SpongeBob is a worth a lot of money

Maybe he should change the spelling to $pongeBob.

How lucrative is the licensing for Spongebob Squarepants?
July 13th, 2009 | www.infoaddict.com

On July 17, Spongebob will celebrate his 10th birthday as a highly lucrative merchandising juggernaut. Lucrative to the tune of $8-billion a year, which is a pretty incredible number.

But like “The Flintstones” and “The Simpsons” before it, “SpongeBob” has found that the secret to its success lies in its cross-generational appeal. It entertains just as many kids as it does college students and adults with an appreciation for slapstick sponge humor and aquatic double entendres. That demographic transcendence has helped “SpongeBob” maintain its status as the most-watched show on cable, accounting for as much as 30 of the 100 top-rated shows in any given week in Nielsen’s cable ratings, as well as the top-rated animated show among kids 2 to 11 for the past seven years.