Now Barbie takes on the computer

Toymaker Mattel has agreed to license some of its top brands, including Barbie, Hot Wheels and Fisher-Price, to entertainment firm THQ for use in computer games.

The companies did not disclose financial terms of the agreement but the "multi-year alliance" will allow THQ to design games using Mattel brands for consoles, computers, mobile devices and social networks.

THQ chief executive Brian Farrell called the agreement "very significant" for the company's family-oriented games division, which makes between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of its annual sales.

The first Mattel-branded games will be available in time for the next holiday season, the companies said. Chuck Scothon, senior vice-president of digital play at Mattel, said his company has not had an agreement with a video game publisher of "this scale or magnitude" before.

THQ also plans to offer Mattel-branded games for the uDraw tablet, an accessory for Nintendo's Wii games console, Farrell said.

THQ already has an agreement to license Mattel's Pictionary game, which is offered on uDraw.

Mattel said the partnership was a way to extend its franchises "across all screens" and to adapt to the changing ways people play with toys and games.

Meanwhile, THQ is seeking to tap Mattel's brands to fit newer game trends such as motion-sensor gaming.