Zhu Zhu Pets are kicking the stuffing out “Elmo” anything; They are the new hit and the superstars of the 2009 holiday shopping season.
Retailers everywhere are selling out of the  $10 fuzzy hamster toys, but the demand is pushing prices much higher. For example, Toys R Us online is sold out,  but don’t fear, Amazon.com is selling Zhu Zhu hamsters for about $50-$60 each.

Cindysbeans.com has the set of 4 available for $189.00 and they are in stock for Christmas delivery. Individually, they sell for $29.00 on the site but those units are backordered and will not ship until after Christmas. You, however, pay now.

Ebay even has sellers listing JUST the information on where to find them for $4 each. ZHU ZHU PETS.ASIA is listed on ebay for 2.3 Million or best offer;  Nothing says you have “made it” quite like a variant of your brand being squatted for millions.

Google trends has tracked the increase in interest of search using the keywords “zhu zhu pets” and it can be found here.

What is so enduring about these robotic rodents? It appears that much of the dedicated following is enamored with the idea that Zhu Zhu pets have nearly everything you like about hamsters but none of the heartbreak, nor maintenance. The following is so viral that people have made many youtube videos about these sought after toys.

What exactly do they do that is putting such a dent in the real hamster markets? Well, Zhu Zhu Pets make teeth-brushing sounds in the bathroom and sleeping noises in the bedroom. They also squeak when petted on the nose. Apparently, they even write their own blog. In the United States, they even have our Health Care crisis worked out; ok I made that part up.

They are essentially everything you like about a real hamster with none of the mess or issues with being “loved to death”.

These toys are made by Cepia LLC, a small company based near St. Louis who is struggling to keep up with the popularity of their one-year old offerring. According to reports, Cepia has cranked up three more factories in China to try to keep up with demand. Production has surged to 220,000 per day and they cannot outpace consumers who have been panic buying the hamster toy.

Similarly, Tickle Me Elmo and Cabbage Patch Kids frenzies started near-riots and incited violence amongst shoppers during their holiday releases. In Indianapolis there has already been a mild incident of violence.

While the demand is growing, so is the infringement. A cursory google search for these little guys using the obvious keywords, “Zhu Zhu Pets”, results in 10 different sponsored links in my region. Not surprisingly, none of them point to the Cepia Zhu Zhu pets site, http://zhuzhupets.com, which was down at the writing of this article.
“Zhu Zhu” keyword search brings up 11 sponsored links and again, none point to the main site! Oh if they had only used dedicated online reputation management! The problem is, that usually it takes a “problem” to realize that you need assistance in protecting your brand and traffic.

As this case shows clearly, there is more money that is not going in the brand owner’s pocket, but everyone elses.

I see clear cases for enforcement, domain consolidation, defensive registration, and a massive cease and desist campaign. I suppose as brand owners, we pick and choose our battles and it seems that this holiday season, their main concern is simply keeping up with demand. Going forward, however, these unauthorized sites and presences are just going to get dug in and it will make the case for infringement that much more difficult.

For example, note that zhuzhupets.cc, zhuzhu-pets.org, zhu-zhupets.org, zhu-zhupets.biz and zhuzhu-pets.biz were still available for registration at the time of this writing, but I imagine one or more will not be the open at the time of this blog publishing. Good faith purchasing by the brand owner of these unrestricted domains, at least shows an intent to protect your brand online. As time goes by, your case gets weaker.

Perhaps, domain sales are not as virulent because zhuzhupets.cc currently does not make tooth brushing sounds in the bathroom…. well, not yet.