Licensing goes beyond novelty. (CE & Entertainment).(Brands are extended into licensed products in general and consumer electronics category in particular)(Brief Article)

The Consumer Electronics Show is traditionally the place to find a wide array of flashy, high-tech gadgets, and the assortment on display at CES 2003 held earlier this month was no exception. But scattered among the flat-panel TVs, MP3 players and wireless devices kinds of products that get little attention from the tech side, but can consistently be found on store shelves: licensed properties.

"More and more, the mass merchants are looking at licensed products as a complement to core brands," said Tony Colecchi, evp, sales and marketing, Polyconcept USA. "It's a $400 million business at retail."

Discount department stores have long featured such branded …