HASBRO ANNOUNCES THE FIRST EVER “TRANSFORMERS CYBERTRON CONVENTION” IN CHINA

The Largest Official Gathering of TRANSFORMERS Fans Started last Friday at Landmark Brand Expo in Shanghai

 Hasbro, Inc. is kicking off the start of the first ever official TRANSFORMERS fan convention to be held in Asia, “TRANSFORMERS Cybertron Con,” at the East Asia Exhibition Hall at the Shanghai World Expo. Building on the tremendous momentum and enthusiasm for Hasbro’s popular brand around the world, the Company is presenting an extensive collection of historical TRANSFORMERS items from throughout the brand’s 26 year history.  In a visually stunning exhibit, Hasbro is welcoming fans to experience a wide variety of offerings from the brand’s current toy line and entertainment. 

  This “history corridor” will be featured in the central section of the expansive TRANSFORMERS Cybertron Convention footprint within the East Asia Exhibition Hall at the Shanghai World Expo.  Within the corridor, visitors and fans can see the chronological progression of the TRANSFORMERS brand beginning with the classic “Generation 1” era.  As fans proceed through they will be able to view extensive artwork and information about characters and stories from different eras of the brand from BEAST WARS to the most recent entertainment blockbuster movies and current HUNT FOR THE DECEPTICONS promotion.

“The first ever ‘TRANSFORMERS Cybertron Convention’ in Shanghai is a testament to the global phenomenon that Hasbro’s TRANSFORMERS brand has become over its twenty-six year history,” said John Frascotti, Global Chief Marketing Officer Hasbro, Inc.  “We’re thrilled to welcome tens of thousands of fans to this unprecedented convention to celebrate the stories, characters, art, action figures and entertainment surrounding the TRANSFORMERS franchise.”

In addition to the historical retrospective, the first “TRANSFORMERS Cybertron Convention” will feature a wide variety of displays, interactive experiences and special events.  TRANSFORMERS brand leaders and designers from Hasbro’s global headquarters in Pawtucket, Rhode Island will also be in attendance to meet with fans and attend special events and panel discussions.  In all, over two thousand TRANSFORMERS action figures will be on display and the retrospective will feature TRANSFORMERS artwork including figure designs, cartoon animation and comics.  Some artwork featured will have been previously unreleased prior to the convention.

In addition to expert panels and the historical retrospective, special events and exhibits will include:

• An opening ceremony where Hasbro will unveil a 23-foot tall BUMBLEBEE character statue, one of the largest TRANSFORMERS statues ever, made for the TRANSFORMERS Cybertron Convention.
• A “graffiti wall” featuring TRANSFORMERS characters in the Shanghai East Asia Exhibition Hall.
• Demonstrations of the recently released Transformers: War for Cybertron video game from Activision. 
• TRANSFORMERS drawing classes for attendees (at select times).
• Three-dimensional action figure dioramas capturing scenes from popular TRANSFORMERS entertainment including the blockbuster movies and 1980’s animated series.
• TRANSFORMERS Challenge competitions testing attendees skills at converting TRANSFORMERS action figures from “robot” to “vehicle” modes.

The TRANSFORMERS Cybertron Convention started Friday, July 30 and ends on Tuesday, August 3. For more information about the convention, fans can visit http://ad.sh.sohu.com/transformers//index.html.