America Loves TOTY 2010!

Established in 2000 as the "Oscars" of the North American toy industry, the annual Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards bring colleagues together to salute the "best of the best" and celebrate the success, creativity and playful spirit of toys and play.

Award Categories

The TOTY Awards honor products and companies for their outstanding performance in twelve categories:

• Infant Toy of the Year
  Toys developed for infant children ages 0-2*
• Preschool Toy of the Year
  Toys developed for preschool-aged children ages 3-5*
• Innovative Toy of the Year
  Toys that combine innovation and play value
• Girl Toy of the Year
  Toys developed for girls of any age
• Boy Toy of the Year
  Toys developed for boys of any age
• Game of the Year
  Children's board, card, CD-ROM or electronic game formats. (Note: all electronic games must have an ESRB "early childhood" rating)
• Outdoor Toy of the Year
  Toys designed for outdoor play
• Educational Toy of the Year
  Toys that help children to develop special skills and knowledge through play
• Activity Toy of the Year
  Toys that inspire creative play through various forms of activity
• Electronic Entertainment Toy of the Year
  Toys created for children of any age that have a considerable electronic component involved (including "plug ‘n play" and interactive videos)
• Specialty Toy of the Year
  Toys primarily distributed through specialty retailers
• Property of the Year
  Property that had the greatest success spreading its brand throughout the industry

The biggest honor of the evening is awarded to the year's best toy introduced to the marketplace during 2009; this Toy of the Year is determined by TIA members and associate members during the official TOTY ballot.

* For the first time this year, the Infant and Preschool categories are distinct.

Award Guidelines

Representatives from any toy manufacturer or toy-related company are eligible to nominate products and/or properties for the award categories defined in these Guidelines.

An unlimited number of products may be submitted per award category, however no more than two products from one company may appear in an award category on the final ballot. Companies with multiple divisions and whose individual divisions have nominated toys may be represented by up to three (3) products.

All 2010 TOTY nominated products must:

• be available at retail in the United States when the nomination is submitted and,
• have been introduced to the marketplace within the last two years.*

Nominations must contain detailed explanations about the product’s creative execution, sales results and traffic building, as well as play value.

Nominations received during the open call for entries are considered by the Nominations Subcommittee of the Toy of the Year Committee. This committee is comprised of major retailers representing both mass and specialty store segments, as well as journalists, inventors and educators.

Awards are determined by a vote of the TIA members and associate members (one vote per member organization).

* A new version of an older product line can be submitted as long as the "new" iteration has been introduced within the last two years.

TOTY 2010 Timelines