TOTAL LICENSING
Summer 2019
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Regular Features
Russia and Middle East
Comment........................................................................ 6 Global news.................................................................... 8 Legally Speaking.........................................................144 The LIMA Page..........................................................146 What’s On..................................................................148
Invent Media wins major award............................... 34 Animaccord - Taking a new direction .................... 69
Europe
North America
Interview: Rovio’s head of licensing........................ 21 The Ogglies set to debut.......................................... 28 Are you IP savvy?........................................................ 30 Capturing Attention.................................................... 32 Expect the unexpected in Sheffield......................... 40 Giantosaurus comes to Vegas................................... 60 Re-imagining the classics........................................... 62 Latest from TF1 Licences.......................................... 64 SEGA Europe in Las Vegas......................................... 65 Cleo & Cuquin from Anima...................................... 66 News from Studio 100.............................................. 72 Mondo at Expo............................................................ 74 Expanding the world of Born Licensing................. 77 Benjamin the Elephant............................................... 80 Santoro Celebrates 35 Years.................................... 82 Insight into Market Research..................................129
The Wiggles are Back!................................................ 84
Licensing Expo Las Vegas Preview........................... 42 Cover Story: Viacom Nickelodeon........................ 86
Global Toy Story 4 behind the scenes................................. 98 The Environment and Licensing A Special Total Licensing Report....................100 Feeling the brand buzz!............................................124 The rise and rise of toy influencers......................126 The Netflix effect......................................................128
Asia
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The latest from Roi Visual......................................... 22 Beyblade Burst program grows............................... 90 Licensing Japan - a successful Tokyo show............. 92 Spotlight on India........................................................ 94 South Korea - an expanding market.....................131 Korean webtoons lead the way........................132 News from the Korean market........................134 Ace Fair Preview..................................................136 Case Study: CJ ENM............................................138 Smiley in South Korea.........................................139 China Licensing Industry Study Report...............140
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Starts page 42 Summer/Fall
2019
Latin America Argentina - Ultra Zombies....................................... 76 Brazil Market Intro...................................................111 Mexico: Panaderia baking brands...........................112 Mexico: Experience Licensing on the rise...........114 Spongebob & Chesperito collaboration..............117 Colombia: Koppa reflects on the last year..........118 Latin American news................................................120 Profile: Bubu and the Little Owls..........................121
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Australia
NEW ISSUES NOW AVAILABLE! Visit www.totallicensing.com or pick up a copy at Licensing Expo!
Co-Publisher Francesca Ash francesca@totallicensing.com
Co-Publisher Jerry Wooldridge jerry@totallicensing.com
Editorial Director Rebecca Ash becky@totallicensing.com
Business Development Manager Jo Cassidy joanna@totallicensing.com
Office Manager Helen Bowerman helen@totallicensing.com
Japan Agent Roger Berman, ZenWorks rmb@zenworks.jp
TOTAL LICENSING LTD 4 Wadhurst Business Park Faircrouch Lane, Wadhurst, East Sussex TN5 6PT UK Tel: +44 (0) 1892 782220 Fax: +44 (0) 1892 782226 www.totallicensing.com enquiries@totallicensing.com
The times they are a-changin’ As many of us are preparing to head out to Las Vegas for this year’s Licensing Expo, it’s perhaps a good time to reflect on how the industry is changing and, more to the point, how the different sectors are reacting to this change. Of course the biggest change is, without doubt, in retail. The high street/main street or whatever you call it is not the same as it was. And it won’t be the same again. Why? No, it isn’t all down to online shopping although this is certainly having an impact. It’s also down to the consumer and what he or she wants and expects from the retail experience. Consumers want more than merely buying an item or two. They know they can generally do the same online without ever leaving their sofa. To attract them into a store, retailers need to do more. Much more. Those that have embraced this concept are continuing to do well.Those that haven’t… well, Toys R Us was a good example. A toy shop should be a fun, immersive and entertaining experience. Not a visit to a warehouse that happens to contain toys. For those that remember, years back FAO Schwarz’s flagshop store in New York was a truly immersive experience. You could play with toys, experience the fun, surrounded by toys, models, musical instruments and much, much more. This is what attracted customers. Not just the fact that you could buy Lego in the store. But you could play with Lego, see some of the extraordinary Lego constructions and really feel part of the Lego ‘experience.’ The store was inviting and an exciting place to be. Remember Tom Hanks playing Chopsticks on the foot piano in the movie ‘Big,’ Well FAO Schwarz had one of those and yes you could play it to your heart’s content.
Move now to the older age group and specifically department stores and fashion stores. Just playing music while you browse isn’t enough. There needs to be something else. Lulu Lemon came up with a formula where they teach Yoga lessons in their stores. You can’t get that online! Ikea, the ubiquitous flat-pack furniture store, many years ago offered creche facilities for children while the adults shopped. And when you’d had enough of walking the three miles around the store, they have a heavily subsidised café restaurant. All of this made shopping easy and kept you in the store. So what do retailers really need to do? They need to provide personalised customer service. Good service inspires loyalty. They also need to offer online and offline integration. For example, according to a report 56% of consumers want to be able to have a shared shopping cart across channels (such as putting something in your cart and having it show up on your phone). But, so far, only 7% of retailers offer this. And interestingly, only 29% of stores offer click and collect or buy online and pickup in a store as an option. Lure shoppers with a great loyalty program and offer invitations to special events and personalised promotions. Clearly, there is a lot that retailers can do to combat the perceived threat posed by online shopping. But they do need to move on it, and move quickly. Of course, in our industry, retail is not the only area of change. In fact, change is happening all the time. There’s a consolidation of studios, agencies and properties which has its challenges. To meet the challenges moving forwards, even the industry trade association has changed its identity. LIMA (as was) is now Licensing International, a move designed to reflect the changing face of licensing and the increasing globalisation of the marketplace. No doubt, all of these changes will be discussed in the aisles in Vegas. Total Licensing will, of course, be there and we very much look forward to seeing you. In the meantime, happy travels and see you in the desert! Francesca Ash Jerry Wooldridge Co-Publisher Co-Publisher
© 2019 Total Licensing Ltd All illustrations are reproduced by permission of their owners. No part of this magazine may be copied or quoted without permission from the Publishers first. Total Licensing Ltd does not warrant or assume any legal liability for the accuracy or legality of contents, images or advertisements submitted to the magazine. Opinions of the contributing writers are their own and do not reflect the opinion of Total Licensing Ltd. Printed in England
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With Thanks to this Issue’s Contributing Writers: Dalia Benbassat Gregory Battersby Martin Brochstein Carlos Carvajal
Jed Ferdinand Marici Ferreira Simon Foulkes Hyon-Kyong Kim
Rutika Malaviya Lisa Reiner Nick Richardson Alice Yang
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TIE-IN FOR SPICE GIRLS AND MR MEN Mr. Men Little Miss has announced a deal with the Spice Girls to create four new books and a range or merchandise adding to their iconic character range; Little Miss Baby, Little Miss Ginger, Little Miss Scary and Little Miss Sporty. Both Spice Girls and Mr. Men Little Miss fans will be able to pre-order the books and buy a range of merchandise thorough the Mr. Men Little Miss shop exclusively with roll out to retail later in the autumn. Alastair McHarrie, licensing director of Sanrio Global Ltd, said: “We are over the moon to be partnering with the Spice Girls on this extra special collaboration. We will be working with the Spice Girls and our partners to develop a range of merchandise for launch later in the year. We’re predicting huge sales as the Spice Girls have an enormous following, not only in the UK but worldwide. With a lack of merchandise in the past there is a huge opportunity to engage Spice Girls fans.Tickets for the first reunion tour sold out in 38 seconds, the demand speaks for itself.” The Spice Girls commented, ‘We love our Mr. Men Little Miss character books; they bring to life our individual personalities that our fans know and love. We wanted to celebrate our tour by collaborating with another iconic British brand and who better than Mr. Men Little Miss!” Adam Hargreaves comments, “I am very proud to be working on this project with the Spice Girls and it has been great fun creating Little Miss stories and caricatures of them all. It has taken Mr Men into a whole new world, Spiceland! This will be an exciting venture, although I don’t think anyone is more excited than my daughter! She’s a fan from a long way back.”
LICENSED RAMADAN COOKWARE Fatafeat, the leading Arabic food network in the Middle East, has launched an exclusive cookware range for Ramadan and Eid, in collaboration with Lulu Hypermarkets. Available in stores across the region, the range comprises cookware, kitchen tools and dinnerware and is available in two eye-catching designs: Arabic Rounds and Intricate Persians. The collection is currently available at the Lulu hypermarket located in the Mushrif Mall in Abu Dhabi and will be roll out in the coming weeks across all 60 Lulu hypermarkets. Henry Windridge, Head of Brand MEA, Discovery Inc said: “Across the globe, Discovery is proud to collaborate with fantastic partners, offering viewers new and exciting touchpoints across our vast brand portfolio.We are driven to help spur people’s passions.With food being such an integral part of Middle East life, we were very excited to be approached to work with Lulu.” Windridge added, “Partnering with Lulu to launch as exclusive Ramadan cookware range was a natural fit, bringing together Fatafeat, the region’s biggest food media brand, with Lulu who have one of the biggest retail food footprints in the Middle East. We believe Lulu’s customers will enjoy the guarantee of quality that comes with Fatafeat name.” The launch of the range was celebrated with Fatafeat talent Chef Mohammad Orfali performing a live cooking demonstration at Lulu Hypermarket in Mushrif Mall in Abu Dhabi.
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AUX MODE APPOINTED BY BEJUBA Aux Mode Inc., a global multichannel network, has been appointed by Bejuba Entertainment to be the worldwide YouTube manager of its extensive catalog, which includes popular kids series, Big Block Sing Song, Ruff–Ruff, Tweet & Dave, Origanimals, Wishfart and Buzz & Bumble. Under the agreement, Aux Mode will assume the creation and management of Bejuba’s corporate channel that will include seven series to start. The new rising tech start-up will implement a full-service global strategy to grow Bejuba’s audience through content optimization and monetization. Aux Mode will also secure unclaimed revenue from user generated content and protect the brands from copyright violations. “Creating a corporate channel for Bejuba’s catalog is a key strategy in driving eyeballs to their remarkable library of content,” said Adam Rumanek, CEO and Founder of Aux Mode Inc. “Creating one channel, as opposed to individual brand channels, allows us to build a mini hub for content, where we can cross promote videos to boost views, engagement and discoverability.” “We enlisted Aux Mode first on Big Block Sing Song’s YouTube channel and they increased our subscribers by 300% and our revenue by 2344%,” said Tatiana Kober, President at Bejuba Entertainment. “After their proven success and thanks to their proprietary reporting tools and their ability to cross-promote and monetize piracy, we knew they were the right partner to entrust our expansive library to.” Each episode of Big Block Sing Song features a unique box character that serenades audiences with its own charming theme song. Vibrant animations accompany some serious toe-tapping tunes for a unique and alluring experience that young viewers love.
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PICKERING’S AND BRITISH AIRWAYS CREATE SKY-HIGH GIN In a world first, Edinburgh based Pickering’s Gin, have created a gin that has been specifically developed to be enjoyed at altitude. The gin is available to drink onboard on all British Airways short haul flights and through the High Life shop as part of a trio pack. Distilled at Edinburgh’s Summerhall Distillery, the unique 10-botanical gin celebrates the very best of British flora and fauna – juniper, rose petals and heatheralongside signature Pickering’s botanicals of lime, lemon, cardamom and cinnamon. The resulting spirit is the product of close collaboration, working together to ensure that flavour is maximised in the air, but tastes just as good on the ground. Central to the flavour profile of the Pickering’s British Airways Centenary Gin is the addition of lemon myrtle. In contrast to other classic acidic citrus fruits, lemon myrtle imparts natural sweetness alongside the bold citrus flavour to the gin.
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ZIMPLI KIDS TAKE RYAN’S WORLD Zimpli Kids has signed a worldwide licensing deal with media company Pocket.Watch, to introduce some unique new lines to the popular Ryan’s World range. Zimpli Kids will be launching Ryan’s World Gelli Baff (Glitter Purple and Aqua Blue), Slime Baff (Green and Glitter Orange) and are looking to extend the range with foil bags and their Gelli Worlds playset.
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EONE UNVEILS NEW DIGITAL ALBUM eOne recently unveiled details of a new digital album launch for its preschool animated property, PJ Masks. The new album, entitled Heroes Forever, will be released in English language only and available globally on digital streaming and download platforms from late May. The new release follows the success of the brand’s first album PJ Masks Here We Come which was released in 2017 and has been a big hit with the show’s fanbase; generating 22 million streams globally on Spotify alone. More recently, a cast recording album from the live stage show, PJ Masks Live! Time to be a Hero was released in the U.S. in January 2019 to coincide with the show’s third national tour and has already gained over 1.3 million streams on Apple Music and Spotify. Due to popular demand, eOne’s follow up album Heroes Forever delivers 8 fresh new tracks including Save the Day, Catboy, Go Go Gekko, Touch the Sky Owlette that will have pre-schoolers around the world singing and dancing along with their favourite characters from the popular TV series. eOne’s Rebecca Harvey, EVP Global Brand Management, Family & Brands said, “Music is a core part of PJ Masks’ appeal and we’re excited to be bringing fans a new album that will transport them into the world of their favourite characters both at home and onthe-go. As a business we are wholly committed to working cross divisionally to maximise brand potential and the fan experience. This latest venture with eOne’s music group is an exciting approach and one that we will be developing across the Family portfolio of brands in future.”
MICKLER TO LICENSE PAUL MCCARTNEY’S NEW BOOK Caroline Mickler Ltd in the UK, has been appointed by brand owner MPL Communications as UK agent to represent the licensing rights for Hey Grandude, Paul McCartney’s first children’s picture book, which arrives at retail in September. Described as “an action-packed adventure story with a wonderful wind-down-to-bedtime ending,” Hey Grandude is about an intrepid grandfather explorer, who, with a little help from his magical postcards, whisks his grandchildren off on incredible adventures. It’s a wild rollercoaster ride – with a twist of magic – and a heart-warming family story, inspired by Paul McCartney’s own experiences of being a grandfather. Brought to life with funny, colourful illustrations from talented artist Kathryn Durst, the book is published in the UK by Puffin. As UK licensing agent for the new book Caroline Mickler Limited will be exploring a number of potential licensing opportunities in the two-to-five-year-old target market that will be the book’s core readership, as well, of course as parents, grandparents and gift buyers for children. Hey Grandude will also be a strong focus of the Caroline Mickler Ltd presence at Brand Licensing Europe 2019, soon after the book arrives at retail.
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TSBA TAKE UK’S NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY TSBA Group has announced the addition of the internationally renowned National Portrait Gallery, London, to its roster of English heritage brands. Following the success of taking the British Museum to the global licensing stage, TSBA has equally ambitious plans to expand the reach of the National Portrait Gallery’s brand through a licensing program that secures long-term partnerships across a spectrum of retailers, licensees and brand collaborations in categories including homeware, gifting, stationery, apparel and accessories. Founded in 1856, London’s National Portrait Gallery holds the most extensive collection of portraits in the world. The Gallery has a unique role as the nation’s family album, inviting visitors to meet kings, queens, artists, authors, musicians, actors, scientists and politicians. The licensing program will take inspiration from the National Portrait Gallery’s vast Collection of paintings and photography to create ranges that provide a contemporary perspective to its rich heritage. Initial themes include Kings and Queens, particularly drawing on the intricacies of fabrics and fashions found in the Gallery’s Tudor portraits. TSBA’s appointment will generate revenues for the National Portrait Gallery to invest in its curatorial and educational work, as well as to help conserve and maintain its Collection.
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BEANSTALK TO LICENSE CARNEGIE HALL America’s concert hall, Carnegie Hall, has signed with Beanstalk as their exclusive brand extension licensing agency. Through this new partnership, Carnegie Hall will identify new, strategic ways to reach an even wider audience and complement the Hall’s visionary music education programs. Beanstalk will seek opportunities in innovative categories and experiences such as children’s publishing, branded retail shops, premium headphones, and home entertainment. Since its opening in New York City in 1891, Carnegie Hall has hosted the finest artists representing a vast range of music with performances offered in a concert hall renowned for its unparalleled acoustics and beauty. Its commitment to artistic excellence, visionary programming, and service to the community have made it the world’s most famous concert hall for more than 125 years. As a central part of its mission, the Hall is also dedicated to creating innovative education and social impact programs that reach over a half million people throughout the city and beyond. Through this partnership with Beanstalk, Carnegie Hall will endeavor to fulfill its mission to not only present extraordinary music and musicians on the three stages of its legendary hall, but also to bring the transformative power of music to the widest possible audience. “We are excited to partner with Beanstalk to increase the circle of people worldwide who engage with Carnegie Hall and the best in music,” said Clive Gillinson, Carnegie Hall’s Executive and Artistic Director “We look forward to working with Beanstalk to develop new partnerships that reflect Carnegie Hall’s commitment to excellence and sense of musical discovery.” “Beanstalk is honored to work with the prestigious Carnegie Hall to develop a licensing program in North America,” said Linda Morgenstern, Vice President, Brand Management. “Carnegie Hall has such a rich history and powerful brand to extend into products such as premium headphones and home theater equipment. In addition, we will leverage Carnegie Hall’s innovative music education programs to further enlighten children about music in all its forms through book publishing.”
WECHAT EMOTICON IN MOVIE Tuzki. the legendary WeChat emoticon has scored a starring role in Tencent Pictures’ upcoming Chinese drama, Second Time is a Charm. The famous rabbit IP is owned by Turner Asia Pacific, a WarnerMedia company, and has established itself as an instantly-recognisable figure in China both on- and off-screen. Its use has been licensed to Tencent for the series and, as part of the agreement, Turner has also made a financial investment in the production. Tuzki will feature heavily in the show as well as in animated shorts at the end of each episode as part of a special story recap. Momo Wang, the creator of the rabbit IP, is creatively involved in the project to design new characters and adaptations of the show’s characters in Tuzki’s unique style. Momo’s career has also been used as inspiration for An’an, the leading character (played by Olivia Wang) in Second Time is a Charm.
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MOOSE DEBUT KINDI KIDS Moose Toys once again establishes itself as a leader in the toy industry with the launch of Kindi Kids preschool property this Fall. The Kindi Kids are four colorful bobblehead dolls with magical accessories that move and come alive, sparking imaginative play and guiding young girls on their journey to kindergarten. “Kindi Kids is more than a brand launch for Moose Toys. It’s an incredible opportunity to disrupt the preschool aisle to celebrate the major milestone of entering kindergarten for the first time,” said Paul Solomon, co-CEO, Moose Toys. “We’ve received great support from retailers, and this is just the beginning for Kindi Kids. We are building out a robust world with music and content, with more to come.” The world of Kindi Kids, Rainbow Kindi, will also come alive with original content on YouTube launching in June. The episodes are filled with music, viewers can get to know the Kindi Kids and join their adventures, including the first day of kindergarten and making new friends. The Kindi Kids launch will be supported by a multifaceted marketing campaign, including national TV, digital and social campaigns and instore point of sale materials, and will launch with a robust influencer campaign, including a partnership with Instagram and YouTube icons and four-year-old twin preschoolers Mila and Emma Stauffer who will create original content for Instagram and YouTube showcasing their own journey to kindergarten with Kindi Kids. “Kindi Kids is poised to become one of the top preschool toys of the year,” said, Tom McGrath, president, TMG Consulting. “The preschool aisle could benefit from inspirational toys that offer possibilities for adventure and imagination for young girls entering kindergarten. Kindi Kids fills a void by building an entire world and original content that speaks to young children and their parents in a modern, fresh and fun way.”
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REVISED EMOJI.COM LAUNCHES The emoji company, owner of the registered emoji trademark and creator of the world’s largest library of emoji brand icons and designs for commercial use, has debuted an expansive new website that not only showcases the versatility and universal appeal of this unique lifestyle brand, but also makes official emoji brand assets available for free to the general public for the first time ever. At the same time, the company has also unveiled a new range of 3D animated emoji brand icons, bringing fan-favorite icons to life in a whole new way. On the new emoji.com platform, consumers can now browse and search the entire catalogue of emoji brand icons, wallpaper and stickers – previously only available for commercial use – then download those items for their own personal use, free of charge. Among the items available for download is the emoj brand-new line of 3D animated emoji brand icons, also available for commercial licensing. Featuring 343 unique designs such as a heart icon that actually beats, the range puts a fun twist on familiar favorites, combining the expressiveness of a classic
icon with the energy of a GIF. In recent years, the emoji brand has become one of the most expressive and influential lifestyle brands in the market today. emoji now has more than 700 licensees worldwide and has collaborated with marquee brands including Sony Pictures Animation, Nutella, L´Oreal, KISS, Pond’s, Zara, Danone, Walmart, Nestlé and Universal Music, to name just a few. Nowhere is this evolution more evident than on the new emoji.com, where the unique and diverse roster of emoji brand collaborations, licensed products, promotions and activations is on full display. “Icons have quickly become an indispensable tool for expression and distinction in everyday life, and as the owner and operator of the emoji brand, we have the unique opportunity of giving consumers the power to showcase their personality and individuality by using our emoji brand content,” said Marco Hüsges, CEO and Founder, the emoji company. “Our library of content contains
so much more than what consumers are generally used to. On emoji. com you can get emoji brand icons in all variations – whether it be glossy, flat or outline. You can download 3D Icons, Stickers, Customized Designs and Wallpapers for all purposes, and color your life with happiness by using our free emoji brand content! Making our creations available free for personal use is a natural step as we continue to work with our partners around the world to create consumer products, promotions, events and experiences that break out of the norm and promote self-expression in all its many forms. This is what the emoji brand is all about.”
PAW PATROL TEACHES SAFETY IN POLAND CPLG, in cooperation with Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products and the Nick Jr channel in Poland, have joined forces with the Polish Red Cross to develop a nationwide PAW Patrol-themed safety campaign in Poland, entitled Safe Patrol! and designed to deliver important safety lessons to pre-school children and their families. “Polish Red Cross has been educating children in kindergartens for years and one of our initiatives are Squirrel Clubs. Our experience shows that preschool education is the best time to build proper patterns of behaviour,” said Małgorzata Szukała, Head of Communication and Fundraising Division,Polish Red Cross Headquarters. “In addition, if we can do it with the favourite heroes of cartoons, the effectiveness is much greater. That is why we are very happy that our
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programs have been joined by Paw Patrol which shows children how to stay safe in different situations.” PAW Patrol is highly recognized and loved by Polish preschoolers. With key themes of search and rescue at its core, the show is perfectly positioned to collaborate with the Polish Red Cross to teach kids important safety lessons in a fun and engaging way. The Polish Red Cross created six key life lessons targeting kids aged 3 – 4 years and 5 – 6 years, focusing on the themes of Safety Knowledge, Safety in the Winter, Safety on the Road, Safety during Sports Activities, Ecology and Recycling, and Safety on Holiday. CPLG and Viacom, together with the Polish Red Cross, have created dedicated PAW Patrol lesson plans to communicate these key safety messages to young children. Teachers have been provided with lesson guides based on real-life scenarios, featuring the PAW Patrol characters in situations that children can relate to. The teaching materials include branded activity books and giveaways to extend learning to the home. The Safe Patrol! campaign runs through to the end of the summer term.The campaign’s goal is to reach over 50,000 pre-schoolers across 500 kindergartens in Poland.
