Competition: Toyland's Savior?

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For this holiday season, Shiffman and his colleagues are banking on iZ to be the first megahit toy in ages. But an old friend will re-emerge as an unwelcome competitor: Hasbro is relaunching Furby this month, with six times more memory and more lifelike expressions. "It's unbelievable. There will be lots of comparisons," says Shiffman, who won't get a cent from the revamped Furby, a Hasbro property. "But we're coming from a zero base of recognition with iZ." He doesn't need to be reminded that more than 4 million Furbys were sold during that product's first three months on the market seven years ago. First-generation, voice-activated Furbys were sometimes derided for being noisy, but the Hasbro website says the new version can automatically "be sent to sleep." As iZ jockeys for shelf space this fall, nothing would make Shiffman happier.