Mickey Mouse T-shirt on sale at the Disney Store has started an uproar in the music community. The Disney Store has since pulled the shirt described as, "Inspired by the iconic sleeve of Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures album, this Waves Mickey Mouse Tee incorporates Mickey's image within the graphic of the pulse of a star."

The Olympic motto is "Faster, Higher, Stronger," but perhaps the word "cheaper" should be added. Toy versions of the Olympic mascots are being made at a factory now being investigated for "poor pay and conditions."

New York Giants fans were out in full force buying all the NFC Championship merchandise they could hold. A Modell's manager in New York said some of his customers stumbled in straight from the bars after his store opened at 5 a.m. and that sales were up 1,000 percent over a normal day.

Target told vendors last week that it wanted better deals from them to compete with online rivals like Amazon. But will the vendors play ball? The Wall Street Journal reports they likely will — Target is too big a customer to ignore — and that other brick-and-mortar retailers will probably follow the company's lead.

Wal-Mart is holding a contest for inventors to compete for a spot on their shelves. The "Get on the Shelf" competition is along the lines of "American Idol," except no one is singing and Simon Cowell isn't there to berate anyone.

Federal authorities investigating the sale of shirts and jerseys bogusly branded NHL Winter Classic merchandise say they’ve seized counterfeit goods worth an estimated $350,000. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations office says it intercepted 150 international mail parcels and seized merchandise from vendors outside Citizens Bank Park, where the Philadelphia Flyers met the New York Rangers on Dec. 2.