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Happy Birthday Angry Birds! How was Rovio founded and what was the original idea behind Angry Birds? “It’s a little known fact that Rovio was started by a group of students - albeit under a different name - back in 2003. In fact, the Rovio company name didn’t come into being until 2005. By the time Angry Birds was created in 2009, the studio was downsizing, and after developing 51 games, they really needed something big if they wanted to keep the lights on. Luckily, this new game became somewhat of a hit... How did the company develop in the early years. Are there other franchises that have come out of Rovio at this time? The mobile gaming landscape was very different when Rovio got its start in 2003, which was 4 years before the iPhone launched, and 5 years before the App Store. Rovio was making games for very early mobile gaming platforms with some degree of success, but no breakout hits. This was due in part to the closed nature of early mobile game ecosystems. At that time games were created for a specific carrier’s app stores or for specific handsets as preinstalled software.You couldn’t just tell a friend about a game you were playing and assume they could find it on their device - something we take for granted nowadays. Of course everything changed with the release of the iPhone, which provided a more capable (and also touch-based) platform to develop for, and also a more universal ecosystem. That’s not to say that early Rovio games, like the atmospheric horror game Darkest Fear, didn’t have their fans, but it was really a convergence of universally appealing characters, satisfying gameplay, and technology that allowed Angry Birds to thrive. When did you begin to be involved with Angry Birds consumer products? Consumer products came into the picture pretty early after the initial success of Angry Birds. It was quite
unheard of at the time to have licensed products of an IP based on mobile gaming – it still is, but with the strength of the Angry Birds resting for a large part on its recognizable characters, it made sense to create those designs in physical form. The first licensed products were plush toys of the characters, and it just exploded from there to everything from soft drinks to shampoo to apparel. To date, over 1.8 billion Angry Birds consumer products have been sold. How do you keep the brand fresh after all these years? Well it’s important to note that in the context of mobile gaming, ten years is a very long time. But when we consider the entertainment industry and brands within it, you’re only just getting started after a decade, which is how we feel! But there are a couple ways we look to consistently refresh the brand. First there are Rovio’s games studios who create new engaging experiences for players through new mobile games like Angry Birds Dream Blast - with further Angry Birds games currently in development. More in the realm of licensed products, our style guides team is extremely talented when it comes to translating the Angry Birds attitude to fresh and trendy designs. The movies also continue to push the Angry Birds into new territories, and expose the brand to an even wider audience, people that may not play mobile games. Meanwhile, we continue to invest heavily in our Angry Birds YouTube channel, which has over 3 million subscribers and recently surpassed 4 billion lifetime views! Using this platform, we’ve released many different animation series that expand the appeal of the brand and its iconic characters. So in short, it’s about constantly offering a diverse range of media for our broad audience to engage with, capturing their attention in new and playful ways. What are your plans to celebrate your anniversary and
what plans do you have for the next few years? It’s going to be a wild year for the birds. We have the strongest content roadmap in our history. First, The Angry Birds Movie 2 is coming August 14, which is going to be phenomenal. This time around, the birds and pigs have to team up to take on a new enemy. Their relationship is still quite shaky so there are plenty of opportunities for comedic moments based on the friction between these two former rivals. We will see in the film whether they can keep it together long enough to defeat this new threat. Either way, it’s going to be a lot of hilarious fun. After the movie, we have planned a campaign in celebration of the 10th anniversary in December, more details on this will follow very soon, but for licensing activities, we are drawing on just how much the Angry Birds characters have evolved in the last 10 years. Our team has created two fantastic style guides around this theme to share with licensing partners, one aimed at premium partners, and the other designed for kids and young adults. The celebration continues into the following year with the premiere of our first ever long format animated series, a number of live touring shows, and a new unscripted television competition show. Through all of this, our new AR companion app, Angry Birds Explore, will act as a hub between fans and our hundreds of millions of licensed products out in the wild. By scanning codes on Angry Birds products, fans can discover immersive augmented reality experiences from fun AR mini-games, to face-altering camera filters, and an AR art studio. We’re super excited for the following year, and we’re looking forward to seeing the reactions our fans will have to everything that we are cooking up to celebrate The Angry Birds Movie 2 as well as the 10th anniversary of Angry Birds. This is by no means an extensive list so the following months will have their fair share of surprises as well!
With Angry Birds celebrating their tenth anniversary this year, Total Licensing talked to Simo Hämäläinen, SVP, Brand Licensing at Rovio, to find out more.
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ROBOCAR POLI - DRIVING SUCCESS Robocar POLI Brand new Preschool Educational toys taken by TRU Asia! Roi Visual has agreed with TRU ASIA to launch Robocar POLI Educational Toys in September, 2019. The first 12 SKUs will include POLI Microphone, POLI Garage Playset, POLI’s Best Friends and My First Driving. Celebrating the 10th anniversary of Robocar POLI in 2020, Roi Visual has prepared a new toy project for younger children aged between 18 months and 36 months by extending its target viewing group around the world. Toys are designed to fit preshool children so that little children can easily play with them. In particular, the products are integrated with the application of toys and Robocar POLI media content.
If consumers insert the QR code included with the product, they can watch educational clips such as songs, games and episodes of Robocar POLI related to the toys through their mobile devices. Experimental learning will help children’s cognitive development, at the same time, it provides an opportunity for parents to engage fully with their children. Children can learn the safety education required for growth and development, and at the same time
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parents will learn how to play with their kids. Robocar POLI toys will be launched in Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines and then will expand their presence into worldwide markets. Meanwhile, Roi Visual is developing a new product line to reach a wider target children with the first fans of the property now growing up. Robocar poli 2in1 Block Won a Toy Award in China Robocar poli 2in1 Block won the Best of the Year award at the 2019 Toy Awards in China. The Toy Awards in China is a very prestigious event in the toy manufacturing industry, held once a year by the Toy Association of China. Robocar POLI 2in1 Block is composed of main characters from Robocar POLI animation, including POLI, Roy, Amber and Heli. The product is made up of bricks, which can be built in two ways - as robots or cars. With great functions based on the original animation and the high quality Robocar POLI was a worthy winner. The product is currently being sold in China and will also be launched in overseas markets. Robocar POLI Zaini chocolate will be released in 2019. The world-famous Zaini chocolate and Robocar POLI have conducted a collaboration. Product will be released simultaneously at popular convenience
stores in Korea, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan in September. The product is made up of three types of crokki and an chocolate egg with eight Robocar POLI figures in the blindpack. Beginning in September, Robocar POLI chocolate will also be released in Singapore, Russia and Europe. Robocar POLI Ferris wheel with TCAP in 2019 Summer! Finally, Robocar POLI, will participate in the Taipei Children’s Amusement Park. The Ferris wheel zones, the main landmark of TCAP, will be all decorated with Robocar POLI characters. Each of the 27 compartments will show a unique design and theme, allowing children to enjoy rides and watch various characters. Children can meet with Robocar POLI from entrance ticket kiosks, as well as see the character on, signs, pamphlets and brochures. They can also take a photo with a large sized figure of the rescue friends which can be found in the photozone. In addition, Meet & Greet events are scheduled to be held where fans can meet Robocar POLI close up and special products will also be available at the venue.
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HASBRO LAUNCH MOON AND ME TOYS Hasbro, Inc. has recently launched its Moon and Me toy collection. The new product line, which will be available in the UK in July from Amazon, Smyths, Argos and other major retailers, features Moon and Me’s characters, Pepi Nana, Moon Baby, Mr. Onion, Sleepy Dibillo, and Colly Wobble across a range of figures, plush and playsets. The soft Moon and Me plush toys will allow kids to imagine their own Moon and Me inspired adventures. The Moon and Me plush toys are available across the core cast, featuring all of the key characters. Preschoolers will be able to bring home their favourite characters and recreate Toy House and Storyland adventures from the television series with the Moon and Me single figures.. The Moon and Me Take and Go toy house playset allows children aged 18 months and up to explore fun take and go play as they dream about toys who come to life when the moon shines in the series. The playset also has space for up to 6 figures. Each Moon and Me toy figure and vehicle set features one of the toy characters from the television series and their signature vehicle. Each vehicle also has a specific fun feature. Moon and Me was developed by Andrew Davenport, the creator of award-winning global preschool franchises Teletubbies and In the Night Garden. Inspired by well-loved tales of toys that come to life when nobody is looking, Moon and Me is the comical story of a special friendship between two characters from completely different worlds. Moon and Me combines the latest production methods with traditional storytelling, comedy and music to create a beautifully constructed picture-book world especially for today’s preschoolers.
STAR TREK CBS Television Studios has created a global franchise group that will manage and maximize the expansion of the Star Trek brand beyond the traditional boundaries of linear broadcasting and streaming.This new business unit reports to David Stapf, President of CBS Television Studios. Leading the new team is Veronica Hart, Executive Vice President, Star Trek Global Franchise Management, who will manage the Star Trek global brand strategy to support the content development plans being developed within CBS and under the stewardship of Alex Kurtzman. The unit’s goal is to invigorate and broaden the Star Trek fan community through additional branding opportunities, such as podcasts, a reinvigorated StarTrek.com and new digital spaces, consumer products and gaming, as well as live experiential events and global attractions. These endeavors to further grow the brand are designed to complement the Studio’s expansion of the Star Trek universe, which now includes two liveaction series, two animated projects and multiple shorts.
SURGE TO LICENSE MIGHTY MIKE IN THE USA European kids entertainment studio TeamTO has appointed New York based Surge Licensing as the exclusive licensing and merchandising agent for the Mighty Mike brand in the U.S. and Canada. The appointment coincides with the 2019 international roll-out of the kids’ series across TV channels. Mighty Mike which premiered on Family Channel (Canada) in March, will air on Boomerang (streaming in the EMEA, Asia Pacific and Latam) as of May, with further announcements to follow. “We are delighted to announce this partnership with Surge, a boutique agency that from the outset shares the same passion and clarity of vision for the Mighty Mike brand. It is also gratifying to see the superb response to our canine caper internationally, as our ‘pugalicious’ Mike debuts across TV channels,” said Patricia de Wilde, Director of Marketing and New Business, TeamTO. “Mighty Mike is a brand but for kids of all ages, and certainly filled with heart, thanks to TeamTO’s unique animation technology which brings this affectionate pug to life in the most endearing of ways. As such, Mighty Mike is the basis for an incredible toy and lifestyle brand, and we are confident will resonate with all,” said Elan Freedman,Vice President of Business Development, Surge Licensing. Produced by TeamTO, with Canada’s Digital Dimension, and distributed internationally by CAKE, Mighty Mike (78 x 7’) is a unique CGI animated, dialogue-free slapstick comedy for 6-11 year olds, in the style of Tom & Jerry-meets-silly pet videos. TeamTO’s revolutionary production has resulted in a level of photorealism that is virtually unparalleled in the world of kid’s television.
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SUPER WINGS AT HAMLEY’S Alpha Animation and Toys’ preschool hit Super Wings, has been resonating with fans with a range of experiential marketing activity over recent months. On the back of strong broadcast support and the launch of series 3 on Cartoonito, there has been an extensive plan of activity to bring the much-loved Super Wings planes into children’s real-life environments. The star of the show, Jett, recently landed on Oxford Street, London to headline at a Super Wings event at the iconic Hamley’s store. The arrival of the much- loved plane character caused a big stir and attracted hundreds of fans to the event for facepainting, product demos and more. Alpha Animation and Toys have been keeping Jett busy with costume character visits at various Smyths store openings in the UK’s Lincoln and Romford as well as flying in to celebrate new store openings for The Entertainer in Kidderminster and Watford. On early May bank-holiday weekend, Jett made a visit to the iconic Paulton’s Park, where he delighted over 15,000 preschool visitors and their families. Jett made special appearances across two days, where kids were treated to Super Wings selfie opportunities and some fun ‘I met Jett’ stickers! Furthermore, retailers are backing the hit property with impressive window displays, social media activity and competitions, as appetite for the toy range and wider licensed merchandise continues to grow at a staggering rate. A recent collaboration with Flybe and Smyths also proved to be a huge success. The campaign included a competition to win a family flight and Super Wings goodies, which attracted over 9000 entries.
DISNEY AND MAKE-A-WISH
The Walt Disney Company and Make-A-Wish launched the #FriendLikeMe Challenge on World Wish Day, the first of a number of activities in the run up to celebrating the release of Walt Disney Studios’ new movie, Aladdin. The #FriendLikeMe Challenge is a cause marketing campaign between two of Make-A-Wish’s wish granters, Disney and Will Smith. This campaign is the first that Disney and Make-A-Wish are collaborating on across EMEA in celebration of wishes, Aladdin and helping children with critical illnesses.
4K MEDIA BECOMES KONAMI CROSS MEDIA
Konami, the Japanese entertainment and gaming conglomerate, has unveiled a new name for its New York City subsidiary. Konami Cross Media NY Inc. (formerly 4K Media Inc.) will shift its strategy to focus even more on franchise building, content creation and brand management. The entity will be overseen by Yuta Kose as president. This strategic move collectively harnesses the strength of existing Konami gaming IPs including fan favorites Contra, Bomberman and Frogger -- with a stronger focus on entertainment and content creation for global consumption and Omni-channel exposure. Konami Cross Media NY Inc. will continue to manage and grow the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise with a 360 degree approach for fan engagement across all franchise touchpoints. Konami Cross Media NY handles the Konami properties globally, outside Asia.
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Leading into Licensing Expo, Konami Cross Media NY has announced the first wave licensing deals for apparel and accessories for Contra, Bomberman and Frogger. New deals have been signed with Difuzed, Bioworld, Duncan Branding and Innex. As a result, Konami gaming fans will soon be able to wear gaming gear based on their favorite game characters. There is also an exclusive line of plush figures based on game characters. Konami Cross Media NY is working on expanding the global television distribution footprint of Yu-Gi-Oh! Following the successful theatrical release of Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Side of Dimensions, the Yu-Gi-Oh! TV franchise is returning to the Columbia airwaves with new agreements signed with Citytv in Columbia. Citytv Bogotá, the main local television in Columbia’s capital city, unveiled Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s in March 2019.
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THE OGGLIES MOVIE SET FOR 2020 WunderWerk’s new animated family film The Ogglies, is based on the hit German children’s book series about a group of creatures with unusual eating habits looking for a new home. Headed by Jens Møller, whose credits include the Lego Star Wars TV series,
and Toby Genkel, director of animated hit Ooops! Noah is Gone,The Ogglies follows a family of green, smelly, garbage-eating yet good-natured little beings who find a new home in a city dump, only to face eviction when an unscrupulous contractor decides to build a wellness temple on the site. ARRI Media presented a teaser of the 3D CGI-animated pic for the first
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time at the Cannes Film Market. Erhard Dietl’s book series, which includes 34 titles, has been translated into more than 13 different languages and sold more than five million copies in Germany alone. The Ogglies film is produced by Germany’s WunderWerk in co-production with Belgium’s Grid Animation, publishing group Verlag Friedrich Oetinger and Universum Film. Universum is set to release The Ogglies theatrically in Germany on Oct. 29, 2020. The project has been making waves in Germany for some time. Screenwriter John Chambers won the German Animation Screenplay Award for a version of the script at the 2016 Festival of Animated Film in Stuttgart. Genkel is now credited as a co-writer on the film. The script is full of humor, charm, adventure, and action,” said Moritz Hemminger, ARRI Media’s deputy head of sales and acquisitions. He added that “the quality of animation that WunderWerk and Grid Animation are delivering is very impressive.” Alongside genre titles and drama features, family entertainment is a main focus for ARRI Media. Its recent titles have included animated films such as Ploey and live-action pics Vampire Sisters, Help, I Shrunk My Teacher and its
sequel, “Help, I Shrunk My Parents.” With animation, ARRI Media focuses on one or two titles, usually selling them during their production phase. “When picking up animation films, several aspects have to come together: likeable character design, a funny and entertaining script for a family target audience, and the animation studios involved need to be experienced, with a track record in producing animation features for the big screen,” Hemminger said. WunderWerk is one of Germany’s leading production companies in the field of family entertainment. In addition to The Ogglies, WunderWerk is currently co-producing the animated feature Yakari, based on the classic Franco-Belgian comic book series by artist-writer duo Derib and Job, about a young Sioux boy. Genkel again co-directs, this time with Xavier Giacometti. The company is also developing the live-action/animated hybrid film School Ghost, an adaptation of late German author Peter Abraham’s Das Schulgespenst. Licensing and merchandising for The Ogglies will be handled by Berlinbased Kiddinx Media GmbH. For all enquiries, contact Thomas Puchert, Head of Licensing & Merchandising. puchert@kiddinx.de.
For licensing enquiries contact: Thomas Puchert, Head of Licensing, KIDDINX Media GmbH puchert@kiddinx.de www.kiddinx.de
ŠWunderWerk/GRID Animation/Verlag Friedrich Oetinger/Universum Film
NEWS By Victor Caddy, Partner Wynne-Jones IP Tel: +44 (0)20 3146 7888 www.wynne-jones.com
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The world is changing... Are you acting IP savvy?
Mistakes cost... Brands now have more visibility in today’s digital world than ever before. We live online, in print, on the high street and are now even connected when flying in the air; brands are around us any time, any place, any where. Which is why protection is more important than ever. Competition is tough, market intelligence is vital and IP protection can make a massive difference in your brand’s success or failure. Businesses of all sizes should put protection at the heart of their business strategy. Without it you, quite simply, could have nothing. And which is why the investment in IP protection is worthy of an agenda point at your board room table as equally as it is when mapping out your start-up expenditure. Your IP is too important not to be done properly, so what common mistakes are made when it comes to intellectual property? The 5 most common mistakes made in IP 1. Having no IP Budget An appropriate IP budget is the goal for any business, so did you know… • IP spend can be a top 5 spend for small companies
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• Hiding IP spend in Legal or R&D budgets leads to conflicts • IP spend can and should be budgeted • Having an IP budget is the first step to managing costs effectively 2. Not aligning IP and Business Have you considered reviewing your IP and identifying where intellectual property rights add value now and in the future? Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) such as patents, trade marks, registered designs and trade secrets are business tools to support business strategy. Aligning IP with your business strategy and focusing on the most appropriate IPRs can help benefit the business in the short and long term by managing IP spend. It can also help in prioritising what is most important against the ‘nice to haves’. 3. Inappropriate spending on IP Many businesses are guilty of inappropriate spending on IP; this is often a result of having no IP budget in place or not aligning the IP with the business strategy. Have you considered the following? • Is your business spending on the wrong type of IP?
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Is your business spending too little or too much on IP? Is your business effectively managing increases in spending as much as decreases? Is your business maintaining IP that no longer contributes any value to the business?
4. Having the wrong Advisers Having the wrong advisers in place to support you and your business can often lead to your IP not being protected properly - so what key things should be considered when selecting or reviewing advisers? • Your advisers should understand the business objectives and align the IP appropriately • Your advisers should be selected on quality and technical expertise rather than purely on location and cost alone • Your advisers should be able to easily explain how they add value to your business 5. Having no Management Responsibility Often in businesses, IP is not managed within a clearly defined IP role, but considered as something extra in day to day workloads, an add on if you like. Even when there are roles such as IP managers in businesses, they are often not one of the main business managers. It is important to have a clearly defined management responsibility for IP at top level as this will not only make managing IP in your business more cost effective, but also allow you to make IP savvy decisions when it comes to assessing the IP value in your business. Are there any changes you need to make in your business? Mistaking the importance of protection and assuming it’s going to be too costly is a common error. Don’t let your business suffer and work with partners who can guide you, help you manage your IP affordable and effectively so that you can ultimately reap the rewards.”
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CAPTURING IMMEDIATE ATTENTION By Simon Foulkes Sales and Marketing Director Rainbow Productions simon@rainbowproductions .co.uk
“It’s inspiring to take a brands vision and create something incredible! I have worked in this industry for a long time and it still excites me to be part of a character’s growth from an idea into a globally renowned brand.” Simon Foulkes
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As I signed another NDA for a brand who were looking to launch product featuring a character mascot, I was reminded of an article which I came across recently in the Journal of Marketing Management. According to a recent study “Brand mascots reflect a deeply rooted human tendency to understand the world through anthropomorphic objects”. So if humans tend to see the human side of everything, I guess that’s why the use of mascots is so ubiquitous. Anecdotally we get this as we see character mascots featured on everything from local walk-to-school campaigns through to the pasta shapes we serve up our kids for tea. In fact, it’s hard to think of many areas of life that you can avoid “anthropomorphic objects”. Okay, so we get what Brand marketeers do but what are they looking to achieve by recreating an anthropomorphic design? A mascot can elevate brands and breathe new life into them. Creating a central character to embody a brand is a strong marketing tool that enables IP holders to reach their audience on
a personal level. Costume characters provide a way to connect with consumers and are more likely to emotionally engage with their audience. Meet & greet events are a great example of drawing in a target audience; from a brand launch to developing a client’s community profile. On many occasions events like these provide families with an opportunity to meet their all-time favourite characters and make memories, thus enforcing brand awareness. Do you ever think of a brand and instantly have an image of a character in mind? Tony the Tiger for Kellogg’s, The Laughing Cow, Churchill the nod-
the past couple of years. Social media giant Instagram has taken the industry by storm. You can now find brand mascots who have their own following with fans anticipating to meet these characters. This is where meet and greet appearances play a huge role, costume characters resonate with their audience and effectively eliminate this gap irrespective of demographics, gender and age. Mascots are a timeless marketing tool, which means the way costume characters can be utilised is limitless; meet & greet appearances, social media exposure, press coverage and local charity connections are just a few of the
ding dog, just to name a few. Brands like these have been successful for decades and a mascot character simply enhances and complements the brand, strengthening brand recognition. Increasing brand awareness is an important tool in the marketing mix, but how can mascots bridge the gap between brands and consumers? The role of mascots within the social media sector has grown phenomenally over
so called “marketing tricks”. With the right promotional campaigns, mascots can help brands become more personable, recognisable and ultimately, successful. Simon Foulkes, (pictured left with his Powerpuff friends), is the Sales and Marketing Director at Rainbow Productions and has been successfully bringing brands to life for over 25 years. Rainbow Productions is an award winning company with over 30 years’ experience in mascot manufacture and licensed character appearances. They specialise in manufacturing bespoke brand and sports mascots as well as managing the appearances of over 120 licensed children’s characters at events across the UK.
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INVENT MEDIA & CREATIVE IN DUBAI WINS AWARD FOR THEIR WARNER BROS SHOWS Invent Media and Creative Solutions, on behalf of Warner Bros recently won Best Entertainment Production at the Middle East Special Events Awards. Total Licensing talked to Colin Jones and Richard Manson who run Invent to find out more.
