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If you havent yelled DRAW FOUR across a sticky bar table lately, Mattel wants to change that. This weekend in Las Vegas, the company behind one of the worlds most iconic card games is launching something totally new: UNO Social Club, a real-life version of game night with a serious glow-up. The first one opens July 18 at the Palms Casino Resort, turning a suite into a full-on UNO-themed playgroundcomplete with a private bowling alley, color-drenched décor, and more versions of the game than you knew existed. The launch event is part of Mattels larger strategy to turn UNO into a lifestyle brand. Designed for what the company calls the socially distant generation, UNO Social Clubs are meant to create new touch points for younger players who might be less interested in family game night and more interested in turning game play into a night out. Gen Z already loves UNO, Ray Adler, Mattels VP and Global Head of Games tells Fast Company. Theyve been playing it online, at parties, everywhere. What they dont always have are opportunities to connect in the real worldso we asked: What if game night could be a whole experience? The answer? A rainbow-colored suite at the Palms packed with UNO-inspired décor and stocked with specialty decks like UNO Golf, UNO Show Em No Mercy, and UNO Teams. Theres even a dedicated UNO host to keep the games flowing and the trash talk civil. But the Vegas suite is just the opening hand. UNO, but make it nightlife Starting in August, UNO will be taking over bars in five major citiesfrom L.A. to Austinwith pop-up Social Clubs designed to turn everyday hotspots into the ultimate competitive hangout. Think: UNO-themed décor, tournament-style gameplay on official tables, and selfie-friendly backdrops. Each local UNO Social Club will bring its own twist. In L.A., the party lands at Club Tee Gees open-air patio in Atwater Village. In NYC, its taking over the downtown favorite Cowgirl. Chicagos Empty Bottle will transform its dance floor into a card-slinging arena. Atlantas Ormsbys will host in its basement bar, and Austins Murrays Tavern will close out the summer tour with cocktails and custom card games under the Texas sky. These arent family-friendly sit-downs with juice boxestheyre designed with Gen Z sensibilities in mind. Attendees can win custom UNO merch, product packs, and exclusive giveaways while battling it out over classic UNO, UNO Golf, and UNO Teams. The point is less about who wins and more about the connection and memories made along the way. Mattel chose venues specifically for their Gen Z appealplaces that already host game nights, trivia, or other community eventsso UNO fans dont have to shift their habits to show up. No ticketing system, no velvet rope, Adler explains. We want people to stumble upon it, hang out, maybe discover a new favorite way to playand then take that energy with them. Each pop-up is tailored to the local scene, bringing in unique variations of the game and adapting to each locations vibe. While the Vegas suite leans into spectacle, the bars will focus on accessibility and cultural relevance. UNO is growing upbut staying chaotic The brand has been on a hot streak. UNO was the top-selling traditional game during the pandemic, as people rediscovered old favorites while stuck at home. Now, Mattels aim is to keep that momentum goingwith variations that bring chaos, strategy, and, yes, pain. People asked for something more brutal, Adler says. So we made Show Em No Mercy. That deck includes game-changing twists and double-digit draw penalties that can knock players out of the game entirely. While the classic version still sells strong, its the newer spinoffslike UNO Flip or UNO Attackthat are resonating with gamers who crave novelty. Mattel now views the brand as a cultural bridge: a game you played with your family, yes, but also one that evolves with you as you grow upand grow more competitive. The ultimate goal? Make UNO something you never outgrow. UNO goes lifestyle Mattels bet on UNO as a lifestyle brand is part of a larger push happening across the $19.5 billion tabletop games market. That market is projected to grow to $34.1 billion by 2030 according to Research and Markets, with a nearly 10% annual growth rate. And while big names like Mattel and Hasbro still dominate the space, smaller indie brands are gaining traction thanks to clever design and grassroots followings. Strategy games, in particular, are fueling the boomespecially those that combine competitive chaos with social connection. Its exactly the niche UNO is now trying to own. A new kind of brand loyalty This isn’t just about nostalgia. The surge in tabletop gamingfueled by Euro-style strategy games, hybrid digital-analog formats, and board game cafésreflects a growing appetite for IRL interaction in a screen-saturated world. Educational games, RPGs, and collectible card games are all seeing major traction, especially in North America and Europe, with APAC quickly catching up thanks to a booming interest in social gaming and game cafés. If Barbie was Mattels all-pink lifestyle moment, UNO is aiming to become the game night version. But instead of museum-style installations or scripted nostalgia, this is about high-energy interactivity. Its less about buying the product and more about stepping into its worldeven if just for a drink, a draw four, and a photo op. We want to create spaces that feel familiar but elevated, Adler says. If a bar was built with UNO in mind, what would it look like? Thats what were trying to answer. What UNO is doing fits squarely into that trend. Its social. Its competitive. And its chaotic in the best way. And if the Vegas launch goes welland enough people show up ready to shufflethis could be the beginning of a very colorful new era for game night.
