Toys and video games are hardly child’s play, as these billion-dollar companies not only produce the latest in gaming entertainment, but also big profits for investors. These companies are capitalizing on increased consumer spending with hot video games such as “Call of Duty,” and toys based off highly popular games “Farmville.”

Below, I will look at five companies in this sector that could be very profitable long term investments: Activision Blizzard (ATVI), Electronic Arts (EA), Hasbro (HAS), Mattel (MAT) and Take-Two Interactive Software (TTWO). If there’s one mega trend I’m willing to invest in right now, it’s the long term growth of Internet sales and online gaming. The companies listed below will all benefit from this trend in one way or another.

Activision Blizzard

A multimedia and graphics software company, Activision Blizzard is one of the largest companies in the industry, producing games such as the wildly popular “Warcraft” “Spiderman” and “Call of Duty” franchises for a variety of gaming formats. Headquartered in Santa Monica, CA, the company currently pays a dividend of $0.18 for a yield of 1.5%. With rumors of a 2012 release of “Call of Duty – Black Ops 2,” Activision Blizzard seems to be preparing for another solid year. In 2011, the company increased its dividend by 9% as its stock price increased nearly 12%. Although quarterly revenue was down 1.5% year-to-year, the company is debt-free and has total cash reserves of $3.5 billion to go with a free cash flow of $1 billion. To continue reading, click here.