Can you explain how this Award came about? “Early in 2016 something extraordinary and magical began to happen, moons aligned and things in the universe shifted that set us down a road of one of the most creative, rewarding adventures of our careers.You could say the ‘Bat Phone’ rang! We had heard on the grapevine rumors of a billion-dollar theme park being built on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, but never thought too much of it. In this part of the world we are used to hearing about such amazing and costly dreams, some spring out of the sand as gleaming realities and others turn back to dust. Rarely do mere mortals like us get the chance to work on such dreams…let alone be asked to create a part of it! The newly appointed head of entertainment for Farah Leisure, the management company behind the theme park project, happened to see one of our live licensed cartoon shows. It
must have impressed him as he invited us in for a chat. It was at this ‘chat’ that the rumors were confirmed and that the building of the stateof-the-art theme park was no longer a distant dream, but a very certain reality. Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi was confirmed, the billion dollars had been paid and an opening date had been set! Two years and ticking. Then he said it... “I was hoping that you guys at Copyright Live (a brand of Invent Creative Event Solutions) would consider pitching for the entertainment in the park”. We were invited to an early Q&A session where we would also get to meet the other companies pitching to be a part of Warner Bros. history: other creatives and storytellers who were daring enough to offer their interpretation on the most famous and legendary superheroes/ cartoon characters the world has ever seen. Who would these people be? Where would they be from? What would their strengths be? What would their weaknesses be? Did they have special powers?? We were soon given the answer: live on the line from all over the globe were creatives representing companies who were also the chosen ones. Those who were deemed qualified to take on such a challenge. After hearing intelligent and expert questions from companies in Los Angeles, Orlando, Madrid, Australia, and other far flung places our chances seemed to diminish.After all these were
TOTAL LICENSING all theme park towns! We were intimidated to say the least but would we allow the caliber and credentials of these worthy competitors be our kryptonite? Farah informed all participants that the primary goals of the shows and character experience
were to bring the park to life and create a unique entertainment experience whilst inviting guests into the action-packed worlds of the DC Comics Super Heroes and Warner Bros. Cartoons. The shows and experience should adhere to the world of the characters, effectively convey the story, effects elements, stunts and, of course, be fun! Show 1 was to be set in Gotham City and include the characters Batman, Harlequin, The Riddler and The Joker. Show 2 was to be set in Metropolis and involve ‘Superheroes’ training children by means of demonstration and stunts, in effect a superhero academy to include the characters, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and Robin (The Boy Wonder) Show 3 was to be set in cartoon Junction, must be an interactive percussion show and include the famous Looney Tune character Taz. (Tasmanian Devil)
So how did you support the clients’ goals and objectives? Having acquired the answers to all our questions we set about researching these iconic brands and characters, brainstorming story scenarios for each of the shows. Slowly we started to put together the skeleton of our ideas. We lit the midnight oil and immersed ourselves in these fantasy comic book and cartoon worlds and started adding flesh to the scripts. It paid off, despite our insecurities and doubts, Copyright Live (Invent Creative and Event Solutions) was awarded the task of writing, storyboarding, designing, directing and producing these iconic shows. They would be the Live Entertainment
contribution for the most expensive, biggest indoor theme park in the world! For one day in our lives we knew how it felt to be superheroes! The main goals of the client were that these shows would be world class, represent the characters and brands in the best possible light and get approval from WB. And, most importantly, not delay in any way the opening of the park or delay the huge PR machine that was starting to roll. So, the real work began. The biggest challenges that lay ahead were the many layers of approvals that every single aspect and minute detail had to go through, not just at Farah but also Warner Bros. and DC comics. Very strict time lines of deliverables were agreed. Before submission to WB the first drafts of scripts and practical content had to be agreed as both Farah and our scriptwriting/creative team had extremely ambitious ideas. A New York (Metropolis) cab that could levitate using nothing but the powers of Green lanterns.A wall that Taz could burst through. A full percussion show played on nothing but junk. A huge walk in device that The Riddler and The Joker use to gas volunteers. A fifty-meter zip line strung across the park for Batman to fly in and save the day. Along with all the normal superhero paraphernalia, fighting batons, walking canes, capes and so on. (All produced inhouse by our sister company Create Specialist Fabrication Solutions) To present all these ideas and concepts we had to produce extremely detailed hand drawn storyboards that almost resembled an authentic DC comic. Each frame of the storyboard would show how the action would flow, where the focus would be pulled, each expression, emotion and action of the character. Voice and thought bubbles would show important lines and intentions. This was starting to feel more like producing a movie than live shows. To run alongside the productions, show titles, signage and logos had to be designed clearly communicating the message of the show while remaining on brand and relevant to the original characters, films, TV shows and comics. Detailed timelines for rehearsals and preproduction had to be in place before we had even finalized scripts or concepts. Full initial lighting design for the shows had to be presented with the schedules of all technicians and managers in
TOTAL LICENSING place. The show sounds and scores had to be original compositions. Any character or voices used had to be official WB voices or examples submitted. We had our work cut out and we knew it! All our efforts would be wasted if Warner Bros. did not approve and we would have to start from scratch.This could mean delaying the opening of the entire park. Something so serious it was not even worth contemplating. The pressure was mounting….. We were asking the question…… “Are we going to be good enough”?
Can you tell us how the various performers worked together to create a successful event? Days turned into long nights, that turned into long weeks, that turned into long months. Before we knew it over a year had gone past. The work that was going into these three shows was extraordinary, we had no idea the depth of understanding we had to gain to satisfy the top people at DC Comics and Warner Bros. who were all based in Los Angeles. After many latenight phone calls, 17-hour flights and countless email correspondence we started to feel that we were creating something really special. It was an amazing experience to work with professionals that were at the top of their game in the showbiz capital of the world. Working with people like that inspires you to do your best, these are after all the very people that also check the scripts, set designs, content for WB Hollywood blockbuster movies and television shows. We felt extremely privileged to collaborate with them.The day they deemed our work complete, up to their exacting standards, good enough for the most scrutinizing and loyal fans from around the world, was a very special moment. We were one of them, we had been accepted. We had been approved! The opening of a theme park is like the opening of a city. Millions and millions of small parts
have to come together at the same time, or it does not open. Thousands of staff, roller coasters, state of the art virtual reality rides, F&B outlets, souvenir shops, cosmetic theming, live shows, the list goes on and on, and on. If any one of these millions of components’ is delayed it threatens the entire opening date of the park, meaning that no official opening date can go to press until they are sure everything is in place. Inevitably this means the opening date is forever moving. To produce these shows we were relying on experts/professionals from all over the world; from stunt directors, musical directors, stage managers, technical directors, lighting designers, sound engineers, choreographers, movement specialists, dialect coaches and numerous others. It becomes extremely difficult to manage this when you can’t give them exact dates of employment. Our best negotiation powers were used to convince them to trust us and be flexible with their valuable time. We were also starting to understand how many people would eventually see these shows and how long they could potentially run for. All the performance areas are in purpose built public areas of the park and were actually developed for and around the storyline of the shows, meaning they could run indefinitely. Six shows a day, for many possible years with potential audience figures running into hundreds and hundreds of thousands! Casting the shows was always going to be the job of Farah Leisure, the actors/artists and performers appearing in the shows would be contracted by the park.This concerned us as we were worried that WB would cast very much on an actor being on brand, looking like Superman or Cat Woman but have little acting ability. This was even more worrying as we needed a minimum of three casts for each show. We need not have worried; the call for artists went out globally and auditions were held in London, New York, Orlando, Los Angeles, Capetown, Sydney and Manilla. The caliber of talent was truly amazing.
Perhaps you can tell us about the innovative components of the event? To be a true Super Hero you need to be strong to the core.We now knew that our actors were talented and looked great but did they move, react and have the heart of a Superhero? To
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ensure that they had the best possible chance, we commissioned a troop of martial arts experts from the Shaolin temple to give the artists heroic stances and physiques. We were ready for rehearsals! We brought in highly recommended stunt coordinators from Madrid, Spain to choreograph fight sequences and Batman’s heroic zip line flight across the park. Our Emmy award nominated musical director who had composed all the underscore and sound effects, flew in from Los Angeles. We had commissioned Jeff Bergman, the official voice of Looney Tunes, for voiceover work. Technical managers and lighting designers flew in from Italy. The production was spiraling but what everyone was seeing was astonishing. To watch nearly two years work come together with professionals from all over the world, doing what they do best was extraordinary and something very special to be a part of.
Can you tell us more about the actual productions? Jokers Surprise Birthday was probably the darkest and most ‘film like’ of the productions and saw Harlequin throw a surprise birthday party for her ‘squeeze’ The Joker. To ensure the party goes with a ‘bang’ she commissions the Riddler to make the perfect present. He creates ‘The Device’ which is essentially a poison gas chamber to eliminate volunteers (victims). The show brings out the extremities in all the characters allowing them to be at their devilish best! Through trickery and wit Harlequin and The Riddler entice a member of the audience into the chamber for ‘testing’. The Joker is delighted with his gift, the best present he could wish for! Just as he is about to pull the switch and gas the volunteer, Batman from a far away roof flies in and saves the day. Superhero Training Academy involved Wonder
Woman, Robin and The Green Lantern teaching children the true values of being a Superhero and, through a fully interactive experience including heroic stance and posture training, cape training, baton training, the children learn how defend themselves as true superheroes. The finale of the show sees The Green Lantern, with the help of the children and using only the power of their minds, magically lift a Metropolis taxi clean off the ground. ACME Beats involved a tornado that had torn through the famous ACME yard leaving a trail of destruction. ACME safety inspector Ivan Issue and his side kicks Charlie and Sam set about cleaning up the yard. A race against time ensues before the next tornado hits.They don’t get very far as everything they try to do turns into slapstick hilarity. The show develops into a full-on percussion show with the three guys making music out of all the junk. Encouraging full audience participation this show becomes a huge interactive jamming session. The show climaxes with Taz busting through a wall of crates (he was the tornado all along) and joining the guys in a show stopping percussion finale. The park opened on the July 25th 2018 to huge fanfare. The shows have been a resounding success! Both Farah Leisure and Warner Bros. could not be happier with the results. By the 25th July 2019 the three shows will have collectively performed 6,552 times and been seen by many, many thousands of happy satisfied fans from around the world. Not bad for mortals!
“I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” Superman
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METROSTAR BECOME LEAD AGENT FOR ELMER Andersen Press have consolidated their licensing plans for Elmer the Patchwork Elephant, and following a launch into apparel lead by Claire Potter of Metrostar, have appointed the agency lead agent across all categories for the brand, which is celebrating 30 years this year. Penguin Ventures, part of Penguin Random House UK (PRH), had been acting on behalf of the brand. Following recent changes to the book sales arrangements between Andersen Press and PRH, Andersen and Ventures have agreed that it is no longer practical for Ventures to continue their representation of Elmer for licensing and consumer products. Metrostar will oversee all categories in the UK as well as being appointed as head agent managing and working alongside Andersen’s network of sub-agents across all categories globally. Building on the successes and new launches in Elmer’s anniversary year, Metrostar and Andersen Press will work together on a strategy to increase presence at retail for Elmer, whilst building on existing licenses with new lines and interpretations of the beloved character. Mark Hendle, MD of Andersen Press said: “We have seen incredible growth in Elmer apparel licensing driven by Claire and the Metrostar team in the past 3 years. We’re looking forward to building on our successful anniversary year with Metrostar representing Elmer across all categories, working together to bring Elmer and his message of friendship and inclusivity to more children in the UK and across the world.” Elmer the Patchwork Elephant currently has a strong presence at retail. The first apparel ranges for Elmer were launched into Tu at Sainsbury’s, M&Co and JoJo Maman Bebe in 2017 by Metrostar, with licensees Paul Dennicci, Casa Chicos and Cooneen. Further collections are to be launched this year and are in production for 2020. Gemma Cards, Milly & Flynn and Amscan have also launched new lines whilst established licensees Rainbow Designs, Flametree and Petit Jour are all planning new product launches for 2019 and beyond.
ULTRAMAN TO RELAUNCH ONTO INTERNATIONAL STAGE Starlight Runner Entertainment has secured an agreement with Tsuburaya Productions Co., Ltd. to help bring the iconic and celebrated classic Japanese superhero property Ultraman back onto the international stage. In a unique arrangement, Starlight Runner will be teaming with The Licensing Group to reactivate and extend the property across multiple media platforms with a story-driven licensing and merchandising program. In his role as Transmedia Producer, Jeff Gomez and his Starlight Runner team will develop the official Story World Mythology for the existing Ultraman series. Starlight Runner was selected by Tsuburaya as a transmedia producer after being introduced to the studio by licensing agent Danny Simon, president of The Licensing Group.The Licensing Group is a Los Angeles-based international licensing agency appointed by Tsuburaya to reintroduce the property to the North America market for use in developing a wide range of products in categories such as collectibles, toys, games, publishing, videogames, mobile apps, apparel and accessories. The Ultraman licensing program will be supported by the distribution of cable, streaming and SVOD. Starlight Runner will be developing proprietary Ultraman Story World Mythology documents after an intensive deep-dive into the Tokyo, Japan-based franchise. This bible will enable The Licensing Group to achieve its mission as there are no tools currently in English that exist. Starlight Runner will then support creative for Tsuburaya and The Licensing Group, helping partners to understand what makes the brand unique, how the Ultraman universe works, and providing ideas for leveraging the massive classic Ultraman story world of giant monsters, aliens, spacecraft, and Earth Defense Teams to create exciting contemporary stories for the international licensing program.
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SECRET LIFE OF PETS 2 Ahead of this Summer’s global theatrical debut of Illumination’s The Secret Life of Pets 2, Universal Brand Development is launching a multi-category licensing and merchandising program featuring a wide array of toys and consumer products. The new lines will include toys, publishing, apparel and accessories, party and stationery, home goods, consumables, and more. Illumination’s The Secret Life of Pets 2 lands in North America on June 7, 2019. “Pets bring such happiness into our lives, and Illumination’s The Secret Life of Pets 2 taps into the emotional connection between pets and their owners with humor and heart,” said Lindsay Hollingsworth, Vice President Global Franchise, Universal Brand Development. “We designed the consumer products program for The Secret Life of Pets 2 to capture the playful personalities of the film’s characters, enabling fans to bring the movie home with them through a wide array of toys and collaborations.” The cornerstone of the toy program includes master partner, Just Play, with an assortment of plush toys, figures, play-sets and blind bags featuring new characters alongside returning fan-favorites, Max, Duke, Snowball, Gidget, and more. Additional toy partners include FUNKO with a line of POP collectibles; Ty with a collection of Beanie Babies plush; and Build-a-Bear with a line of film characters, among others. The multi-category program also features fashion collaborations spanning, men’s, women’s, boys, girls and toddlers, a publishing program featuring storybooks, activity books and early readers, as well as a robust line of home goods, consumables, party and stationery products. The Secret Life of Pets 2 is produced by Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri and his longtime collaborator Janet Healy, the visionary team behind Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch and the Despicable Me and Minions franchise and is written by returning Pets screenwriter Brian Lynch. The film is directed by returning filmmaker Chris Renaud, who also directed Illumination’s Despicable Me series and Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax.
TOY STORY 4 PUZZLES FROM JUMBO As Disney ramps up for one of its biggest animated movie releases this year, with the highly talked about Toy Story 4, in cinemas in June, Jumbo Games launched a range of five new puzzles set to delight fans of Buzz and Woody. Jumbo’s new range consists of five puzzle formats depicting the classic characters, as well as the new arrivals in the upcoming release. The new range includes two of Jumbo’s best-selling preschool formats, the 4 Shaped Puzzles Box Set and the 4in1 Puzzle Pack. These popular puzzle formats will be joined by the creativity-inspiring Puzzle & Colour Box Set featuring a doublesided puzzle that allows children to create their own Toy Story masterpieces by colouring in the black & white picture that is printed on the back on the puzzle, using the free crayons provided. Brand new to the Jumbo portfolio and launching especially for the new Disney release, is the 4 Round Puzzle Box Set with colourful scenes to be pieced together. And older fans have not been forgotten with a larger 50-piece Movie Collection Poster puzzle focused on a movie-poster style finish. The new puzzles join Jumbo’s existing popular 50-piece puzzle which includes a sticker sheet for children, in a classic Toy Story design, featuring favourites from the original movies.
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Encounter the Unexpected in Sheffield! For the last 15 years Sheffield has hosted the Children’s Media Conference. This year’s conference (2nd to 4th July 2019) promises to be as varied and surprising as previous ones. “CMC is the only conference that celebrates the linkage between the different sectors in kids’ media” says Greg Childs, Editorial Director and co-founder of CMC. “Animation and live action, film, TV, audio, publishing, apps, games, online, theatre and learning content all feature, and many conference sessions include case studies or shared expertise from multiple perspectives.” A growing number of delegates from the licensing sector attend CMC. “They use it to network of course, but
of kids is going to play out during these volatile times.” “And then it’s also just great to see people pitching their new ideas in our unique Dragon’s Den, where the pitch not only comes to life, but real deals get made.”
also for early intelligence on innovative ideas, meeting new talent and getting a heads up on the strategies they’ll need to face the rapid change going on in the kids’ business” says Childs. “The conference is always future-focused and brings in expertise from research companies and major institutions or strategists to look at how the business
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Embracing the creative and business sides of kids’ content has long been the CMC’s hallmark. That has taken on an international perspective as delegates from around the world book into the CMC’s International Exchange. Around 100 buyers, commissioning executives and distributors from the UK and Europe, and as far afield as Australia, the US and China, participate in a highly structured, rapid-meeting market day in the Victorian splendour of Sheffield’s Town Hall. “It’s a really popular market, compact, and efficient. Everything happens in one hall on one day and meetings are well organised in advance using an online profiling and booking system
that actually works!” says children’s media consultant Helen McAleer. McAleer held senior positions at BBC Worldwide and Walker Books and now advises on cross-platform brand development. Like so much of CMC, the International Exchange is partcreated by people from the industry. McAleer acts as the Exchange Coordinator – inviting and looking after the wide range of international guests. She feels it’s the perfect place for
licensing companies to get to know projects early. “Because the cost of attending is comparatively low, we see writers, IP developers and smaller animation and production companies, including digital start-ups, taking their first step into the market with new projects” says McAleer. “It’s an efficient and friendly way to meet new people and discover new projects. And you get all the benefits of the conference as well!”
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As the industry makes its annual pilgrimage to Las Vegas for Licensing Expo, we take a look at what a selection of the exhibitors have on offer this year.
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the Toy Fair Top 10 Toy List by a top industry analyst and is soon to announce a major hotel Sweepstakes and a 2020 QSR. In addition to the many licensing and promotional expansions Wind Sun Sky Entertainment is driving the MSM brand building efforts through both linear and digital interactive animated programming initiatives. The brand is represented by Alita’s Brand Bar.
Now in its third year since inception, Activision Blizzard Consumer Products Group continues to deliver against its goal of providing fans engaging, relevant and innovative experiences through consumer products, while continuing the brand’s overall growth via their core pillars: Immersion, Activation and Impact. Steve Young has recently been named the new President of ABCPG starting in February 2019 following the retirement of CEO Tim Kilpin. He is a 14-year veteran of Activision who has served in multiple executive leadership positions, most recently as Executive Vice President & Chief Revenue Officer. With iconic franchises such as Activision’s Call of Duty and Crash Bandicoot and Blizzard’s Overwatch at the forefront, Activision Blizzard Consumer Products Group is steadfast in its efforts to drive global growth and engagement through for Activision Blizzard flagship brands. Building on previous year’s successes, they plan to continue leaning into their world-class partnerships across licens-
ing and retail that have helped further elevate their franchises and leagues on a global scale. As Aardman gears up for the global release of the much-anticipated feature film sequel ‘Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon,’ the team will be exhibiting at Licensing Expo in Las Vegas, meeting with new and existing partners to present their upcoming film, exciting new IP and product style themes for 2019 and beyond. The Shaun the Sheep brand continues to flourish with episodes broadcast in over 170 territories worldwide, a new season in production and a Nintendo Switch game in development – all of which are set to bring Shaun’s adventures to yet another new generation of international fans. Shaun the Sheep and his flock will also become official supporters of Team GB at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, creating an exclusive joint merchandise opportunity for UK partners across sports and character merchandising. .
Alpha Group’s pre-school hit Super Wings airs on both Tiny Pop & Cartoonito and has just launched its third season. Alpha’s unique position as master toy partner and animation studio allows for unbeatable co-ordination between storyline and toyline. This, combined with Alpha’s immense content-creation power has proved irresistible to a stable of top licensees.
Aurora World is expecting a stronger response than ever to its hit brand YooHoo from visitors to the Korean Pavilion at Licensing Expo. The global launch of the pre-school animated series YooHoo to the Rescue took place on Netflix in March, My Singing Monsters is a chart topfollowed by a number of free-to-air ping musical gaming app created by Big launches. And the new show has inBlue Bubble and boasting over 85 Milspired a refreshed line of YooHoo lion downloads, is expanding its roster plush, with a new look and new charof licensees to new categories. acters. Since successfully launching several Along with the Netflix global prenew innovative toy lines this year with miere, the new YooHoo plush toy line Global Master Toy partner Playmonhas been the focus of a number of master, Commonwealth Toy & Novelty jor launches globally. Aurora World is and Fanwraps, the brand will hit retail working closely with key partners in this holiday with singing musical colretail, especially in Japan and the UK. lectible monsters, baby figures, plush They include Hamleys Hakata and singing characters, decals and danglers. Yokohama in Japan, and John Lewis, My Singing Monsters Toys was rated in
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Chessington Zoo, and Rainforest Cafe in the UK. But that’s not all. There are major licensing opportunities for the YooHoo brand across multiple categories as the fanbase of both the brand and the new show goes on growing. YooHoo to the Rescue, a 3D CGI 52 x 11’ animated children’s show, is a co-production between Aurora World and Italy’s MondoTV. Brandgenuity continues to elevate the BMW lifestyle program. PUMA added a first-ever BMW Motorsport collection for women, as well as a bespoke collection featured in the top 100 Footlocker stores in Europe. In 2019, Fossil will launch a range of BMW watches and smartwatches that debuted this spring at Basel. Brandgenuity will build a licensing program for the world-renowned University of Oxford across lifestyle and authority categories as well as in toys, games, and back to school products. Brandgenuity is also building a licensing program for the NFL Players Association in Europe. Finally, Brandgenuity Europe continues to build licensing programs for its clients Anheuser Busch-InBev, Ed Stafford, and others. Following on from the success of the 2018 edition of the Licensing Expo where some interesting license deals were inked, 2019 is promising more excitement for the Anne Stokes Collection. For Expo 2019, Anne Stokes Collection, licensed by Art Ask Agency is presented on a dedicated booth, Art Ask Agency, hosted by The Brand Liaison where visitors can see the latest licensed products and newly released style guide. Also new at Expo 2019, represented by Art Ask Agency, The Camden Collection, Hi Puppy, Route 66, Marie-Antoinette, Brandalised and IA London.