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E-Commerce
Two milestones revealed this week illustrate the diminishing power of broadcast television in the media worldone fueled by the habits of young people and the other by their elders.During June, viewers spent more time watching streaming services than they did for broadcast and cable television combined. That happened for the first time ever in May, by a fraction of a percentage point, but the Nielsen company said on Tuesday that gap widened considerably in June.Also, for the third straight week, Nielsen said that Fox News Channel had more viewers in prime-time on weeknights than any of the main the broadcast networks ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox entertainment.For years, the mantra of media executives was that streaming represented the future for in-home entertainment. Now, that future has clearly arrived. Broadcast TV slips below 20% of total In June, 46% of Americans’ TV time was spent on streaming services, led by YouTube and Netflix. Cable television networks represented 23.4% and broadcast was 18.5%, for a total of just under 42%, Nielsen said. It was the first time broadcast TV had ever slipped below 20% of total TV viewing.“It kind of felt like the right time,” said Brian Fuhrer, Nielsen’s senior vice president for product strategy and thought leadership. “A lot of people thought it would happen more quickly.”The driving force in June was school ending for young people, meaning they had more time to watch TV, where Netflix series like “Ginny & Georgia” and “Squid Game” were big hits. Roughly two-thirds of people aged 6 to 17 watched streaming ahead of conventional TV, Nielsen said.In June 2024, the numbers were roughly reversed47.7% of people were watching conventional TV in an average minute, with 40.3% logged on to a streaming service.While the direction is clear, it’s not a death knell for conventional TV. June and July are fallow months, and their viewing will increase when football season begins and original episodes of comedies and dramas return, Fuhrer said. Content is distributed over more platforms It’s also not a strict either-or situation; media companies are doing a better job spreading their content out on different platforms to give viewers a choice, he said. The growth of YouTube, which many consumers can access for free and is a portal for “traditional” TV, has also fueled streaming services.Fox News has occasionally eclipsed the broadcast networks in viewership before, but last week represented the seventh week it has done so in 2025, already more than 2024 and 2023 combined. It averaged 2.4 million viewers in prime time on weeknights last week, Nielsen said.Fox News is also taking advantage of what is traditionally the least-watched time of the year for broadcast networks, when summer nights and barbecues keep people outside. The difference this year is it has won a few weeks outside of the summer, during President Donald Trump’s inauguration week in January, for example.Its audienceamong the oldest of all television networkstends to stay pretty steady throughout the year. David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social David Bauder, AP Media Writer
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E-Commerce
It looks like the GENIUS Act might advance through the U.S. House of Representatives after all, following some arm-twisting from President Donald Trump. On Tuesday, the cryptocurrency legislation looked dead in the water, with 223 lawmakers voting against moving forward with the bill and 196 for it. Thirteen Republicans joined Democrats in the nays. But it seems things are unlikely to stay that way following a White House meeting later in the day. I am in the Oval Office with 11 of the 12 Congressmen/women necessary to pass the GENIUS Act and, after a short discussion, they have all agreed to vote tomorrow morning in favor of the Rule, Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. House Speaker Mike Johnson phoned into the meeting and apparently plans to introduce another vote swiftly. Highly watched ‘Crypto Week’ If passed, the GENIUS Act would regulate stablecoins, or those tied to stable assets like the dollar. Its one of three bills blocked in Tuesdays vote and is appearing during the Houses Crypto Week. The term was coined by the U.S. House of Representatives leadership to highlight the proposed crypto-friendly legislation. Theres also the CLARITY Act, which would allow the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to regulate cryptocurrencies, thus continuing to legitimize the industry, while the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act would block the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (i.e., a digital dollar), the bill states. The trios uncertainty has led to some turmoil in the stock market for crypto-adjacent companies. For example, the relatively newly public company Circle Internet Group stock (NYSE: CRCL), which issues stablecoins, lost about 5% of its value following Tuesdays vote. However, Wednesday morning saw Circles stock rise again, increasing by nearly 4% in premarket trading as of this writing. This story is developing…
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E-Commerce
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