If you look up mindstorms news on yahoo or google, you will find seven stories in the past six weeks about young kids getting excited about space, science, robots and other technology through lego robotics. I personally think the FLL program is the best thing that ever happened to many kids. I was very saddened to read this other bit of news today:
Yahoo news
Since it reported its first loss of $47.8 million in 1998, Lego has been hit hard by increasing competition from the makers of electronic toys.
Under Plougmann, the company reacted by expanding its electronic offerings, including making high-profile deals to use characters from Disney, the Star Wars films and Harry Potter (news - web sites) books in its toys.
It also developed popular CD-ROM games and its lauded Mindstorms series, high-tech robots that are made of building blocks but can be controlled by personal computers.
As a result, sales rose but profits stagnated because of the higher cost of producing the new products.
The company now plans to stop making the electronics and movie tie-in products and return to its core mission: producing colored plastic building blocks for children.
Last I looked, FIRST wasn't an acronym for inspiration and recognition of robots. It was and is an acronym for inspiration and recognition of science and technology. - JaneYoung [more] 
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