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Underlining its strength across many different types of property for many different markets, Bulldog Licensing is presenting an exciting and diverse mixture of brands at the Moose booth at this year’s Expo.. With a list that includes Angry Birds, Care Bears, Match Attax, Miraculous, Pikmi Pops, Shopkins,Treasure X, Sesame Street, Route 66, LIFE, Garfield and That’s not my…, licensees can choose from hit games, books and films, classic and new TV shows, collectibles, cards and much more. Angry Birds become a hugely successful multi-title franchise, with over 4 billion downloads to date. Such success has led to a hit cartoon series, a hit box office movie anda major licensing program. Care Bears continues to reach new generations with the brand-new TV show Care Bears: Unlock the Magic, which recently launched onto Tiny Pop. Known for their vibrant colours and emotionally-themed belly badges, Care Bears have become a popular trend in fashion. Bulldog’s UK Care Bear deals in the last year include an exclusive Valentine’s Day capsule apparel collection with TruffleShuffle designed by select Digital Influencers. Moose Toys is a disruptor in the toy industry with global sensations including Shopkins and Mighty Beanz. The newest plush collectible from Moose Toys, Pikmi Pops, is represented by Bulldog in Europe. Pikmi Pops is a range of sweet-scented miniature plushies that come with surprises, packaged inside an iconic lollipop vessel. Pikmi Pops have become a big hit with their target market of girls aged 5 to 9, who love the quirky characters and the element
of surprise when they unwrap each vessel. Recent licensing deals have seen Spearmark sign for housewares and lighting ranges, Blueprint for stationery and bags, Aykroyds/TDP for nightwear and swimwear, and Blues for leisurewear. Treasure X, the latest collectible sensation from Moose Toys, combines elements that children love, including treasure hunting, collecting and great storytelling. The hyper un-boxing experience is supported by a multi-faceted marketing campaign, along with a strong content platform on YouTube that has already secured tens of millions of views. This strong reach has boosted licensing activity: Bulldog Licensing has recently secured three new agreements for Treasure X. New deals include Aykroyds/TDP come on board for nightwear, underwear and swimwear, Blues for daywear and outerwear, and Spearmark for housewares and lighting. Sesame Street has key broadcast support from Tiny Pop in the UK, which airs episodes of ‘Cookie Monster’s Foodie Truck’ daily. With Sambro on board as master plush partner, and very strong sales across soft lines for both adults and kids, Bulldog is looking to expand the licensing programme further across a number of categories, ROUTE 66 is based on the legendary highway that once linked Chicago to the American West. ROUTE 66 has since entered the global lexicon as a byword for adventure and a love of the open road, making the name instantly recognisable and giving the property huge appeal. ROUTE 66 is backed by a host of resources, a comprehensive 375-page style guide with theme-focused chapters (such as Bikes, Cars, Flags and others) that include about 400 original artworks and 54 high-res photos. CBS Television Studios recently announced the creation of a global franchise group that will manage and maximize the expansion of the Star Trek brand beyond the traditional boundaries of linear broadcasting and streaming. This new business unit reports to David Stapf, President of CBS Television Studios. The unit’s goal is
TOTAL LICENSING to invigorate and broaden the Star Trek fan community through additional branding opportunities, such as podcasts, a reinvigorated StarTrek. com and new digital spaces, consumer products and gaming, as well as live experiential events and global attractions.
Licensing Expo this year for the first time. The global kids’ studio and network reaches one in three kids worldwide every 90 days, and is at the frontier of kids’ viewing on YouTube. New Learn With Teletubbies short
The Coca-Cola Company offers more than 500 brands into over 200 countries. The company licenses its trademarks across a diverse range of categories including fashion and accessories, beauty, tech, housewares, home furnishings, food, giftware and collectibles, stationery and gaming. Lip Smacker and Crayola have teamed up to create a new collection of bold and colourful products – the Lip Smacker x Crayola collaboration. The collection, which pairs Lip Smacker’s iconic best flavors with iconic Crayola crayon colors includes a five piece liquid lip gloss party pack, a lip balm trio and an eight piece lip balm party pack. Each Crayola crayon-shaped lip balm and lip gloss was carefully matched to a Crayola color associated with a flavour name, for a co-branded product. The Lip Smacker x Crayola collection is available at Target stores and target. com. Creative Licensing is an established 360-degree merchandise licensing firm that specializes in representing world renown films. Such films include, Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, The Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, Rambo, Ace Ventura, Halloweeen and Evil Dead 2. New for 2019 is the announcement of the next Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure film titled, Bill and Ted Face the Music The film is set to begin shooting at the end of this year. CLC currently has over two dozen Bill and Ted’s partners, including our longstanding partnerships with American Classics for apparel, Boom! Comics for graphic novels, and Universal Studios Orlando for live events. DHX Media’s WildBrain will attend
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form content is launching exclusively across the year on the popular global YouTube channel. . In the Night Garden enjoys enduring appeal and is a consistently top rating show on CBeebies. The show is now in its 10th year and [ is touring theatres nationwide for the first time. Later in the year there are large scale cross category promotions planned with major retailers and the launch of new toys from Golden Bear. Peanuts are celebrating their 50 relationship with NASA with a variety of activities planned throughout the year. The brand will celebrate its 70th anniversary in 2020 and new content coming to Apple TV. Mega Man Fully Charged is an all-new, animated TV series, based on the hit video games from Capcom, which is now captivating kids’ imaginations on Pop in the UK. Making the brand broadly available to fans, short-form content is rolling out on the show’s YouTube channel. Kids can also bring the adventures of the mega-powered hero to life with a new toy line from Jakks Pacific, launching in retail this spring. Discovery’s portfolio of premium brands includes Discovery Channel, HGTV, Food Network, TLC, Investigation Discovery, Travel Channel, MotorTrend, Animal Planet, and Science Channel, as well as OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network in the U.S., Discovery Kids in Latin America, and Eurosport, the provider of locally rel-
evant, premium sports and Home of the Olympic Games across Europe. At the 2019 International Licensing Show, from booth #O202, Discovery will focus on licensing programs from the legacy Discovery Networks’ portfolio with special attention on Discovery #Mindblown, Shark Week, Animal Planet, Food Network and HGTV Home. Later in 2019, Discovery is bringing Animal Planet to a new and exciting retail partner that will be announced soon. Emoji – The Iconic Brand reports that fashion brand Romwe has partnered with emoji for a new collection. The collection stimulates the emoji brand fan base with an extra special fashion treat that includes 10 styles of women’s T-shirt and 5 styles of men’s T-shirt, creating an interactive and story-driven appeal. The emoji x Romwe Collection became available on www.us.romwe.com in April and Romwe features the collection with a prime placement on its homepage and targeted marketing campaigns. The emoji company is the owner of the registered emoji trademark in more than 130 countries around the globe. Altogether the emoji company owns more than 1,000 trademarks and has created more than 17,000 icons protected under copyright laws and available for licensing and merchandising, promotions and marketing activities. The emoji company works with over 700 renowned global partners including Sony Pictures Animation, Walmart, Fuji, Nestle, Tesco and Burger King. Endemol Shine North America, part of Endemol Shine Group, will be showcasing key properties from their extensive portfolio at Licensing Expo 2019. Brands include their tent-pole franchise Masterchef, which is celebrating its 10th season this summer on FOX, and new property Family Food Fight which is coming to ABC this summer. Scripted brands from the Endemol Shine Group portfolio includes the Netflix hit anthology series Black Mirror and BBC One/Netflix award-winning gangster drama Peaky Blinders.
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Other brands to be featured include the newly revived Deal or No Deal on CNBC, digital animated series Simon’s Cat and British icon Mr Bean, alongside legacy properties such as Fear Factor, Wipeout and Minute to Win It. Entertainment One returns to International Licensing Expo this year with its world-class line-up of award-winning preschool entertainment properties: Peppa Pig, PJ Masks and brand new Ricky Zoom! Global licensing phenomenon Peppa Pig now boasts over 1,000 licensees around the world and has a standout retail presence in the UK, the U.S., ANZ, China, Italy, Brazil and France. A hugely successful brand with instant name recognition, 2019 is set to be Peppa Pig’s biggest year yet. This year, brand activations are united under the theme of ‘Family Celebrations,’ which kickstarted in February with the Chinese theatrical debut of a new film, The Year of the Pig, in honour of Chinese New Year. The theme continues in the UK and Australia, where the brand is celebrating its 15th anniversary with nationwide cinema releases. Global partnerships include a collaboration with iconic footwear brand, Hunter, and an ongoing relationship with charity partner Save The Children – a relationship that resulted in the creation of the hugely successful annual mass participation event, Peppa Pig’s Muddy Puddle Walk. PJ Masks is now a firmly established preschool favorite and international hit. The brand has strengthened its global success with the launch of new episodes from series 2, soon to air series 3, and the expansion of its licensing program. The introduction of new categories and the development of new product ranges have attracted internationally renowned brands and saw the number of licensees rise to over 650 partners worldwide.
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Broadcast exposure continues to build with recently announced CCTV in China, all joining a long list of broadcasters that spans over 150 territories. The brand’s first stage show PJ Masks Live! Time to be a Hero, has been an instant hit with audiences and is currently on its third successful run in the USA, leading a live show album which has gained over 1.3 million streams on Apple Music and Spotify. The show also toured Latin America and Australia last year, playing to its growing fan base. eOne’s newest preschool property, Ricky Zoom, is revving up for its broadcast launch in selected territories from autumn 2019.The CGI action comedy adventure series follows the adventures of Ricky, a little red motorbike with a zest for speed and centres around friendship, family and learning to stand on your own two ‘wheels’. Currently in production, a number of leading broadcasters have already committed to the show including Gulli (France), RAI (Italy), Discovery Kids (LatAm), CLAN (Spain), Super RTL (Germany) and Youku (China). The licensing programme is already taking
for Rainbow Rangers across a multitude of consumer products categories, including the anchor categories of toys, publishing, and apparel. Most notably master partners Mattel Inc. (toy), MacMillan Publishing (publishing), and Bentex (apparel) as well as key licensees, including Dynacraft (bicycles, scooters), Disguise (Halloween costumes) and Jay Franco (bedding/bath), amongst others. Additional categories that are in the works for the program include games, party goods, personal care, coloring and activity, boxed roleplay, room décor, consumer packaged goods, and much more. Howard Robinson will highlight his Selfies brand, a twice nominated finalist in the LIMA International Licensing Awards with 86 licensing partners around the globe producing over 11,500 individual product items ranging from surfboards to wallpapers and phone software to baby onesies. The brand has a strong presence throughout independent gift stores, tourist destinations and mass market channels.
Unique and captivating stories are the DNA of INK Group and this year, the entertainment developer’s line-up at the 2019 Licensing Expo focuses on exactly that – one of a kind storytelling. Every brand INK Group develop is carefully crafted with the belief that Genius Brands will begin rolling these stories have the caliber to beout a comprehensive U.S. consumer come classics that children will love products program for Rainbow and learn from. Rangers including back-to-school Zafari is a story that not only aims to in July/August 2019 and continuing entertain, but to inspire, and make a throughout this year and beyond. difference for kids around the world. Additionally, international agents will The show is a story about a baby elbe signed this year to prepare for an ephant, Zoomba, who is mysteriously international rollout in 2020. born with zebra stripes instead of Currently, Genius Brands is in the normal grey skin of an elephant. partnership with over 20 licensees He ventures to the land of Zafari, at shape, spearheaded by TOMY as global master toy partner set to introduce an initial range that will include vehicles and playsets, which will be zooming into retail from spring 2020.
TOTAL LICENSING the base of Mount Kilimanjaro, where all the animals are different and truly unique – all born with the skin of another animal. Here, he learns all life’s important lessons and most importantly that sometimes being different, makes all the difference. Zafari focuses on themes such as friendship, inclusivity and celebrating differences and is already receiving amazing feedback from the market. NBCUniversal International Distribution is the distributor for Media Rights and a large host of broadcasters are embracing INK’s vision for the series and have joined the Zafari franchise across Latin America, Asia, Middle East and Europe, where Zafari has already performed with
great success. Hachette is on board as Global French-language publisher and many other consumer products deals are in negotiation already. Another unique collaboration has also been set in motion with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) – each episode of Zafari features a video aimed at educating viewers about wildlife and wild places on our planet. This will use the global reach of Zafari to further the conservation message and create future generations of WWF supporters. Another unique animation that will be showcased at the INK Group stand is Moonzy. This Russian animation for pre-schoolers centers around a little baby alien from the moon who falls to earth and discovers both a new home and new friends amongst the lovable inhabitants of a forest meadow. The brand, a massive success in Russia, where it is the top-rated show on the Karousel channel. An extensive licensing program is already in place in Russia, where several big promotions have
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been carried out including cooperation with Ferrero, Unilever, McDonalds and many more. On the media side, sales for Moonzy have already been locked in the USA with Janson Media for Amazon Prime and HappyKids OTT channel, but also – amongst others – in Israel with HOP, Poland with TV Puls and in Turkey with Planet Sony with many more to come. Konami, the Japanese entertainment and gaming conglomerate, has unveiled a new name for its New York City operation. Konami Cross Media NY Inc. (formerly 4K Media Inc.) will shift its strategy to focus even more on franchise building, content creation and brand management. The newly branded entity will be overseen by Yuta Kose as president. This strategic move collectively harnesses the strength of existing Konami gaming IPs -- including fan favorites Contra, Bomberman and Frogger -with a stronger focus on entertainment and content creation for global consumption and Omni-channel exposure. In addition, Konami Cross Media NY Inc. will continue to manage and grow the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise with a 360 degree approach for fan engagement across all franchise touchpoints. Konami Cross Media NY handles the
Konami properties globally, outside of Asia. Leading into Licensing Expo, Konami Cross Media NY has announced the first wave licensing deals for apparel and accessories for Contra, Bomberman and Frogger. New deals have been signed with Difuzed, Bioworld, Duncan Branding and Innex. As a result, Konami gaming fans will soon be able to wear trendy gaming gear based on their favorite game characters. They’ll also be able to refuel or hydrate with character themed accessories, including an exclusive line of plush figures based on game characters. Konami Cross Media NY is working on expanding the global television distribution footprint of Yu-Gi-Oh! Following the successful theatrical release of Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Side of Dimensions, the Yu-Gi-Oh! TV franchise is returning to the Columbia airwaves with new agreements signed with Citytv in Columbia. Citytv Bogotá, the main local television in Columbia’s capital city, unveiled “Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s” in March 2019. Meredith Corporation is largest food, lifestyle and entertainment media company in the United States engaging over 175 million consumers each month.Their portfolio of brands that will be on show includes Better Homes & Gardens, Southern Living, Real Simple, SHAPE, InStyle, EatingWell, Allrecipes, Food+Wine, Coastal Living, Travel+Leisure. MGA Entertainment, Inc., based in California, will bring a number of their hugely successful brands to Licensing Expo this year including L.O.L Surprise, Little Tikes, Num Noms, Unboxed and Poopsie Slime Surprise. At this year’s Licensing Expo Mondo TV will again show why it is one of the largest European producers and distributors of animated content. But it will also underline its massive success in recent years as a co-producer and a maker of live-action programming, as well as a licensor – a role that now includes third-party representation for one of the biggest plush hits of the last decade.
TOTAL LICENSING Moose Toys from Australia dominates in categories including collectables, craft, dolls, games and youth electronics. Key brands that will be on show include Pikmi Pops, Shopkins, Treasure X and Mighty Beanz. Pokémon is set for another major boost with the release of the eagerly anticipated first-ever live action Pokémon movie – the star-studded Pokemon: Detective Pikachu, which hit cinemas worldwide from early May. Movie tie-in products include a new Trading Card Game expansion, with new cards featuring CGI versions of Pokémon as seen in the film; toys from Wicked Cool Toys, puzzles from Ravensburger, a range of mugs and postSix properties, in particular, will be on show - Feisty Pets,YooHoo, MeteoHeroes, Robot Trains, Invention Story and Heidi Bienvenida. Feisty Pets are interactive plush toys – with a difference.They look cuddly and cute but transform when squeezed, losing their pleasant expressions and displaying fangs, sarcastic grins or funny faces. YooHoo to the Rescue is the first-ever Netflix Original Series from co-producers Mondo TV and Aurora World. It became available worldwide from 15 March 2019 exclusively on the Netflix platform as a Netflix Original Series. Mondo TV will also preview a major new property at Las Vegas. MeteoHeroes is a Mondo TV co-production with MOPI (Meteo Operations Italia – better known to the public as the Epson Expert). Scheduled to launch in autumn 2020, this animated comedyadventure will consist of 52 episodes of seven minutes each. MeteoHeroes is about six kids – Fulmen, Nix, Nubes, Pluvia, Thermo and Ventum – who discover that they can control the weather. Each one has a different superpower, connected with a different weather phenomenon, enhanced by special gadgets and costumes. Working with a group of meteorological experts, they find out how to use their powers to help the Earth – while also learning about friendship, cooperation and diversity as they work together.
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ers from GB Eye, and apparel and accessories from Fashion UK, BCI, Aykroyd’s & TDP, VMC Accessories, Difuzed, Sahinler, MLP, Textiss, and Sicem. From May 3rd, the latest TCG regular expansion, Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon: Unbroken Bonds was released, featuring the popular new Tag Team mechanic. Other innovative new products include extensive ranges across plush and figures from Master Toy Partner Wicked Cool Toys featuring existing favourites and new characters, plus clip-on and Poké Ball plush; Plush from Build-A-Bear and Toy Factory; Games from Ravensburger and Zanzoon; Electronics from TeknoFun and OTL; and Party Goods from Amscan and Rubie’s.
Italian family entertainment specialist Rainbow is back at this year’s edition with an licensing offering that boasts two quality brands covering the upper preschool and girl target. Their latest success story is the new series 44 Cats, already popular worldwide starring the Buffycats, four musician kittens, and their daily adventures
full of edutainment elements and enthralling music. Topping up the portfolio of the group is the ever more glittering Winx Club, the worldwide property appealing to girls and celebrating 15 years of strong market presence with an unprecedented schedule of special initiatives and partnerships, and currently in the spotlight with the debut of the fairies’ ultimate adventures in brand new season 8, adding fresh licensing potential to its solid foundation. Sesame Street report that the 2019 celebration has begun… and it continues all year! It starts in Orlando, Florida, where for the first time ever, you’ll be able to walk down Sesame Street with the recent opening of Sesame Street at SeaWorld Orlando. The land features Abby Cadabby’s Garden, Big Bird’s Nest, Mr. Hooper’s Store and the famous 123 Stoop, as well as favorite Sesame Street friends. The debut of the highly-anticipated, six-acre world class attraction is the largest Sesame Street land inside of any of the
TOTAL LICENSING SeaWorld parks and an exciting part of Sesame Street’s year-long 50th anniversary celebration. Next comes the Sesame Street Road Trip, where Sesame Street characters and friends host free family festivals in ten cities around the country this summer. 2020 is going to be a huge year when Sesame Street’s best-selling book of all time turns into an animated special airing on HBO. Coming to the TV screen for the first time, The Monster at the End of This Story makes Grover the star of his very own story…but he doesn’t want to get to the end because he is afraid of monsters. Grover tries different ways to stop the viewers from watching so that they’ll never get to the end, but nothing works. With help from his friends like Elmo and Cookie Monster, Grover learns that it’s ok to feel afraid and he builds up courage to reach the end of the story where he sees the monster…himself! Sesame Street is also headed to the big screens. Warner Bros. announced a new live-action Sesame Street movie produced by Shawn Levy. The movie is scheduled to premiere Jan. 15, 2021.
with 310 licensees globally delivering retail sales in excess of $410 million a year. Smiley is recognised as one of the creative driving forces in licensing today. For 2019 Smiley continues to focus on its original logo upper tier partnerships and brand collaborations, which are supported by a complete rebranding project that elevates the brand through on-trend product design and are aligned with fully integrated marketing activations, all created in Smiley’s London studio. A refreshed and rebooted Smiley.com and Instagram channel continue to provide an upscale lifestyle hub packed full of authentic and uplifting Smiley content, showcased alongside the brands industry leading collaborations.
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Sony Creative Products Inc and Aniplex Inc, both operating as part of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc., will be bringing a large and diverse portfolio of new and established properties to Licensing Expo. SCP will be highlighting such animated hits as Pingu, Mofy and Tama and in
One of a number of cannabis brands on show this year, Cannabis Connoisseurs, Soko is the new premium cannabis and CBD brand on the market. From hand-crafted CBD culinary treats to high-potency cannabis vapes, Soko has a product tailored to consumers’ personal style. Sony Pictures Consumer Products is the licensing and merchandising divisions of Sony Pictures Entertainment which includes motion picture production; acquisition and distribution; television production; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and the development of new
Smiley, the universal counter-culture icon, has been spreading a unique message of positivity and influencing people around the world since 1972. Smiley’s simple message of ‘Take Time To Smile’ has been a licensing-industry front runner for over 4 decades
entertainment products, services and technologies. Key brands on show this year include Better Call Saul, Bloodshot, Breaking Bad, Cobra Kai, Ghostbusters Franchise, Goosebumps, Jumanji, Men In Black, Outlander, Peter Rabbit, Vivo and Zombieland.
addition will launch at the show aibo, a robotic puppy, and Daifuku-kun, a Japanese pre-school online hit property new to the US market. ANX will promote its range of anime properties, but during the show will be particularly highlighting the recent arrival of two anime franchises, The Promised Neverland and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. Aibo is a delightful, entertaining companion robot, who loves being with people and who brings warmth and delight to the everyday lives of its owners. In that sense, aibo is just like any devoted pet. But there’s one difference: aibo is a beloved robotic companion! Developed in Japan and currently sold in both Japan and the USA by Sony Corporation, aibo offers lifelike expressions and an amazing ar-
TOTAL LICENSING ray of movements alongside a cheerful and curious manner. aibo really wants to know you, explore its environment, understand the ways of the world — and, from time to time, be a little mischievous. Spin Master is a leading global children’s entertainment company that creates, designs, manufactures, licenses and markets a diversified portfolio of innovative toys, games, products and entertainment properties. Spin Master is best known for a number of awardwinning brands that include Zoomer, Bakugan, Erector by Meccano, Hatchimals, Air Hogs and PAW Patrol. Striker Entertainment will be featuring several properties at Licensing Expo including The Umbrella Academy, Netflix latest hit based on the graphic novels; Good Omens, from Amazon/ BBC, based on the Neil Gaiman/Terry Prachett novel, starring David Tennant
and Michael Sheen; and Creepshow, the live action television series coming to Shudder from Greg Nicotero. Striker’s roster of additional television properties includes AMC’s The Walking Dead, celebrating its 10th anniversary this October, Fea the Walking Dead, The Tick, Deadly Class, Mr Robot, Happy and The Magicians. Striker continues to support nontraditional content with the independent videogame series Five Nights at Freddy’s which is launching a VR ver-
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sion this summer and has a live action feature film in active development. Other Striker initiatives include Trivia Crack, Fingerlings, Coraline, Exploding Kittens and Klepto Dogs, the latest sequel to Klepto Cats, as well as a few new video game titles. A Tiny Teddy named Cuds is an award winning publishing series about the world’s tiniest Teddy Bear, Cuddles T. Bear, with the world’s biggest heart. Children love the stories of Cud’s adventures with his friends as he learns about the world around him and how to navigate new experiences. Targeted to preschool children this property is with an innovative publishing program designed to educate and entertainment kids around the world. Ahead of Licensing Expo,Toei Animation Inc. and Funimation released their annual Dragon Ball franchise report detailing the successful results of their licensing efforts over the past 12 months including new agreements since last year’s expo. Produced by Toei Animation and distributed in the U.S. & Canada by Funimation, the Dragon Ball anime franchise consists of 20 feature films and four TV series, namely Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT and Dragon Ball Super, the first new storyline from original creator Akira Toriyama in more than 18 years. 2019 marks the 25th anniversary of Dragon Ball’s introduction to U.S. & Canadian audiences and the global 30th anniversary of the Dragon Ball Z anime TV series. Drag-
on Ball has left an indelible mark on pop culture as reflected by the multigenerational, multi-cultural fandom it enjoys today. In the 12 months since Licensing Expo 2018, Toei Animation and Funimation executed more than a dozen agreements with new licensees and an equal number of agreements for renewals or additional rights with existing licensees. Collectively these agreements covered a range of categories, including mass market apparel, home goods, wall décor, accessories, gifts calendars and costumes, as well as new rights for Dragon Ball Super: Broly and the Dragon Ball Z 30th Anniversary. These successes not only unleashed untapped demand for Dragon Ball Z merchandise but also swelled the popularity of Dragon Ball Super merchandise as well. At Licensing Expo 2019, Universal Brand Development (UBD) will showcase an expanding portfolio of properties from the company’s film and television creative partners including Universal Pictures, Illumination and DreamWorks Animation. This slate of celebrated film franchises and entertainment properties will continue to captivate audiences through 2019 and beyond. After eight films that have amassed almost $5 billion worldwide, the Fast & Furious franchise is back with Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, in theatres August 2019. The franchise now features its first stand-alone vehicle as Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham reprise their roles as Luke Hobbs and Deckard Shaw. In late 2019, the Fast & Furious franchise speeds onto Netflix with the global launch a brand-new kids and family series from DreamWorks Animation Television. In the series, teenager Tony Toretto follows in the footsteps of his cousin Dom when he and his friends are recruited by a government agency to infiltrate an elite racing league serving as a front for a nefarious crime organization bent on world domination. Jurassic World fans can look forward to new adventures in 2019 with the upcoming, animated mini-series Lego Jurassic World: Legend of Isla Nub-
TOTAL LICENSING lar debuting later this summer. From DreamWorks Animation comes the highly anticipated feature film Trolls World Tour, the follow up to the 2016 movie starring Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake, debuting in theatres in April 2020. Global master toy partner, Hasbro, continues to expand the breadth and scope of its toy collection, which supports the film franchise, including the hit Netflix original series, DreamWorks Trolls: The Beat Goes On!. Premiering on Universal Kids in Fall 2019, DreamWorks Where’s Waldo? will have audiences joining Waldo and Wenda on their international adventures as they travel the world to earn their stripes and become wizard-level Wanderers. From Illumination, audiences can look forward to the global theatrical debut of Minions 2 in July 2020 as well as Sing 2 in December 2020.
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middle-grade graphic novels grows as Silver Dragon Books releases their newest title, Princess Ninjas. In a world where magic, ninjas, and evil exist, sisters Bridget, Megan, and Elyce, along with their sidekick, Turtlebear, become the secret line of defense for the Kingdom of Chiyome.
Zenescope Entertainment is the creator of the unparalleled world contained in its Grimm Universe which it will be bringing to Licensing Expo.. With dynamic female leads and a team of talented writers and artists, these interconnected series come to life and engender loyalty from fans. Zenoscope not only publishes comic books and graphic novels, but they successfully launched a line of branded adult coloring books and have licenses for glassware, apparel, and statues and collectibles. In addition, as one of the hottest categories in publishing, the demand for
Since its launch at Toy Fair 2015, the Zoonicorn family-favorite property, which started with children’s books and plush and today shares social emotional development through its stories and music videos, has been growing every year. After a wildly successful online sales launch of Wish Me Zoonicorn plush by Jay@Play through direct response television advertising, Zoonicorn is announcing that its interactive Wish Me Zoonicorn will soon be available through Amazon, Target, Meijer, Walmart, Cracker Barrel, and other retail locations across the United States starting fall 2019.
Autumn/Fall 2018
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Summer/Fall 2019 For licensing opportunities contact: Naomi Sheahan at Haven Naomi@havenglobal.com
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Magazines for every occasion! www.totallicensing.com
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Spring 2018
March 2018 For licensing opportunities contact: Naomi Sheahan at Haven Naomi@havenglobal.com
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CYBER GROUP STUDIOS BRING GIGANTOSAURUS TO VEGAS Cyber Group Studios is a French independent, multi-award-winning company which develops, produces and distributes its own and third-party audiovisual productions and brands. The company focuses on content with strong global appeal targeted particularly to kids and families, namely with 3D CGI and 2D HD-animated productions (TV series and movies). Its mission is to bring the best quality entertainment to audiences produced by top creative talent and to develop breakthrough technologies to enhance its productions. The company also aims to collaborate with other top creators and producers to help them bring their creations to market with outstanding content distributed and marketed through Cyber Group Studios’ worldwide operation. Following the opening of a subsidiary in Los Angeles (USA) and Roubaix (Hauts-de-France), Cyber Group Studios has created an interactive division aimed at developing games and interactive experiences on digital plat-
forms) as well as on traditional console. A key brand for Cyber Group Studios, and one that will be on show at the Cyber Group booth at Licensing Expo is, of course, Gigantosaurus, the new animated television series airing on Disney Channel in the US since January. Based on a book written by the multi-awarded children novelist Jonny Duddle and with Jakks Pacific as master toy licensee, the storyline surrounds the adventures of four young dinosaurs, Rocky, Bill, Tiny and Mazu, growing up in the Cretaceous period. Life is always an adventure: new volcanoes are popping up all the time, longnecked brachiosaurus and enormous triceratops roam free, meteor showers light up the night sky and… the Gigantosaurus reigns over it all! Through the adventures of the young dino heroes, Gigantosaurus (52 x 11 minutes) reflects the different ways 4-6-year-old children discover the world and themselves Production partners include Disney Junior, France Télévisions, Super RTL,
Radio-Canada Television and Netflix. In a recent move, Cyber Group Studios and Outright Games, a global family videogames publisher, announced a major partnership to create the first video game inspired by Gigantosaurus. The new video game will be available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC. The new series that roared to life on Disney Channel US will be broadcast on Disney Junior worldwide (excluding India, China and Taiwan). Gigantosaurus is also set to premiere on major broadcast networks, including France Télévisions, Germany’s Super RTL, RAI (Italy), SRC (Canada), as well as on Netflix in the majority of territories worldwide. The Gigantosaurus video game, created by Outright Games in partnership with Cyber Group Studios, will feature the four dinosaur heroes, Rocky, Bill, Tiny and Mazu, in a new action-packed story. Geared towards kids and families, the debut game brings players directly into the world of Gigantosaurus, as they zoom through the stunning series-inspired locations and engage with the storylines. Established by industry veteran Terry Malham in 2016, Outright Games brings a wealth of experience in creating and publishing high-quality interactive family entertainment, including with licenses such as How to Train Your Dragon, Paw Patrol and Adventure Time. Pierre Sissmann, Chairman and CEO of Cyber Group Studios, adds, “Cyber Group Studios is excited to build on the television series and expand the franchise to video games with Outright Games. With their considerable expertise in the family market, we know they will deliver a game that will bring Gigantosaurus to life in a whole new way and further captivate fans around the globe.”
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POPEYE CELEBRATES AROUND THE WORLD With this year’s 90th anniversary celebration of Popeye and the upcoming 90th anniversary of Fleischer Studios’ owned Betty Boop in 2020, King Features Syndicate has been fueling their licensing programs for both characters with a number of direct-to-retail partnerships, awareness campaigns, publishing programs, events, exhibitions, and new deals in untapped categories and territories. King Features recently announced the expansion of their Brazilian licensing program via appointed local agent,Vertical Licensing Brazil. Building upon the momentum of King Features’ recent global growth, Vertical Licensing will present fresh lines and categories of product for iconic characters, Popeye and Betty Boop, to fans across Brazil. Vertical Licensing’s recent roster of Betty Boop deals in Brazil includes a lingerie collection by Brazilian intimates retailer Loungerie, and a renewed contract with UP Import/ABR Art Bag for Betty Boop fashion bags, as well as a co-branded health & beauty collaboration with high-end fashion label Forum for Betty Boop perfume and nail polish. The fragrance, sold at specialty shops and Lojas Renner, is licensed by Passion Perfumes e Cosméticos. New deals for 2019 will include the launch of a Betty Boop backpacks from Clio slated for the end of 2019. The new backpack line will join Tilibra’s adorable notebooks and play a key role in Betty Boop’s 2020 offering of back-to-school season essentials. Excitement around Popeye only continues to grow within Brazilian media which has resulted in an exciting slate of events and product launches including a 90th birthday celebration during the Museum of Image and Sound’s comics exhibition, a children’s themed event at shopping malls with licensee 2a1, children’s multivitamin supplements by Brasterápica, a fast-fashion direct-to-retail apparel collection with retailer Pernambucanas and the expansion of clothing programs with Riachuelo and Lojas Renner, resulting in close to 1000 doors at retail. Ad-
ditionally, an exclusive e-commerce t-shirt assortment from Chico Rei, Tilibra notebooks and a Ludi / Imaginarium gift collection are also slated for this coming year. “Vertical Licensing has done an outstanding job representing King Features’ brands in Brazil,” said Carla Silva, VP and General Manager, Global Head of Licensing for King Features. “They’ve uncovered and secured untapped categories in their region and have reached a new generation of Betty Boop and Popeye fans, strengthening our brand presence in the territory.” Further afield, King Features, with the efforts of their local agent, Medialink, is expanding the brand’s presence in China this year with new collaborations that will help spread the spirit of the spinach-loving sailor to both longtime Popeye lovers and new fans. Popeye is establishing some street cred with his latest fashion collaboration with streetwear brand Stayreal, while licensee ZCWO partners with celebrity artists from around the globe to develop a unique range of limited-edition vinyl art toys and figurines. The Popeye x Stayreal crossover clothing collection features trendforward Popeye designs on apparel including shirts, sweatshirts and more. Available now, the collection can be found at all Stayreal stores in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, giving Popeye fans an opportunity to support the cartoon sailor in style. Hong Kong-based ZCWO has enlisted an array of well-known artists from around the world to design jumbo Popeye figures in their own diverse styles. The talent list, including names like Fools Paradise, will bring a fresh outlook to this unique offering of Popeye product. The limited edition figures and toys debuted at Shanghai Toy
Show in April. The polished craftsmanship of the Popeye figures, designed by Eric So and Luasio Lopez, will be launched at the coming toy shows. “We set out to celebrate Popeye’s 90th anniversary in style, activating opportunities for our favorite sailorman across new and unexplored categories,” said Carla Silva. “We’re thrilled with how these latest partnerships out of China and Hong Kong align with that strategy and can’t wait to see how fans respond.” “Happy birthday, Popeye! With the power released by spinach, Popeye has been one of China’s favorite heroes for 90 years,” said Medialink Executive Vice President - Sales & Acquisition Strategies, Noletta Chiu. “These exciting collaborations will strongly introduce the spirit of the brand around the world as we celebrate his anniversary year. We are looking forward to celebrating Popeye’s 100th anniversary in the future and many more after that.”
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RE-IMAGINING CLASSIC BRANDS The latest addition to the portfolio of Those Licensing People in the UK is The Little Prince created by the French Author and War Hero Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. A classic chil-
dren’s book with 400 million in print across 300 language editions, it is one of those properties that never seems to date, never goes out of fashion, it’s a constant in the world of character licensing and has been for decades. Established by veteran licensing professional Russell Dever, TLP has developed into a natural home for some icons of the past which have been expertly re-imagined for the future by the company’s talented team. The Little Prince joins Sooty, Sweep and Soo, The Magic Roundabout, Willo The Wisp, Roobarb and Custard and others in a venture that has also reimagined how licensing itself has been redeveloped, creating a direct to consumer model alongside tradition bricks and mortar retail deals. Those Licensing People developed the Children’s SVOD platform KidsCast which is where the turnaround in representation started. Initially it was just about finding old classics and bringing them onto a platform. Material that had been forgotten about or overlooked. Programming that was perfectly acceptable, even famous but would never be broadcast again in a linear format. It became clear that for some there was also an opportunity to rethink how the IP could be used or as TLP say ‘re-imagined’ for a new audience. Roobarb and Custard is a case in point where the much loved children’s icon of the 80’s and 90’s has been turned
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into a special purpose vehicle for the sale of dog food. It’s the first license of its type in the UK, possibly the world and it breaks down the traditional model of reliance on retail because the product is going straight to market. Those Licensing People have plans to roll out similar deal structures for their other classic lines. “The point is”’ says Dever, “shelf space has never been at a greater premium, the licensing industry has relied heavily on retail groups but with high street retail in severe decline it is time to rethink the model and reach out to the consumer on a direct basis.” It is now possible to do this in a way that has not been viable before thanks to online shopping and Social Media.
“It helps to work with brand owners who really understand this. Richard Cadell is a case in point. Sooty is an elder statesman of British licensing. Born in 1948 he remains as current within the market as ever and this is a testament to how a brand can be kept fresh and alive. Sooty has generated hundreds of thousands of pounds in royalty. He is in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest continuous show in Children’s TV history. His live
performances are a sell out every year and children really engage with him. But you can feel the ‘but’ coming! The ‘but’ is that retail is ambivalent even though the consumer is not. So we have to re-imagine Sooty, bringing him to the consumer in other ways that do not rely on retail. It’s a challenge, but it’s fun and an exercise in problem solving.” Traditional classics and properties like Olobob Top which has all the propensity of a classic brand are slower but this does not make them any less interesting and from the consumer’s point of view still very much in demand. Every one of the TLP properties has its own unique story to tell. The product of a War Hero, the stop frame animation skills of Ivor Wood, an original star from a 40’s version of Britain’s Got Talent, the inimitable voice of Kenneth Williams. What all of them have in common is that TLP has been granted the unique privilege to reimagine these icons of the industry for a new time and new markets.
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The latest from TF1 Licences TF1 in France are moving forwards on a number of licensing programs for their key brands which range from children’s shows to sports, brands and adult shows. New to TF1 Licences is Who Wants to be a Millionaire which returned to TF1 earlier this year after an absence of 19 years. The show has a new presenter – Caille Combal who is also the presenter of Carpool Karaoke and Masked Singer. Both of these shows will broadcast on TF1 later this year and TF1 Licences are now working on putting together a licensing program for each brand. In addition to representing brands, TF1 Licences also incubates start-
ups in house to help them develop their businesses. Wakatoon, an app which creates cartoons from children’s drawings, was a good example and they have been working with TF1 for the last two years. TF1 Licences has been working with Wakatoon on the Miraculous license and they won the Innovative Product Award at the French LIMA Awards for 2018. As a result of this success, TF1 Licences is working with two further startups. Epopia and Tictales. Epopia features children receiving letters with an adventure story and the children have to make a choice of how to influence the follow-up of the adventure. A deal has recently been signed between Epopia and Smurfs. The second start-up is Tictales,
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a mobile app which targets young women aged 15 to 35. Barbapapa is a key brand for TF1 Licences and the property turns 50 in 2020. A new television series will be on air next year and TF1 Licences are preparing a strong marketing plan for the event. On the sports side, the All Blacks will feature this year, particularly as the Rugby World Cup takes place in Japan in September. The Smurfs are also in the spotlight. A Smurf Experience is running in Paris from June for four months followed by the broadcast of the new television series in 2020. A recent promotion in McDonald’s was hugely success. For the 60th anniversary of The Smurfs, the restaurant chain offered 60 different figurines to collect in Happy Meals over an eight week period. With more than two million visitors a day and 14 million Happy Meals sold each year, The Smurfs brand enjoyed tremendous visibility. Miraculous is also proving successful with the launch of Season 3 on TF1 mid-April. Three QSR promotions have run over the last few months with Quick, Burger King and KFC with more to follow. New products include eyewear by L’Amy Group which are being sold at opticians throughout France. To date, more than 60 licensees are currently signed in France. Superwings, too, is successful. A recent move is a partnership with Aeroports de Paris where episodes of the series are broadcast in the kids’ area. Commenting on the success of Superwings in France, Antoine Erligmann,VP
International Alpha Group Media TV and Consumer products said, “We are very pleased to have developed a longterm strategic partnership with the TF1 group, which is supporting us in the development of the Super Wings brand in the TFOU box, accompanied by a large-scale digital system, and it is quite natural that we wanted to entrust the representation of licensing rights to TF1 Licences. We are convinced that TF1 Licenses, through its position as market leader, its expertise and its ability to enhance the value of the brands it represents, will enable us to accelerate the development of the brand in France.”
Finally, in terms of brand new properties, TF1 Licences are managing the licensing rights for Gamers Origin, the e-gaming team, as well as the rights of their players. They are currently opening a training center in Paris for the players with coaches, psychologists and physical therapists. In addition, TF1 Licences are managing the rights of Miss France (the show is broadcast on TF1) but are now managing the rights globally and are in negotiations for a worldwide cosmetic deal.
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SEGA EUROPE AT LICENSING EXPO SEGA Europe’s award-winning Brand Licensing team will be attending the Las Vegas Licensing Expo from 4th – 6th June at the Mandalay Bay Convention Centre, bringing with them an exciting line-up of SEGA and Sonic the Hedgehog licensed products. 2019 is set to be a huge year for Sonic as he and his friends will hit the silver screen in ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’! This live action with CG movie from Paramount stars Parks and Recreation actor Ben Schwartz as the voice of Sonic and Jim Carrey as his arch nemesis, Doctor Ivo Robotnik. James Marsden, of Westworld fame, plays the role of cop Tom Wachowski in the rural town of Green Hills where he’ll help Sonic escape the clutches of his would-be captors. SEGA Europe have teamed up with industry leaders, TVM Fashion Lab and Cooneen & Misirli for a movie themed range of apparel and accessories to support this exciting launch. On 21st May, Sonic launched back behind the wheel in Team Sonic Racing on Microsoft Xbox One, Sony PlayStation4, Nintendo Switch and PC. Developed by award-winning studio Sumo Digital, Team Sonic Racing is
the ultimate arcade and fast-paced competitive kart racing experience! To celebrate this, toy company NKOK, have partnered with SEGA Europe to produce a Team Sonic Racing RC Vehicle which will be available to purchase on Amazon, Smyths Toys and GAME to name a few. It’s the perfect way to bring the arcade action to the real world. Staying with Sonic, a new line of Sonic the Hedgehog action figures, playsets, plush, collectibles and novelty items will be on show from new partner JAKKS Pacific. This will include the awesome Pinball Track Set which brings Green Hill Zone, the iconic level from the videogame series, to life with its customisable track. Fans pull the pinball launcher and shoot the Sonic Spheres through the loops and turns. The set comes with an exclusive Sonic Sphere and removable figure. Retro continues to be a key focus for SEGA Europe, particularly with the global launch of the SEGA Mega Drive Mini on 19th September and the SEGA Shop (www.segashop.co.uk) will continue to support the nostalgia wave with many new retro ranges launch-
ing throughout the year. This has been bolstered by the expansion of SEGA Europe’s partnership with global licensing agency CPLG, to include the retro programme and broaden its reach to new territories, Russia and CIS. For more information about all these products and licensing deals, visit the SEGA Europe Brand Licensing Team at the Las Vegas Licensing Expo stand Q236 For more information about SEGA Europe, visit www.sega.co.uk. SEGA Europe Ltd. is the European Distribution arm of Tokyo, Japanbased SEGA Games Co., Ltd., and a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe. SEGA wholly owns the video game development studios Creative Assembly, Relic Entertainment, Amplitude Studios, Sports Interactive and Hardlight.
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CLEO & CUQUIN Cleo & Cuquin is a pre-school brand produced by Televisa and Anima, which has become the most watched children’s series in Mexico since its premiere in March 2018, where it is airs on Televisa’s Channel 5. Its success has also been notable in Spain, where it airs on Clan and since its premiere has been placed among the leading preschool series. In addition, the brand’s YouTube channel: Familia Telerin - Cleo & Cuquin, has grown exponentially in the last year, reaching 4 million subscribers, 2 billion views and an average of 12 million unique viewers a month, spearheading the online strategy for the Cleo & Cuquin brand. The audiovisual content of the Cleo & Cuquin brand consists of a first season of 52, seven minute long episodes, that premiered in 2018 in the United States by Nick Jr., throughout Latin America with Discovery Kids and in other European countries. Since the beginning of 2019 it has begun airing in Canada with Treehouse and in Russia with Carousel and will be followed by other countries in Eastern Europe and MENA. And to complete its international reach, beginning in the fall of 2019 it will be available world-
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wide on Netflix. Since last spring the second season (26, seven minute long episodes) has begun airing on Televisa and Clan. In addition, and specifically designed for viewing on YouTube, Cleo & Cuquin has a collection of nursery rhymes that currently consists of 30, three minute long music clips, as well as other educational formats and toy play, aimed at children. All of this brings together the idea of having a specific presence in all channels watched by children. As a transmedia brand, it also has an App aimed at parents to help get children to bed and is available on Android and iOS: “The Bedder by Cleo & Cuquin.” Cleo & Cuquin’s strategy in the consumer products area consists of a solid network of representation agreements with key agents such as Animaccord for Eastern European countries and MENA, Nelvana in Canada, and Tycoon, CPL and Agosin for all of Latin America. Currently, the presence of Cleo & Cuquin in the Consumer Products Market goes hand in hand with Mattel’s toys globally, with Penguin Random House, which has released Cleo & Cuquin’s books in all Spanish-speak-
ing countries and Portugal; with HITN a Bilingual educational program across de US, and other local licensees for the key categories such as Back to School, Side toys, Plush, etc. Cleo & Cuquin is a preschool series that features six siblings -- specifically big sister Cleo and the smallest member of the family, Cuquin, who get caught up in all kinds of adventures thanks to baby Cuquin’s curiosity and cheeky mischief. In each episode, the six kids go on an exciting mini-adventure, and pretend to be astronauts, gardeners, rock stars, detectives and more! At the end of each episode, Cleo decides what she wants to be when she grows up... at least until she discovers that she wants to be something else! Anima is a leading animation studio based in Mexico City, Madrid and the Canary Islands. Specialized in 2D and CGI animation, it creates, produces and manages high quality brands and develops original projects for kids and the whole family. It also has a division that manages and commercializes its own brands, designing the most suitable strategy for each one and adapting it to each territory.
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Winx Lifestyle: Magic and Design The popular fairies fly into Milan Design Week
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Rainbow’s latest project, in collaboration with CILAB – Creative Industries Lab of the Polytechnic University of Milan, is celebrating all things Made in Italy. Design meets magic thanks to Winx Club, with an ambitious project – students were invited to translate the dis-
LC Forniture industriali, On light PF, Specchiopiuma, Kose & ISI Milano, EDG Enzo De Gasperi, TaborGlit and Grifal SPA. After debuting in Milan, the fairy installation will fly to exhibit in Matera, 2019’s European Capital of Culture. Winx Club is a global brand made
tinctive features of the six fairies into fresh living concepts inspired by the emotional world of Winx Club. The six best projects selected are truly immersive installations with unique furnishings, complements and graphics that introduce the visitor to the imaginary world of the fairy saga, a classic icon with potentially endless applications. 60 students from the Bachelor of Science in Industrial Product Design joined the project, and, supported by professors have developed their proposals following a brief defined by Rainbow and CILAB. The best proposals were then supported by a selected panel of Italian companies with whom they finalized the projects and created the prototypes taking into account materials, technologies and product categories for each. The close collaboration saw CILAB working with companies CMC2.0, Piva Group, WallPepper, Mosaico Digitale, FCA SNC,
with Italian excellence. Bloom, Stella Flora, Musa, Tecna and Aisha continue to be a source of inspiration for new stories and products. Over its 15 year history, Winx Club has seen eight TV series, four TV movies, three theatrical movies, two Netflix Original animated series, 170 original songs and 30 arch-enemies – all defeated. In other news for Rainbow, the company has finalized a UK deal for its new animation 44 Cats – with Sony Pictures Television’s Pop TV snapping up the show. Pop TV – one of the UK’s biggest free-to-air children’s programming broadcasters – will launch the show in Sep-
tember 2019. 44 Cats is a Rainbow production in collaboration with Antoniano Bologna and Rai Ragazzi. The series follows the daily adventures of Lampo, Milady, Pilou, and Meatball – four adorable kittens who are part of a music band named The Buffycats and live in the Clubhouse, a garage inside Granny Pina’s house. Their adventures explore the themes of friendship and altruism: the four cats love helping others and always find creative solutions to everyday hitches by dealing naturally with important themes like tolerance, diversity and acceptance. “We are absolutely thrilled with this new broadcast deal, as Pop TV have such a big presence and reputation in the UK”, says Andrea Graciotti, Head of Sales, TV Series, Movies & Co-Productions of Rainbow. “This adds to the buzz surrounding the brand, that is receiving a great response from across the international TV market!” “44 Cats is a perfect fit for Pop, with its blend of friendship and fun – and cute kitties!” says Sarah Muller, VP, Children’s and Youth Entertainment Programming, Sony Pictures Television.
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ANIMACCORD Taking New Directions in the Drive For Growth Animaccord celebrated multiple brand milestones in 2019 for its worldwide popular animated IP, Masha and The Bear. In its 10th Anniversary year, the global brand gained GUINNESS WORLD RECORD achievement with its ‘Recipe for Disaster’ episode becoming the most watched cartoon on YouTube, reaching 3.5 billion views. Moreover, this summer Animaccord will release a 4th musical season of the core show, Masha’s Songs, each episode of which is dedicated to the cultural values and most popular song of a particular country. With such a huge success story making waves across the world, Animaccord has embarked on a mission to diversify its business while announcing new animation projects taken in its portfolio for further media and CP licensing as well as brand management. The first of these became Cleo & Cuquin produced by Anima Kitchent: Animaccord was confirmed as master agent for the property management across Russia & CIS, Baltics, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Detailing the adventures of little Cleo and her younger brother, Cuquin, the cartoon combines fun, friendship, and educational values. In less than 12 months, the cartoon reached the No. 1 position on numerous channels in-
cluding Clan in Spain, Televisa in Mexico and gained widespread broadcast in 38 countries across the NETFLIX platform. Under the tenure of new CEO, Vladimir Gorbulya, who was promoted in January, 2019 following seven years as Head of Licensing, Animaccord is breaking boundaries and conquering new markets with the particular focus on Asia including China and Japan. The pre-school phenomenon, Masha and The Bear, has been licensed for consumer products across globally recognized companies including Ferrero, Hachette, Simba Dickie Group and more as well as broadcast by Animaccord’s long-term partners - world’s largest media companies – such as Netflix, Google, NBCUniversal, Viacom18, RAI, France TV, SBT, Televisa etc.
Breaking boundaries in Asia Conquering the hearts of millions across the world, this year Animaccord particularly focuses on the licensing of its IP across Asia and is thrilled to introduce a confirmed portfolio of exciting Masha and The Bear character merchandise in the region. GBC, the industry leading in-vitro diagnostic device manufacturer based in Taiwan, launched a range of licensed children’s toiletries including hand cream, bubble bath, baby shampoo and body wash late Spring this year. Great International Co., Ltd, a Taiwan manufacturer of stationery products, brought a new branded collection of BTS products, such as bags, painting albums, book covers, sticker albums, stationery sets and many more to the market this spring to retailers across the country. In addition, Animaccord collaborated with Eduble Online LLP, the melamine tableware producer, and Frank Educational Aids Private Limited based in India to produce Masha and The Bear licensed kitchen sets and cartoon puzzles respectively and launched it in April this year. Moreover, Original Chinese building blocks producers Guandgong Qman Culture Communications Co., Ltd. based in China inked a deal with Animaccord to develop a new line of Masha and The Bear licensed construction toys. The release of the new branded sets is planned for Q3 2019 with distribution confirmed in SEA, Russia and CIS.
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TOTAL LICENSING Austria and German-speaking Switzerland. The campaign in Germany covered more than 100 screens of such cinema chains as Cineplex, Kinoplex and Kinopolis; over 25 screens of Cineplexx, Apollo-Kino, Lugner Kino and Hollywood Megaplex chains in Austria; in Star Cine in Switzerland and is due to end on May 20th. Netherlands supported the release of the series on April 10th with a number of events to promote the screenings including character costume Meet & Greets on April 3rd at Pathe de Kuip in Rotterdam and 10th April at VUE cinema. In MENA, Spacetoon International FZ LLC distributed selected episodes of Masha and the Bear season 3 from April 11th till May 30th to such local cinema chains as Real Cinemas, Novo, Vox, Cinescap, Grand Cinemas, City Cinema and Cineco.
New Consumer Products Initiatives Confirmed across North America Continuing brand growth in North America, Animaccord brings new CP deals for Masha and the Bear property on board in the USA and Canada across publishing, dress-up and party supplies categories. Phidal, a Canadian based publishing company, will publish licensed books in English for Canada and USA. The collection will include learning series books: Puzzle books, Bubble Magnet book, Bath time books and many more that will be available in specialized online stores across both countries with a planned launch date of June 2019. In addition, one of the leading publishing houses in the world, Penguin Random House, has inked a deal with Animaccord for a licensed book line produced in Spanish. It will consist of story books, activity books, and coloring books with and without stickers; educational books; novelty books and compiling books with a planned release of June 2019 on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, independent bookstores and public libraries across the USA. Palamon, an industry leader in creating Halloween and dress up costumes and accessories for all ages, has confirmed a deal with Animaccord for licensed dress-up. The company will produce Masha’s costumes for
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children aged at 2 to 5 and the Bear’s costumes for adults in various size options. This collaboration will provide a perfect family dress up solution for Halloween when both kids and their parents will transform into characters from their favourite cartoon. Shindigz Company that offers unique party essentials and will produce Masha and The Bear party supplies available for purchase in May 2019. The licensed collection will include branded plates, cake suppliers, danglers, centerpieces and many more.
New episodes of season 3 on the Big Screen and on TV This spring consumers could experience the magic of Masha and The Bear animated episodes in a 3-D big screen format. On April 4th AF Media GmbH brought selected episodes from Masha Season 3 to cinemas in Germany,
Moreover, Animaccord continues releases of the second part of Season 3 in key markets, including Italy on Rai YoYo channel with premiere on June 7. In the UK, Tiny Pop launched Season 3 in January this year and included the cartoon in a marathon “Tiny Pop Cracking Easter” held during the Easter holidays. Furthermore, in the UK children’s channel Cartoonito released new episode of Season 3 on May 6. In Latin America, Cartoon Network and Boomerang channels brought selected episodes of season 3 on TV this April and May.
Animaccord’s First Live Show Tour Wins the Hearts of Audiences To mark the 10th anniversary of Masha and the Bear, Animaccord developed its first official in-house
TOTAL LICENSING produced live show. In France, the Animaccord’s show was distributed by Los Production and launched in December 2018, running until May 2019 and covering 24 cities including Paris and larger provincial areas. The Masha and the Bear live show by Animaccord is named #1 most visited kids show and Top-5 of all shows in France. In Moscow, Russia, the show holds #1 Box office result among kids shows during 2018-2019 Christmas season. This enchanting musical fairytale with beloved characters was translated into five languages and toured in seven countries. Furthermore, Van Hoorne, a licensee partner of Animaccord, is holding a Masha and the Bear show in more than 60 cities across Belgium and Netherlands. The premiere of the show was among the best sales performances Van Hoorne has ever experienced for a completely new show from a new brand for the first year - 99% of the tickets were sold at the time of premiere.
Creating Educational and Wonderful Holiday Brand Experiences In partnership with one of the largest taxi services in Russia&CIS: “Yandex. taxi” Animaccord developed a branded educational project with the main aim to protect children during car trips and explain road safety rules with simple language and visual stimuli. In short animated videos produced by Animaccord team, the campaign focused on the use of car seats utilizing multiple communication tools including social media outreach, and advertising banners. With over 33 million views of its first campaign video in less than a year, the initiative was off to a fantastic start and exceeded all expectations. Christmas fairytale was arranged together with the team of the legendary ‘Café Pouchkine’ in Paris. The world-famous French patisserie Chef, Nina Métayer, created the traditional treat of the Season ‘Christmas Log’ with the cartoon’s characters as well as the brand new The Bear and Masha desserts. The special Masha and the Bear menu also included a brand-
ed box of macaroons with different flavors; the choice was based on the sweet treats featured in the series such as The Bear’s honey, Masha’s berry jams, and more. This year saw the launch of a synergistic charity campaign between Animaccord and one of the largest banks in Russia: “VTB”. Launched on March 27 this year, the campaign will run until December 31 2019 and aims to increase the quality of the children’s medicine service through state public health support which in particular affects very young pre-school patients. Various fund-raising initiatives across the year includes a celebration concert and receiving presents from Masha and The Bear characters who act as endorsers for healthy living as an important factor for disease prevention in young children. The awareness-building campaign links directly to children’s health issues brought to light during the famous “Get well soon” episode.
Retail Fun across Europe This Easter was accompanied by a number of fascinating retail campaigns with Masha and the Bear across Europe: Carrefour launched a joint seasonal campaign in France that was running from 15th April to 5th May. Themed around a digital fun fair concept, consumers have a chance to play online mini games and take part in a quiz to win promotional gifts from the retailer, including licensed products from Simba and Hachette with an ultimate prize of a family trip to Italy
and tickets to Masha’s final live show in France. The campaign was promoted through multiple digital channels including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, e-newsletters, official websites of Carrefour and partners and more. In Poland, Allegro, the largest online marketplace in the country, based on previous success of a joint Christmas campaign 2018, launched an Easter promo featuring branded banners and licensed partner products from Procos, Faro, ElplusM, Galapagos, Egmont, Winning Moves and Simba. In the UK, Holiday Fun with Masha was held in The Entertainer from March to April 2019. The retail campaign saw branded Masha and the Bear display stands and security gates across more than 150 stores, creating a fun, immersive environment and supported by interactive meet & greet events with the Masha and the Bear costume characters allowing children to meet their favorite mischievous heroes. Moreover, this April Animaccord launched a branded Masha and the Bear store on Amazon.com that ensured even greater visibility for its licensed products with the world’s largest e-commerce retailer with linked promotional activities scheduled to run online until the end of 2019. Masha also featured across official branded pages on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon. de respectively in the run up to Christmas 2018. For licensing inquiries, please fill in the form: www.animaccord.com/ license/contact
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News from Studio 100 Studio 100 report increasing activity on a number of properties as well as new brands being added to their portfolio.
Australian animation studio Flying Bark Productions, part of the Studio 100 Group, is currently producing the brand-new CGI TV-series 100% Wolf (26 x 22‘) as well as a CGI-animated theatrical movie. Both series and movie, will be available in 2020. All global distribution rights (TV, licensing & merchandising) will be handled by Studio 100 Media/m4e. Studio 100’s Flying Bark Productions has adapted the property from the popular Australian children’s novel 100% Wolf by Jayne Lyons. The feature film and TV series are in production and a coinciding re-release of the first two books (a new third book has recently been penned and is awaiting a release date. Initial licensees include Blue Ocean Entertainment AG, Ravensburger, Sony Music and SkyBrands. Studio 100 Media/m4e and Playmobil (geobra brandstätter Stiftung & Co. KG) have signed an extensive license agreement for Heidi. The multi-year agreement covers the worldwide rights except for some territories in Asia. Starting in Q1 2020, there will be an extensive Playmobil Heidi product range on shelves, including figures and various play sets – and later in 2020
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the Playmobil-Heidi-Advent calendar will follow. And there will be dedicated Playmobil Heidi moving content, small video clips for social media distribution and on the new Heidi website. Studio 100 Media/m4e has appointed IMC as licensing agent in LATAM and is working to extend the licensing program globally. Mia and Me remains popular in German, particularly amongst 7 to 9 year old girls. Season 4 is currently in production for a release in 2020/2021 comprising 26 x 23’. The current seasons are placed with more than 40 key broadcasters and VOD platforms in more than 80 territories. A Mia and me movie is also in development for a planned release in 2021. Mia and Me is also very strong in social media, with over 500 million YouTube video views worldwide and more than 720,000 subscribers to its international YouTube channels. Mia is also a theme park icon at the Plopsa theme parks which attract more than 3 mil-
lion visitors per year! The licensing agent network spans the whole world, including Empire Multimedia Corporation, Brand House, Planeta Junior, Alicom Licensing, UYoung or Merchantwise. The international licensing program is powered by strong partners, like Panini, Hachette Book Group, MSZ, Procos, Herding, Leomil, Rubies, Universal, Edel: Kids, tonies, Simba Toys, Ravensburger or Schmidt Spiele. In order to inform people on the importance of bees, World Bee Day was held on May 20th. Around this
date, several promotions for Maya the Bee took place, with a focus in G/A/S, where Maya has its own “save the bees” promotion: Project Poppy Fields! Maya acts as strong ambassador for insects, biodiversity and sustainable development. The initiative is done in cooperation with Mellifera e.V. and several partners like WEPA pharmacies, Familie & Co (magazine) or Sonnentracht. For this year’s campaign around World Bee Day, Studio 100 expected to reach 1.5 million consumers. New licensed products include yoghurts from Bauer, plush from Heunec, audio figures from tonies. A third theatrical movie is in production. Its working title is Maya the Bee – The Golden Orb and it is planned for release in 2021. Master toy partner Giochi Preziosi launched a new toy line in September 2018. Other multi-territory partners include Varta, Arkopharma and jbc. Preschool brand Wissper is gaining international awareness, being sold to more than 100 countries worldwide, and showing strong performances in markets such as China, India, Middle East, UK, Poland and Turkey. The first Wissper app will be launched in May 2019. It will be available in five languages, containing mini games and a parents’ area. Master toy partner Simba Toys has successfully launched the toy line in many territories including the Middle East in 2018, supported by strong ratings on broadcaster MBC 3 who is also acting as licensing agent for the territory. Wissper’s second season is now available – making 104 episodes in total.
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MONDO IN LAS VEGAS
At this year’s Las Vegas Licensing Expo (4-6 June) Mondo TV will again show why it is one of the largest European producers and distributors of animated content. But it will also underline its massive success in recent years as a co-producer and a maker of live-action programming, as well as a licensor – a role that now includes third-party representation for one of the biggest plush hits of the last decade.
Visitors to stand C204 at the Expo will have a lot to see and talk about – and in particular six properties making waves – or soon to arrive – in a number of markets: Feisty Pets, YooHoo, MeteoHeroes, Robot Trains, Invention Story and Heidi Bienvenida. Feisty Pets are interactive plush toys – with a difference. They look cuddly and cute but transform when squeezed, losing their pleasant expressions and displaying fangs, sarcastic grins or funny faces. This simple but skilfully executed concept has been a massive hit online, in the media and at retail; the line, now totalling some 80 characters, has sold in the millions. The brand already has a global master toy partner (Jazwares) and a master English language publisher (Scholastic). Lifestylebased consumer products will follow. Mondo’s first representation of a
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non-broadcast property in the Italian and Iberian markets has been a major success, bringing the content giant together with a true phenomenon that is expected to replicate its online and plush success in licensing. In Italy the toys will be distributed by Giochi Preziosi, with which Mondo TV is working closely to build a solid retail sales strategy planned for autumn 2019, when the plush line will be placed throughout the market. Mondo has already signed up Publievent, highly regarded in the Italian market for the organisation of live events, to produce Feisty Pets-themed shopping mall events, Clementoni for innovative puzzles that cleverly adapt the dual personality concept behind the toys, and Edicart for original and highly entertaining humorous books. YooHoo to the Rescue is the firstever Netflix Original Series from co-producers Mondo TV and Aurora World. It became available worldwide from 15 March 2019 exclusively on the Netflix platform as a Netflix Original Series. From April and May this year it has been shown on free-to-air channels in Italy, Russia, Poland, Spain and Portugal. It is also a major licensing prospect. This new 3D CGI 52 x 11’ children’s series is based on the globally successful line of Aurora World plush toys, more than 80 million of which have been sold since the worldwide launch of the line in 2007. It’s a funny, exciting and beautifully designed animated series with strong environmental themes, in which YooHoo and his friends, Pammee, Roodee, Chewoo and Lemmee, travel from their home in YooTopia to Earth to confront threats to nature and wildlife and meet many different endangered animal species. The YooHoo brand has attracted strong international licensee interest in such areas as baby care products, fragrance, bath and body products from Nuvita, and stickers and trading cards from Panini. Many important categories are also covered through domestic deals, notably an Italian
agreement with Mondadori, which will launch its first title, the YooHoopedia, in Italy in autumn 2019. Plush is, of course, directly managed by Aurora. A refresh of the popular line based on the new characters that YooHoo to the Rescue brings to screens is taking place across all markets; there will also be a plastic toy line. Mondo TV will preview a major new property at Las Vegas. MeteoHeroes is a Mondo TV co-production with MOPI (Meteo Operations Italia – better known to the public as the Epson Expert). Scheduled to launch in autumn 2020, this animated comedyadventure will consist of 52 episodes of seven minutes each. MeteoHeroes is about six kids – Fulmen, Nix, Nubes, Pluvia, Thermo and Ventum – who discover that they can control the weather. Each one has a different superpower, connected with a different weather phenomenon, enhanced by special gadgets and costumes. Working with a group of meteorological experts, they find out how to use their powers to help the Earth – while also learning about friend-
ship, cooperation and diversity as they work together. The combination of great characters, gadgets, science, comedy, adventure and such topical themes as climate change and energy
TOTAL LICENSING saving is expected to inspire a strong licensing programme. Mondo TV plans to sign up key partners in order to ensure that the series has worldwide reach both in terms of media distribution and in terms of licensing and merchandising. The Giunti publishing house already has an exclusive publishing agreement for Italy. The global master toy partner is a major target and one that will be a strong focus for Mondo at the Las Vegas event. Licensing activity for Robot Trains, the exciting animated series for children aged between three and five,
is strong in a number of territories, where toys from Silverlit, confectionery and snacks, books, puzzles, live characters and events, stickers and trading cards, collectible 3D figurines, carnival costumes, personal care products and paper handkerchiefs are just some of the items in shops or soon to appear at retail. There’s even an amazing augmented reality app, launched this year, through which players can access a wide selection of games by purchasing a product and scanning its packaging. And the digital innovations don’t end there: an educational app based on season two of the show will
soon be released by Tap Tap Tales in North America and Europe. With the second season of Robot Trains bringing new characters and new themes, this thrilling tale of a brave group of friends who transform from trains to robots to protect their home and its vital energy supplies is expected to expand its licensing appeal. Co-produced by Mondo and South Korean content and media giant CJ E&M, season two (52 x 11’) premiered in France on Gulli on 5 November 2018 and is now on air in Italy on Cartoonito (where it has become the channel’s second-best-performing show), Karusel in Russia and Canal Panda in Portugal. Its most recent launch, however, has been in Spain, on Clan, where season two of Robot Trains launched on 22 April at 6pm – a primetime slot – with two episodes. A number of other territories will be following this year.
Demand for season one (32 x 11’) remains strong, with a number of European, Middle Eastern and Asian broadcasters now showing the first series of Robot Trains. Invention Story (104 x 11’) is the tale of Kit, an intelligent, thoughtful and creative fox who, in each episode, comes up with an amazing new invention. There are engrossing plots, conflicts and rivalries, as well as funny and engaging characters — but Invention Story also encourages its young audience to have a creative approach to problems. Visitors to the Mondo TV stand can hear more about the enormous potential of Invention Story across both play and learning-related licensed product. Co-producers Henan York Animation and Mondo TV are certainly convinced and are looking forward to the show launch’s on
CCTV, China’s leading broadcaster, on 1 July. Mondo’s first-ever live-action show Heidi, Bienvenida a Casa (60 x 45’), produced by Mondo TV Iberoamerica along with Alianzas Producciones, has enjoyed great success in Latin America on Nickelodeon and is now showing strong potential in the European market – for both licensees and broadcasters – thanks to launches in Russia, Italy and, most recently, on Disney Channel Spain. The adventures of a happy, carefree girl who leaves her beloved mountain home to live in the big city has inspired a strong licensing campaign embracing stickers, events, book publishing, magazines, confectionery, personal care items and a soundtrack CD. A feature film and the arrival this year of a second season of Heidi Bienvenida – Heidi Bienvenida al Show – will further boost Heidi’s popularity on TV, online and at retail among tweens and teens in many territories. Commenting, Valentina La Macchia, Licensing Director, Mondo TV, said, “Mondo TV has even more to offer this year in terms of content and properties at Licensing Expo, not just through our productions and co-productions but – for the first time – through an internationally successful plush brand. And of course Licensing Expo will offer us the chance to finalize a number of other important collaborations that will further enhance our license portfolio. We are incredibly excited about our stronger-than-ever licensing capability and are sure that visitors to stand C204 will be excited too.”
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Combining a timeless and ever-popular theme with a big injection of humour, Ultra Zombies is an Award Winning, design led brand, targeting children from 4 to 8 years old. Created by Pablo Henriquez, PEACHE BRANDS Director, and represented globally by Argentina-based Tónico, Ultra Zombies is already a huge hit in the South American market with more than 25 licensees and over 160 licensed product lines to include Action Figures (distributed in Latam,
Europe and Australia), Plush, Back to School, Collectibles, Publishing, Homewares, Apps and Confectionery, with licensees that include Panini and Penguin Random House. The extensive Ultra Zombies style guide also includes Augmented Reality assets with applications available for both Android and IOS, allowing our consumer to fulling interact the brand. Such assets have already been incorporated into a number of products including the spectacular collectible Plush
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Q2 2020 throughout other LATAM territories. Panini products will have exclusive codes to unlock characters, skins and weapons in the game. Panini will also lead in Europe with the release of Trading Cards and a series of interchangeable Mini Collectibles in 2020. What is more, the creators have developed a number of Ultra Zombies mini webisodes allowing viewers to meet these fun characters! Available on YouTube and (soon to be) other platforms the first
from Cresko. Ultra Zombies also transcends licensed products through its exclusive and free applications: In 2017, the first game App was launched with unprecedented success for a Latin American brand, having already reported more than 2 million downloads. On the heels of this success, 2019 will see the launch of a second gaming App which will include new characters, new weapons and new scenarios. The launch of the App will also coincide with the release of Panini’s Trading Card line and Sticker album in late summer 2019 in Argentina and
episodes features the ‘Hero Zombies’ and the frustrated attempts of X-guy in his search to find the cure for the Ultra Zombie…
what follows is mystery, suspense and above all, lots of humor! The strategic partners of Peache Brands and Tónico for licensing worldwide are: Agosin in Chile, Peru and Colombia, The Brand Licensing in Mexico and The Licensing Connection in the UK. The Licensing Connection is also coordinating the EMEA licensing activity via a network of Agents. Contact: Evelyn Capella email: ecapella@tonico.com.ar tel: +54 9 11 5667 5215
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The expanding world of
Could you tell us a bit about the background to Born Licensing – how the company began and your initial focus?
campaigns for major brands like Volkswagen,ANZ,Westpac and Bulla Dairy. After convincing some key Licensors to give me a go at representing their portfolios in this specific category, I started to knock on doors of advertising agencies in an effort to raise the profile of how characters and IP could be used in advertising campaigns. It was a tough slog, but I finally signed my first deal with Simonds Homes, an Australian homebuilder who wanted to celebrate their 65th anniversary by developing a bespoke Transformer made out of house and building materials. We worked with Hasbro throughout the production and soon enough our first campaign was live on AFL Grand Final day, one of the biggest advertising days of the year! The campaign was a huge success and soon after we signed our next deal,
this time with Subaru who licensed G.I. Joe in a major campaign that resulted in their Levorg being the #1 sports wagon across the country. At that point we had some great examples of our work to show and it was easier for the advertising world to understand how licensing IP can add value to their work. Two years after opening Born Licensing I made the decision to move myself and the business to London – a city with a thriving advertising industry and access to key European markets. It was the right decision! We started signing deals shortly after opening in the UK and haven’t had a quiet day in the office since!
When David Born founded Born Licensing his goal was to build an agency focusing on the advertising and marketing space. Today, five years on, Total Licensing talked to David about how he achieved his goal and where the agency goes next.
In terms of Born’s ad campaigns, could you tell us a bit about some of your successful campaigns? Which do you feel has been the most successful so far? Maybe some brief details about each of your key ones? We’ve now signed over 50 deals in the advertising space, ranging from small social media campaigns to major global campaigns. When working on these campaigns, we live and breathe them. They require a lot of resources and almost always involve many, many late night calls, meetings and emails. They’re hard work, but it’s a very rewarding moment when we see
Born Licensing was ‘born’ 5 years ago after I had just returned to Melbourne from living in Europe for 18 months, which included time at Turner Broadcasting (Cartoon Network) as Head of FMCG & Promotions for EMEA. My goal was to build the world’s first licensing agency that focused on the advertising and marketing space. The ambition had come from my years at Warner Bros. and Turner Broadcasting where I had worked on deals that involved licensing IP in advertising
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TOTAL LICENSING who licensed Bridget Jones Diary, Boost who licensed Bruce Lee, British Airways who licensed Winnie the Pooh and most recently Just Eat who licensed Family Guy globally.
A recent move has been the launch of Consumer Products and Innovations. Can you tell us about this?
them go live for the first time! We’ve worked on so many creative and successful campaigns and it’s hard to name just a few. However our most high profile work is the Moneysupermarket campaign with He-Man and Skeletor dancing to Dirty Dancing. The licensing community may remember this from last year when it won the LIMA award for Best Licensed Promotion. It was an enormous success and officially went viral with 3 different related hashtags trending across Twitter and over 35,000 tweets being sent per hour. In fact, over 25 million people viewed it in the first 24 hours. Someone even got a tattoo of it on their leg! It resulted in a 6% uplift of total revenues for the Licensee, which is an impressive result! Moneysupermarket’s Action Man campaign was also a huge success, winning a Wood Pencil at the D&AD awards as well as Gold for Craft at The Andy’s. Accolades like this help raise the profile of how much value characters and IP can add to an advertising campaign, and it inspires the advertising and marketing world to consider characters and IP in future work. We particularly liked the Barclaycard campaign which licensed The Muppets, which was recently awarded Highly Commended at 2019 The Drum Mar-
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keting Awards. A campaign which has just launched, and is bound to be a success is with 2degrees, a major telco company in New Zealand. They’ve licensed JoyPixels emojis in a really creative way across TV, outdoor, digital, social, online and in-store advertising! Other campaigns that have been a success for us include T-Mobile, Instagram, Facebook and Madden who licensed SpongeBob SquarePants, M&S
In mid 2018 we were approached by restaurant app Just Eat who wanted to license emojis. We reviewed the emoji designs on the market and quickly identified JoyPixels as having the most high quality assets. They agreed to license their emojis for the campaign and in the process we found the JoyPixels team to be really great to work with and extremely passionate about their emoji portfolio. We had great chemistry and decided to work together in the advertising space. Since then we have signed a raft of deals with advertisers that wanted to license JoyPixels emojis in their campaigns such as Morrisons, EE, 2degrees, EDEKA, Scottish Police, Monzo Bank, Kellogg and many more. Our relationship blossomed and in late 2018 they asked if we would manage their licensing in consumer products too. We had
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a strong belief that the JoyPixels emoji portfolio was the best offering on the market and that they would translate beautifully onto consumer products. For that reason we signed on to expand our representation agreement to the consumer products space. The Innovations area is something that has always been a passion of mine, which is working with entrepreneurial companies who want to license IP in unique and innovative ways. We’ve worked with a range of companies like this including StickerPop, the biggest digital sticker store and library in the world. StickerPop have asked us to find licensing partners for them and as a result have developed a broad range of licensed sticker packs that are now available for their customers to use. Typically the companies that suit our Innovations business have not ventured into licensing before and have an existing product that could achieve huge success with one or more licenses.
What is the purpose of Consumer Products and Innovations? How will it differ from Born Licensing’s advertising business? Born Licensing will continue to focus on the advertising business as it continues to grow. The biggest challenge with that business can be the short term nature of the deals signed. They can be high in value, but there are no long term guarantees. Renewals are rare, because usually the creative needs to change after the first time even if it was a huge success. For that reason I felt it was wise to broaden
our offering and introduce the Consumer Products and Innovations side of our business. This area offers us a more consistent revenue stream in the long term, based on royalties which have been (hopefully!) forecasted well in advance. Both of these businesses will compliment each other, as we build long term strategies in our Consumer Products and Innovations business while continuing to secure the high value deals in the advertising space.
We understand a key property is JoyPixels. Can you talk a bit about this and what your activities and plans are for the brand? JoyPixels is the owner of over 2,800 emoji icons and their mission is to deliver maximum joy through masterful design. They take their responsibility as a contributor to the world’s universal picture language as a cherished privilege and with a great deal of passion.Their emoji designs are of incredibly high quality and we are often told that they are the most superior emojis on the market. Up until now JoyPixels has mainly been focused on licensing their emojis out in the digital space and have secured partnerships with major brands such as Intel, Dropbox, T-Mobile, PlayStation, TikTok, and Virgin who have used JoyPixels emojis on their platforms. JoyPixels is an official member of the Unicode Consortium, and all of their emojis are Unicode compliant. JoyPixels has appointed Born Licensing as their master licensing agent to drive their consumer products business.
Our approach is to harness the power of the high quality of the emojis and translate them on to products in a new and trend focused way. In the UK we have already signed key categories such as Fashion UK for daywear, Danilo for calendars and greetings, Party Swan for online party boards and a number of others. We are in the process of appointing sub agents around the world that are best in class and believe their markets will embrace JoyPixels emojis. Those announcements will be made leading up to Las Vegas Licensing Expo. We are very excited about the future of JoyPixels emojis - there are over 6 billion emojis sent every day around the world and with new emojis being released every year, it’s clear that emojis aren’t going anywhere anytime soon!
How do you see Born Licensing’s Advertising, Consumer Products and Innovations businesses growing and developing moving forwards? Born Licensing likes to do things differently, and we always want to have a global approach. We will focus on expanding our advertising business further, working closely with major markets such as New York, London and Amsterdam while looking into growing advertising markets such as Brazil and India. We will continue to create incremental revenue opportunities for the Licensors we work with, and the licensing industry as a whole. Our Consumer Products business will grow significantly over the next 12 months as we drive the JoyPixels emojis programs across global markets with our sub agent partners. I expect that our Innovations business will grow steadily, but only with partners who have an entrepreneurial and unique approach to licensing. We want to help companies with incredible products and services that haven’t licensed IP before reach their best potential with characters and other suitable IP.
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German agency Kiddinx report that Germany’s favorite kids franchise, Benjamin the Elephant, is back for his most daring and exciting adventure yet on a big-screen - a live-action/CGI hybrid adaptation that will bring the whole family to the heart of a zoo unlike any other! Benjamin is a big-hearted, goofy, and sometimes even a little clumsy elephant, who lives in the Newtown Zoo - a peaceful place where all the animals are his family. He loves lazing around as well as going on fun adventures
For licensing opportunities, contact: Thomas Puchert Intl. Head of Licensing & Merchandising KIDDINX Media GmbH, Berlin Tel: +49 (0) 3068972329 Mob: +49 (0) 1724437 477 puchert@kiddinx.de
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with his best friend Otto, a caring and courageous 9-year-old boy who visits the zoo about every afternoon after school. That is until the evil and unscrupulous Zora Zack threatens to close down the zoo to build luxury apartments instead. Will the two sidekicks manage to foil Zora’s strategy and save their favorite zoo? With more than 14 million books and 65 million audiobooks sold, and 160 gold and platinum awards won, over the years Benjamin the Elephant has become a beloved friend for kids and their parents. The upcoming movie, which debuts at the beginning of August is directed by Tim Trachte and features a cast including Heike Makatsch, Manuel Santos Gelke, Tim Oliver Schultz and Friedrich von Thun. The film is produced by Christian Becky/Rat Pack Filmproduktion. Christian Becker took time out to talk to Total Licensing about the film, where the idea came from and how the production process had worked. “My younger brother was a huge fan of Benjamin Blumchen. That is why I was always listening to the audio plays. Nowadays, my daughter is totally thrilled by the cartoon series. And she’s not alone! With more than 10 million DVDs sold and more than 60
million audio plays, as well as countless awards, Benjamin Blumchen has been part of every childhood for over 40 years. In addition to the cartoon series, there were the audiobooks and a huge variety of merchandise, such as the famous Benjamin Blumchen cakes. The only thing that was missing was a fantastic movie! However, as with Jim Knopf, it took us a few years to convince Kiddinx (the brand owner) of our cinematic vision for Benjamin Blumchen. However, together we formed the perfect production team, are were able to persuade Tim Trachte to be the director. Tim has succeeded in his artistic implementation of Benjamin Blumchen and his universe. In order to do justice to the nostalgic setting of the talking elephant in the Neustädter Zoo, we had to digitally construct the majority of the environment. Later we combined both the actors and our Benjamin Blumchen, who was initially played by a stand-in and later animated in the classic cartoon style. This was a very time-consuming and lengthy process, which is why we spent more than a year working intensively on post-production. Now we are ecstatic that our famous fourlegged giant will finally come to the big screen this Summer!.
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Santoro celebrates 35 years! From discarded retro cards to a $192 million business.
Meera and Lucio Santoro outside Buckingham Palace last year ahead of receiving their Queen’s Award from Prince Charles
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Santoro designs and products can be found in 93 countries. Founded by Meera and Lucio Santoro 35 years ago, today the company has offices in different parts of the world and employs around 90 people. But the beginning came about almost by accident! As Meera Santoro explained, “Lucio and I were visiting a printer in Milan and I saw a heap of high-gloss retro prints that the printers had done but were throwing out.” “I asked if I could have them and took them back to our tiny office in Carnaby Street. I was sure there could be a market for them.” And Meera was right. Orders came in and before long, visitors from 20th Century Fox came from Hollywood to see Meera and Lu-
cio in their little studio and granted them a license to create a collection of dramatic prints featuring Hollywood icons. “Looking back now, it makes you smile,” continued Meera. “Our first warehouse was our little office floor which was covered in small heaps of cards!” Driven by their desire to innovate and break new ground, Lucio and Meera embarked on the creation of a revolutionary, interactive, moving 3D greeting card collection which would be folded down flat to be sent by post without the need of any assembly. Lucio became more and more interested in paper engineering and, the now famous Swing Cards® were born in 1994 and have won numerous accolades since, including ‘Card of the Year’, a ‘Most Creative Use of Paper’ and an ‘Art Director’ award.They continue to bring joy to their many recipients whom now number in excess of 15 million. Simultaneous collections of design led gifts, accessories as well as fashion led stationery have continued to achieve further recognition: Santoro have won ‘Gift of the Year’ four times in the last decade alone. With their highly successful stationery and gift collections, fast developing reputation for innovative, multi award winning creations, Santoro was again receiving some very important visitors. Impressed with their delectable creations, representatives of Her Majesty’s Jewel House at the Tower of London asked the pair to design and produce an exclusive collection of stationery which would be sold in the Jewel House boutique inside the world famous landmark - The Tower of London - to commemorate its reopening. In terms of the card line, Santoro’s first license was Indiana Jones which they featured on a card. And their card business continued to
grow and thrive. And then, they came across a few sketches of some child-like drawings. Both Lucio and Meera saw their potential, but not until Santoro had stamped their mark on the project. “I told the Bang on the Door girls that I knew I could do something with it.” And she was, without doubt, right! What started as a few sketches became bright, bold funky and groovy
Where Santoro began! One of the retro Hollywood icon postcards that Meera spotted on the floor of a print factory in Milan. creations. Having transformed the sketches into artwork people fell in love with, what was to be named Bang on the Door was launched. Soon the pair created a new division of their design house - Santoro Licensing. Within a few years Santoro transformed a few line drawings into the multi-award winning ‘Bang on the Door’ collection generating in excess of $800 million at retail and winning the ‘2000 LIDA Brand of the Year’ award. But expanding their own designs was always at the heart of Santoro. Having achieved the highest accolade in the brand and licensing industry, they
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Meera Santoro and Jo Campbell, Santoro General Manager in the early days of Santoro. embarked on yet another new avenue. They signed a publishing agreement with Simon & Schuster in the US to design three pop up books. The books centred on Santoro’s interactive revolutionary paper engineering and vivid artistic scenes - Journey to the Moon (2007) was release first, then Predators (2008) and Wild Oceans (2010). All three books were hailed as major feats in paper-engineering. Further collaborations followed and saw Santoro’s products adorning some of the world’s most prestigious stores, boutiques and establishments such as MoMA in New York, Harrods, The Victoria and Albert Museum, Liberty’s, Selfridges, Galleries La Fayette. El Cortes Ingles, Sogo, Seibu, Mitsukoshi, United Colours of Benetton, FAO Schwartz, Hamleys, Rinascente and Sach’s 5th Avenue… and the list goes on. Meera and Lucio turned their skills to another long standing passion - architecture and interior design - under the name Santoro Deluxe Design. With Lucio’s love for modernist architecture and understated style being coalesced with Meera’s courageous colour combinations Santoro Deluxe Design has completed a number of luxury properties, both nationally and internationally.Their design skills were recognized when these properties were awarded the 2011 Bloomberg & Google International Property Award for Best Residential Property Interior and were Highly Commended in the 2011 Bloomberg & Google International Property single new property development category. In addition they were also shortlisted in two
Categories in the 2011 KKB awards and also short listed in the 2012 SBID awards. And so to their latest, and probably most successful line to date - Gorjuss. Santoro launched the beautiful Gorjuss collection to enormous acclaim in 2010 and this stunning range of artworks has captivated people’s hearts and imaginations. Today, based at their iconic Wimbledon headquarters where they have now been for eighteen years, Gorjuss takes centre stage. “Gorjuss just resonates with people,” explained Meera. Sales of Gorjuss products in Europe have been extraordinary, particularly in Spain where Gorjuss is the top selling license for girls and has been
Lucio at the factory where the Swing Cards were made in the early days of Santoro’s card collections.
for the last couple of years. “We’re delighted that Gorjuss has won best Art and Design Property in Spain for the last four years,”continued Meera. In 2015, Santo opened their first stand-alone store in Bath and, in 2016 they launched Santorus, the luxury division which creates high-end fashion and interiors. They also created Santoro Italia, a Milan-based office as
the centre for sales and distribution in Italy. Their extraordinary story was rewarded last year when they won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise: International Trade. Through all their efforts, Santoro’s products have been in some of the world’s most prestigious stores, boutiques and establishments around the world - a list that continues to expand. Meera and Lucio know that Santoro is only as strong as its staff, and a large proportion of the staff have been with Santoro for years. “Trust is a hugely important thing and we are incredibly lucky to have amazing people working with us,” continued Meera. “It is lovely to be able to create what we do and, at the same time, be able to work with lovely people.” “We are really excited about the future,” continues Meera. “We’re investing a lot of time and money into our online offering and we’re always looking for new opportunities. Gorjuss has been such a wonderful journey and one that we know will continue for many years. She has really become an evergreen and we know that there’s so much more that can be achieved with Gorjuss. To be a success in this business you need to love what you do. And we love every minute of it!”
The Wimbledon team on Christmas jumper day (spot the office puppy in her jumper too!)
The three Paola Reina Gorjuss dolls that were released last year.They are an addition to the Gorjuss collection and even have an exclusive Rose and Honeysuckle scent!
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The Wiggles are back! Wiggles) and their Wiggly friends are as appealing to the newer generation of pre-schoolers as at any time over the last 28 years! For nearly three decades, The Wiggles, the world’s most popular children’s entertainment group have educated, entertained and enriched the lives of millions of children (and their parents) all over the globe. Children who once saw The Wiggles perform are now bringing their children to see the fab 4 of fun! Fans can catch The Wiggles on television exclusively in the U.S. on the Universal Kids network, Hulu SVOD and on Treehouse TV in Canada. The Wiggles have sold over 8 million books, 30 million CDs & DVDs including the most recent Gold and Platinum Album Awards given to Emma, Lachy, Simon and Anthony. In these days of streaming, to be awarded platinum album sales is extraordinary and shows the continued strength of The Wiggles. The Wiggles see things from the perspective of the child, which is the basic tenet that informs their work. It is because their performances are developmentally appropriate for their young audiences, they continue to attract and involve those audiences. Emma Watkins (The Yellow Wiggle), Lachy Gillespie (The Purple Wiggle), Simon Pryce (The Red Wiggle) and Anthony Field (The Blue Wiggle, Creative Director and Creator of The
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LIVE The Wiggles are one of the hardest working and most successful musical groups in the world, touring the USA, Canada and Australia over the last year. The Canadian tour sold 45,000 tickets in 2017 and then 90,000 tickets in 2018! In 2018 The Wiggles played a total of 348 shows, selling over 405,000 tickets. Parents cannot wait to get Wiggles tickets for their children. Our end of year arena tour saw ticket presales of 101,112 tickets within 24 hours, a 31% growth in one year! 2019 will be the biggest USA concert tour in many years. The Wiggles Party Time Tour sees The Wiggles perform at 26 cities right across the East and West coast of the USA! It launches in Seattle on the 27th of July and ends in Boston on the 5th September. This tour will be a full production featuring all of The Wiggles hits from ‘Hot Potato’ to ‘Do the Propeller!”. Canada will see them perform 80 shows in 27 venues across the country in the fall. Newfoundland, Glace Bay, Halifax, Moncton, Fredericton Montreal, Cornwall, Ottowa, Kingston, Toronto, Burlington, Brampton, Oshawa, Hamilton, Chatham, Barrie,
London, Sudbury, Winnipeg, Brandon, Regina, Saskatoon, LLoydminster, Edmonton, Calgary,Vancouver & Victoria. PRODUCTION The Wiggles releases for 2019 include: The Wiggles’ Big Ballet Day! A stunning collaboration with The Australian Ballet and The Wiggles Party Time! A collection of fun and festive party tunes that are perfect for any Wiggly celebration. Emma Wiggle also has a brand-new second season to her hit show Emma! Season 2 (26 x 11 mins) opens up a whole new exciting, interactive and inclusive world to the pre-school viewer. There are 100 new songs, new sets and even a bowtiful plane and bowmobile car to transport her to visit her friends in the town! Production has just begun for The Wiggles brand new TV series The Wiggles World (26 x 11 mins). The viewer gets to adventure through unexplored parts of The Wiggles wide world and the wonderful people that inhabit it! You will discover Lachy’s Curly World, a Wiggly cafe, Emma’s Weather Report and so much more. With 100 new songs as well as Wiggly classics! YOUTUBE & SOCIAL MEDIA The Wiggles YouTube channel has had explosive growth in the past few years, with increased subscribers, views and watch time spanning across 227 territories. The channel has accumulated over 400,000 subscribers, over 543 million views and over 1.2 billion minutes of watch time! During the last year we have had a 97% increase in subscribers, 120% increase in views and 140% increase in watch time (Feb 1st 2018 - Jan 31st 2019). The channel features over 15 hours of Wiggles content, including four feature-length specials: The Wiggles Nursery Rhymes, Nursery Rhymes 2 (filmed in the YouTube Space in New York), Emma’s Bowtiful Ballet Studio, and Wiggle House. The Wiggles Nursery Rhymes is our biggest success on the platform to date, with over 48 million views since
TOTAL LICENSING it was uploaded in late December 2016. On top of our regular themed and playlisted children’s content, The Wiggles have worked with popular children’s YouTube channels such as Super Simple Songs, Sesame Street and Mother Goose Club on collaborative playlists of our content and hosting competitions for the shared audiences of our channels. The Wiggles collaborated with Super Simple Songs to create an animated video for their brand new potty-training song The Toilet Song. This song exploded online, and had a combined reach of over 6.5 million views. Due to the collaboration with The Wiggles the subscribers to Super Simple Songs YouTube channel went up by 20%. The Wiggles have a thriving social media community, spanning over 45 countries! Australia, the USA, and Canada hold their three largest fanbases. Their core audience are the 25 – 44 year olds, and is made up of 85% women and 15% men. The social platforms are the #1 go-to for Wiggles tour announcements, celebrations, product updates and launches, and new release information! CONSUMER PRODUCTS The Wiggles have named WowWee as their Master Toy Partner for North
America! WowWee, are leading manufacturers of hi-tech consumer robotic and entertainment products. They will assume immediate responsibility for the distribution of The Wiggles existing toy range, including musical instruments, feature plush, dolls and dance accessories. Ultimately, WowWee will bring a high level of proprietary interactivity to the brand, its colorful characters, and in all future product development, along with providing manufacturing oversight, licensing and retail placement for all toy categories in North America. “We are excited about the innovation and creativity that WowWee will bring to The Wiggles brand in North America,” said Paul Field, The Wiggles Managing Director. “Having a toy partner with the prominence and influence of WowWee will ensure that our consumer product presence in North America will be in line with the brand.” “We’re thrilled to begin this strategic partnership with The Wiggles and we look forward to our teams collaborating on this iconic brand,” said WowWee president and co-founder Richard Yanofsky. “The Wiggles are synonymous with providing entertainment that is both fun and educational for
The Wiggles Party Time Tickets are on Sale for USA! 27th July Seattle,WA 28th July Portland, OR 1st August San Francisco, CA 2nd August Anaheim, CA rd 3 August San Diego, CA 5th August Pueblo, CO 10th August Tulsa, OK 11th August Grand Prairie, TX 12 August Austin, TX 13th August Houston, TX 15th August New Orleans, LA 17th August Memphis, TN th 18 August Atlanta, GA 20th August Louisville, KY 21st August Cincinnati, OH 22nd August Indianapolis, IN th 24 August Chicago, IL 26th August Detroit, MI 27th August Cleveland, OH 28th August Pittsburgh, DA th 29 August Washington, DC 30th August Baltimore, MD 31st August Philadelphia, PA 3rd September Montclair, NJ 4th September Westbury, NY 5th September Boston, MA. a legion of fans spanning nearly three decades. WowWee’s signature innovation and interactive play will naturally complement The Wiggles approach to their unique brand of preschool entertainment.” The Wiggles now have over 10 North American Licensees that develop products across 10 different categories for babies to pre-schoolers, and these products are available in several retailers including Toys R Us, Walmart, Barnes & Noble, Amazon and Giant Tiger. The Wiggles have also introduced The Little Wiggles, a new brand under The Wiggles umbrella specifically catering for the ‘edutainment’ needs of babies & toddlers (aged 0-2 years). “Even after 28 years, The Wiggles brand continues to evolve! Babies and toddlers have always been a part of our audience so it’s great we are finally catering specifically for our tiniest fans with these products” says Paul Field, Managing Director, The Wiggles.
You can follow The Wiggles online at www.thewiggles. com, on YouTube at www.youtube.com/user/ TheWigglesPtyLtd, on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ TheWiggles, on Instagram at www.instagram.com/ thewiggles, or become a fan of their official Facebook page www.facebook.com/ thewiggles/.
For licensing, marketing or promotional opportunities please contact: Alex Ishchenko: aishchenko@ thewiggles.com.au
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Happy Birthday SpongeBob SquarePants! SpongeBob SquarePants, created by Stephen Hillenburg, is currently seen in 208 countries and translated into more than 55 languages. Nickelodeon is commemorating 20 years of SpongeBob SquarePants with the “Best Year Ever”—a tribute to one of the most iconic TV series and characters ever created. SpongeBob launched July 17, 1999, and has reigned as the number-one kids’ animated series on TV for the last 17 years, generating a universe of be-
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loved characters, pop culture catchphrases and memes, theatrical releases, consumer products, a Tony awardwinning Broadway musical and a global fan base. The “Best Year Ever” kicks off Friday, July 12, with the global premiere of “SpongeBob’s Big Birthday Blowout,” an original mixed live-action and animated special,and leads up to the Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies theatrical, The SpongeBob Movie: It’s a Wonderful Sponge, coming spring 2020. “The tiny residents of Bikini Bottom have held the world’s attention for a remarkable 20 years and we owe it all to the monumental creator Stephen Hillenburg,” said Ramsey Naito, EVP, Animation Production and Development, Nickelodeon. “This anniversary special is a love letter to everyone in the universe of SpongeBob, from the fans across the globe to the incredible cre-
ative team, crew and talent who continue to bring these great characters to life.” It’s SpongeBob’s birthday in “SpongeBob’s Big Birthday Blowout,” which features for the first time the celebrated voice talent behind SpongeBob, Patrick, Mr. Krabs, Sandy, Squidward and Plankton playing live-action doppelgänger versions of the animated characters they voice. In the one-hour special, Patrick and SpongeBob journey to the surface world, where they come across a few familiar characters during lunchtime rush at The Trusty Slab restaurant. Meanwhile, the Bikini Bottom residents set up a surprise party for SpongeBob. Nickelodeon will also commemorate the series with several activations including a new product line by master toy partner Alpha Group, featuring figures that showcase SpongeBob’s iconic meme moments; collaborations with lifestyle brand Cynthia Rowley
TOTAL LICENSING for a SpongeBob wetsuit and international mixed-media artist Romero Britto; the launch of a dedicated YouTube channel and mobile game; and more. Over twenty years, SpongeBob SquarePants has hit a wide variety of milstones. Highlights of Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants “Best Year Ever” include programming, consumer products, digital and art and fashion partnerships. This summer, Nick will premiere some of the funniest new SpongeBob episodes ever, which will put the characters in situations they’ve never been in before: SpongeBob closes the gap in his teeth and his personality changes; his dream comes true when he becomes boss for the day at The Krusty Krab; and Plankton and Karen, somehow, have a baby. New global master toy partner Alpha Group will debut a brand-new line of toys, collectibles, plush and novelties. The imaginative range includes: a “Masterpiece Meme” line of vinyl figures, bringing to life fan-favorite viral memes like Mocking SpongeBob, Imaginaaation SpongeBob, Surprised Patrick, SpongeGar and Handsome Squidward; and for the first-time ever, SpongeBob toys that incorporate Nickelodeon Slime. Select toys are available now on Amazon and will roll out to other retailers worldwide. In addition, new categories are launching in consumer packaged goods and
health and beauty, including the first range of SpongeBob cosmetics, as well as special-edition product. The digital side an official global SpongeBob SquarePants YouTube channel launched, featuring the most iconic SpongeBob moments, music from the show, brandnew content, including the short-form series “Bikini Bottom Mysteries,” which explores the secrets, scandals, and unsolved mysteries of SpongeBob SquarePants, and more. Themed content is being added weekly and will include Tuesday Tunes, Throwback Thursdays and SpongeBob Saturdays. In addition, there will be the launch of a brand-new global mobile game, which will allow fans to share SpongeBob’s experience of being a fry cook in Bikini Bottom.And, finally, there will be
“Our franchises are at the center of Nickelodeon’s strategy and are what drive the consumer products business. And SpongeBob is our four-quadrant, evergreen franchise. He works in high-end and specialty all the way to mass retailers for both kid and adult. There are plans to explore SpongeBob’s world deeper than ever before with new stories and multiple spin-off series with various characters across multiple platforms.This opens up a ton of new consumer products opportunities. We have a long-term plan to keep SpongeBob at the center of culture and conversation for decades more.” Charlotte Castillo, SVP Franchise Planning,Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products
SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS THE FACTS! •
Every four seconds, someone in the world is talking about SpongeBob on social media;
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The franchise has garnered $13 billion in lifetime retail sales of consumer products.
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The series is the recipient of multiple Emmy Awards: Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program for Tom Kenny (2018), Outstanding Children’s Animated Series (2018), Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing (2014), and Outstanding Special Class Animated Program (2010), along with a special honor presented to Stephen Hillenburg at the 2018 Daytime Emmy Awards for his contribution and impact in the animation field.
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SpongeBob was the first square-shaped balloon in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade history.
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A new species of tulip was named after SpongeBob in Holland (2010).
• San Francisco State University discovered a new mushroom species and named it after SpongeBob (2011). • •
United States Postal Service mailboxes across the country were wrapped in a custom SpongeBob design SpongeBob SquarePants has “saved lives:” a Long Island girl saved her friend from choking because she learned the Heimlich from SpongeBob (2012); an Australian man lost at sea was found by a helicopter that spotted his yellow SpongeBob trunks (2012); and an entire family was saved from a sinking boat by plugging up the hole with a SpongeBob football (2007).
brand-new short-form content across YouTube, Facebook, Facebook Watch, Instagram and Twitter, celebrating fans and their favorite episodes, cast moments and more. On the art and fashion side, SpongeBob featured during Tel Aviv Fashion Week, Cynthia Rowley featured a SpongeBob SquarePants wetsuit in their New York Fashion Week, Dutch designer Marlou Breuls debuted her SpongeBob x Marlou Breuls couture collection at Amsterdam Fashion Week. runway show and, International artist Romero Britto will reimagine SpongeBob SquarePants with his trademark vibrant, bold and colorful style in a mixed media art installation that will be exhibited at popup SpongeBob experiences across the U.S.
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Every age, every aisle, everywhere! PAW PATROL Nickelodeon continues to invest in PAW Patrol and expand the PAW Patrol universe with new content themes and storylines, new characters and new product categories. Mighty Pups, PAW Patrol’s first directto-video movie was a big success last year and was nominated for two daytime Emmys. The DVD is the number one preschool direct to movie of the year and Mighty Pups is being distributed theatrically in select international markets after a successful run in Australia and New Zealand. The next DTV event will be ‘Ready, Race, Rescue’ planned for Fall 2019. In terms of toys, PAW Patrol is consistently the US’s number one preschool property (2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018) with Marshall’s Ultimate Fire Truck the winner of the TOTY Vehicle of the Year. PAW Patrol is also the number one softlines and bedding for toddlers across multiple categories and across all retail tiers. The property is seeing major growth across consumer packaged goods categories including a KIX/PAW Patrol co brand on three of their SKUs. Danone have launched 45 different dairy products co-branded with PAW Patrol in Russia and Walmart PAW
training pants are the top licensed training pants in a competitive category. Nickelodeon has programmed the series to be a hit through their Nick Jr. platform, and developed it into a powerhouse franchise through smart marketing, digital content, live experiences and consumer products. Today, the series is the #1 global preschool property that has crossed borders and cultures, and it has proven successful in every single product category and every market in which it has been launched.
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES This year marks the 35th Anniversary of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Nickelodeon have on-the-ground activations, special edition products and brand campaigns designed to engage all fans. Audiences for the Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles continues to grow on linear and social, and the plan for the TMNT franchise is to create Turtle content for every screen of every size. As part of this plan, a feature-length animated film for Netflix is in development. In addition, Nickelodeon is partnering with Warner Bros. Animation and DC for a feature-length animated directto-video movie, Batman vs. Teenage
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Mutant Ninja Turtles.The story is based on the successful Batman x TMNT cross-over comic series, and the film debuted from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on Digital on May 14, 2019, and arrives on a 4K Ultra HD Combo Pack and Blu-ray Combo Pack on June 4, 2019. Nickelodeon are also expanding the world of the TMNT through the launch of several new apps in 2019. Super Brawl App launched in March and features the ultimate brawl with Nick characters from new and classic shows. Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (RTMNT) Power Up App debuted in April and is the firstever RTMNT app to drive consumer engagement with the series and the Pizza Points loyalty program. Finally an RTMNT Ninja Run all new game App will debut in Summer.
BLUE'S CLUES AND YOU Blue’s Clues and You is a new series with a modern take on the original, featuring a CG-animated Blue, new host (Joshua Dela Cruz) and return of fan favorites (Magenta, Handy Dandy). In Blue’s Clues & You (20 episodes), beloved puppy Blue invites viewers to join her and Josh on a clue led adventure and solve a daily puzzle. With each signature paw print, Blue identifies clues in her animated world
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JOJO SIWA Nickelodeon know that social influencers are important in kids’ lives and, with Jojo Siwa, they created a new model for how they approach influencer consumer products programs. Nickelodeon amplified her popularity and built her into the number one live-action licensed property by incorporating her into their ecosystem. JoJo celebrates her 16th birthday shortly and this Spring Nickelodeon will premiere a new JoJo birthday that propel the story and inspires viewers to interact with the action. The show has been updated for today’s generation of children, for example the Handy Dandy notebook will feature video chat and emails. The original Blue’s Clues series launched in September 1996 to critical praise from educators, parents, and preschoolers and ran for six groundbreaking seasons. Created by Traci Paige Johnson, Todd Kessler, and Angela C. Santomero, Blue’s Clues drew acclaim and high ratings for its unique interactivity that helped change the way kids watch television and has remained one of the most popular preschool shows of all time. The landmark series also raised the bar in preschool television by exploring advanced subject matter such as sign language, geography, physics, emotions, and anatomy. The series was Nickelodeon’s first billiondollar consumer product franchise.
special. Fans can follow JoJo from the moment she wakes up as she embarks on the most epic 24 hours of her life culminating in her D.R.E.A.M Birthday Party. JoJo will also embark on her first headline tour - D.R.E.A.M. The Tour sponsored by Party City, kicked off mid May – just in time for her birthday – and will travel to over more than 70 cities across the US & Canada. Nickelodeon are also celebrating this occasion across the retail landscape with birthday programs in May, including b i r t h d ay - t h e m e d apparel collections and other exclusives across Mass, Midtier and Specialty. They have also developed exciting party programs at retail with
exclusive patterns, favors and activities for each retailer. Finally, an exclusive birthday style guide, Sweet Celebrations, will be leveraged across special products and retail activations in Spring/Summer 2019. Nickelodeon plan to continue Jojo’s momentum in 2019 with additional episodes of her web-series, the JoJo BowBow Show-Show, a nationwide music tour and ‘Dream Birthday’ consumer products and retail activations.
ADULT BRANDS Viacom Nickelodeon’s vision is to offer the best product across categories and across demos. They understand that a diverse portfolio creates more opportunities to engage both audiences and consumers, and they are partnering with licensees and retailers to create consumer products programs for fans of all ages. Their adult opportunities will be driven by MTV, South Park, Paramount classic properties like Clueless and new theatrical release like Top Gun: Maverick. VNCP has a creative team dedicated to staying on top of the latest trends and incorporating retro themes and nostalgia will be a major opportunity for the team. They also have a collaborations team that find the best and most appropriate partners - whether it is a high-end fashion brand or celebrity - to create fashion collections using their properties as inspiration.
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SUNRIGHTS GROW BEYBLADE BURST PROGRAM Sunrights Inc. has teamed up with Burger King this summer to launch a fun Beyblade Burst kids’ meal promotion In addition, recent news for Beyblade Burst includes new broadcast releases in Australia, Belgium, France and Spain; a toy release update for the Slingshock in 2019; and Battle League tournaments currently underway across the globe This June, Burger King is releasing a Beyblade Burst Evolution themed four-set collection of character figurines and spinning tops. Sunrights Inc. plans to announce more exciting partnerships with major QSR partners throughout 2019! “This fantastic partnership is key to the Beyblade Burst brand reaching their target audience, commented Natasha Gross of Sunrights Inc., the New York City-based entertainment rights company that manages the brand outside of Asia. “The ability to reach Beyblade Burst fans across the world through partners like Burger King, adds another element to the exciting Beyblade Burst universe.” Earlier this spring, Japan announced the fourth season for the animated series “Beyblade Burst: GachiI” (Japanese title) which launched digitally
on YouTube. Season 3 also launched in Australia on 9Go! and Belgium on VTMKIDS with the next upcoming broadcast releases of Season 3 coming up in France on Gulli and Spain on Boing this summer. Broadcast is not the only way fans can now engage with the brand.The rise in popularity of streaming services, sees Beyblade Burst catapult into success, breaking the 1 million subscribers mark globally on the Beyblade Burst official YouTube channel. The first original Beyblade Burst influencer series created by the YouTube duo, Beyblade Geeks, also collectively gathered over 2.5 million views with the count rising daily. Sunrights Inc.’s stellar roster of licensees is selling Beyblade Burst licensed products globally. French publishing licensee Gründ has sold over 86,000 in physical copies of Beyblade Burst chapter books. Hasbro’s line of Beyblade Burst tops has also been gaining international acclaim, with Beyblade being named the #1 Action Figures Property in Europe1 in 2018 by The NPD Group, as part of its Retail Tracking Service² as well as the #1 Action Figure brand in France in 2018. Hasbro’s new Slingshock technology, launched newly in 2019, sends tops into intense head-to-head clashes.
Fans can activate Slingshock strategy by converting Performance Tips with specially designed rail riding capabilities from Battle Ring Mode to Slingshock Mode. Fans can also scan, customize and level up their Beyblade Burst tops in the Beyblade Burst App to experience the digital world of Beyblade Burst. For 2019, Hasbro is bringing the excitement of the World Championship home with Battle League: the newest feature to the Beyblade Burst app that allows you to challenge your friends to a head-to-head tournament. A worldwide phenomenon originating in Japan in 1999, the Beyblade brand is in its third generation with Beyblade Burst, broadcasting four seasons to date across the globe. Today, the brand continues to offer the ultimate battling experience to its fans with more than 10 million tops sold in over 20 countries (within Sunrights Inc.’s managed territories) as of March 2018. Sunrights Inc. plans to continue expanding Beyblade Burst international success at Licensing Expo 2019. Visit Booth #S256 or contact Natasha Gross at natasha.gross@sunrights-inc. com for more information. To learn more about the Beyblade Burst universe and stay updated on the latest Beyblade Burst news, visit the official social media channels on: Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram. Contact the Sunrights Inc, team for images, video footage and interviews at email: jonathan@juice-design. net. Sunrights Inc. is an entertainment rights management company backed by one of the top advertising agencies in Japan, Asatsu DK, and the trading conglomerate Mitsubishi Corp. Located in New York City, Sunrights directly manages the development of intellectual property globally outside of Asia. Learn more at http://sunrights-inc. com.
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LICENSING JAPAN Licensing Japan, held in Tokyo between 3 and 5 April, proved to be another successful event with over 1500 properties gathered together under one roof and visitor levels substantially up from last year’s event. In all, including visitors to the concurrent Content Tokyo, the show attracted 48,549 visitors – an increase of 5,955 over 2018. A major feature of the show was the Matching System – an online support service from which exhibitors and visitors can search what they are looking for and request information and/or an appointment. The number of visitors registered to the Matching System reached 1792 and more than 1000 appointment were set during the three day show. In fact, one of the exhibitors, Kensin, fixed 34 appointments with both Japanese and international visitors. Another exhibitor, Fuji Television Network, received ten appointment requests from visitors. They are now fully expecting that some of the results of these appointments will led to merchandising for events/TV commercials in the near future. Based on its unique culture such as Manga, Anime, etc., Japan has a mature market where people are familiar with characters. At Licensing Japan visitors were dedicated to find new properties including international ones. To appeal to visitors and the Japanese market, more and more international properties are showcased at Licensing Japan every year. With blinking eyes, fleshly lips, big belly and a unique hairstyle, B.Duck (Ens Global Marketing) is Hong Kong’s No. 1 duck character, which attracted attentions from apparel manufacturers and goods manufacturers. A Brazilian company UP Content exhibited their iconic brand, Bubu and The Little Owls, which will be broad-
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casted on Disney Latin America in 2019. The owl family was warmly welcomed by Japanese licensees. There were also international pavilions, representing the IPs of their countries/regions including Chungnam Culture Technology Industry Agency (CTIA) pavilion (Korea), Fresh Taiwan pavilion (Taiwan), TAITRA pavilion (Taiwan), Thai Animation & computer Graphic Association (TACGA) pavilion (Thailand). Licensing Japan also welcomed more international visitors this year and is rapidly becoming the centre of the licensing business in Asia. In 2019, leading licensees were invited as Special Overseas Guests from both Korea and China.
Next year’s Licensing Japan will again be held at Big Sight in Tokyo from 1st to 3rd April. For more information, contact: Exhibitors: www.licensing-japan.jp/ex_en/ Or licensing-e@reedexpo.co.jp Visitors: www.licensing-japan.jp/inv_en/ Or visitor-eng.licensing@reedexpo.co.jp
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The Changing Tides Licensing & Merchandising in India is dynamically changing with advancements in technology and digital space. With a number of international brands strategizing on India via licensing, this has now opened new prospects to the industry. Last year India ranked among the top 25 global markets for licensing and merchandising. Pegged at $1,476 million, India really matches the global markets in terms of the ongoing trends with fashion as their marquee category. Over the years India has managed to create great Indian IP’s
while bringing global IP’s within the country. Currently, the size of the domestic licensing industry is about Rs 4,000 crore of which 80 percent is dominated by characters and entertainment segment. According to a recent LIMA report, retail licensing in India is estimated at $1.26 billion. In terms of market size, entertainment licensing is valued at $406 million, fashion licensing at $594 million and sports licensing at $30 million. In recent times another segment is gradually commanding its space on
By Rutika Malaviya
these overcrowded shelves – the food and beverage (F&B) range. Licensing and merchandising companies are waking up to the fact that it hides an untapped gold mine, given its sunshine prospects and the rapid replenishment of products. The men’s personal care category has also opened up as an opportunity to tap over the last year. Man City FC collaborated for the first time with an Indian perfumery brand in India. Shabis Marketing which operates in the personal care segment has been successful in creating such collaborations and is also working with characters like Doraemon for their shampoo rage and other product lines. The men’s grooming industry in India is growing tremendously in the personal care segment. Brands like L’Oreal have completely revolutionized the men’s category over the last decade. There lies an immense opportunity for wellness brands to expand via licensee route.
Retail Licensing In the retail industry most of the international brands are now venturing into the Indian market. The emergence of a modern and organized
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TOTAL LICENSING retail scenario in India has set the pace for new collaborations between international licensing companies and Indian business houses. Organized retail is still less than 10% of the licensing market. Arvind, a major player in the retail segment represents Arrow, Cherokee, Elle, Nautica, USPA, Aeropostale, Children’s Place, Ed Hardy, GAP and Kipling.The Murjani Group another industry giant is the licensee for Calvin Klein Jeans, FCUK and Tommy Hilfiger. Beverly Hills Polo Club (BHPC) is licensed to Spencers Retail. The Indian retail market is estimated to be US$600 billion and one of the top five retail markets in the world by economic value. Currently, a majority of the licensed retail market is dominated by unorganised players and therefore, the availability of products is dependent on the understanding and choice of distributors rather than the trends. A number of licensing deals in the Indian retail sector has added to the growth of retail licensing in India. Reliance Retail signing a licensing deal with the Walt Disney Company. Fossil Group signed a licensing deal with Japanese watchmaker Citizen to launch a line of hybrid smartwatches - watches that look analog but actually include a number of digital functionalities. Popular retail brand Marie Claire which started off with a conventional licensing deal for women’s wear pret collection in 2015, and later forayed into salon and wellness industry with a model combining of licensing and franchising has grown leaps and bounds in India. The potential is huge in brand licensing in the retail segment. Licensing in retail also helps diversify the brand potential in all areas making it a success.
amount of business in the retail consumer segment. Also Manchester United, which established licensed academies across India, is now selling a wide range of merchandise in India. The popularity of sports merchandise ranges from apparel, accessories to footwear both via online and offline platforms. The country has made a conscious shift towards becoming a multi-sport country, which is why if you see the Khelo India initiative by the government of India and the national games, that’s also promoting the concept of playing multiple sports. It is also expected that this year PGA (The Professional Golfers Association of America) will soon be launching its licensing program in India. With this we may expect a lot more international sports brands to follow. 2019 will witness good growth for sports licensing industry in India. The FIFA World Cup 2018, hosted by Russia, was one of the biggest global events last year. Despite India not
featuring in the World Cup, there was a jump in Indians travelling to Russia, as well as in the sales of jerseys, footballs and other game-related merchandise. Travel portal MakeMyTrip recorded a 400% jump in bookings to Russia during June-July compared with the same months last year. E-commerce players such as Snapdeal and Amazon have set up special football stores for the game enthusiasts. Snapdeal said it has seen a jump in sales of bean bags, recliners and home theatre systems. The top five highest selling jerseys were Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, Spain and France. The football event proved to be a revenue generator for the sports business with football contribution to the business increasing by 40% over April-June. Home grown sports brand Indian Premier League (IPL) is the latest entrant to catch up with the fad of sports licensing after its launch in 2007. The league witnessed a rise in its brand value to $5.3 billion since
Sports Licensing Licensing in sports has developed into a multibillion dollar systematic business in India with the formation of various leagues. Sports licensing in general has grown exponentially with international brands like NBA, FIFA, Real Madrid generating a good
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its launch 10 years ago according to estimate by global valuation and corporate finance advisor Duff & Phelps. In-fact, individual teams playing in the league have witnessed a steep rise in their teams brand value. With Kolkata Knight Riders owned by Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan topping the table despite not winning the title for that respective year. Following the opportunity to grab market share other teams also forayed in to capitalize on the brand value during the course of the tournament to emerge as full-fledged lifestyle brands. Sports personalities too have banked on the growing success of sports licensing by creating their own brands. To name a couple of examples Virat Kohli led the way with the launch of WROGN and the recent addition One8, in collaboration with PUMA. Yuvraj Singh’s brand YOUWECAN launched last year garnered good response. Apart from cricket which is a widely dominant sport across the country other sports league are becoming quite popular like the Pro Kabbadi League etc. Popularity of other sports athletes like PV Sindhu, Saina Nehwal and K Srikanth show signs of action in this space as well.We could also see IP’s being created for school and college merchandise which is a big business outside India.
Celebrity Licensing Celebrity licensing is on an upswing in India. With Bollywood stars and
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athletes creating their own line of merchandise. Salman Khan launched Being Human which has proved to be a great success for the celebrity, Hrithik Roshan launched HRX a fitness-focused brand, followed by Shahid Kapoor’s SKULT, Deepika Padukone’s All About You and Alia Bhatt’s eponymous fashion line. While sports icon like Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s launched their brand Seven, Virat Kohli’s WROGN and Yuvraj Singh’s YWC Fashions. Additionally, Bollywood ventured into the merchandising space with films like Ra.One, Krrish, Raees and Rock On 2 however these were not successful in garnering a favorable response from the consumers.
Entertainment Licensing Green Gold Animation’s Chhota Bheem became the first Indian cartoon character to sell merchandise worth Rs 200 crore. The unseasonal nature of the sales across big cities and small towns alike and a large portfolio of products at different price points has been helping the steady growth of Chhota Bheem merchandise sales year-after-year. Also this year on May 10 a Choota Bheem: Kung Fu Dhamaka movie was released which was produced by Yash Raj Films to give the film the widest ever release for an animation title across India. Besides, Rajiv Chilaka’s maiden child has also forayed into various segments - digital space, Netflix, movies, theme park and live-
action musical show. The much-awaited ‘Avengers: Infinity War’, which hit the theatres on April 27, witnessed massive success.Thanos’ journey to reclaim the Infinity Stones is almost upon the customers and cashing in on the hype are companies releasing exclusive Avengers-themed merchandise in India. From notebooks to mobile covers, companies such as Renault, Only, Acer entered into various partnerships to provide fans and followers with a memorable experience. To attract more customers, Shemaroo Entertainment Limited partnered with Vigo Video and TikTok to promote the company’s Bollywood merchandise brand – Yedaz. Ace designer Masaba Gupta acquired the official license to create apparel, home products, and jewelry inspired by the cast of the epic show ‘Game of Thrones’ for India, the UK, and Indonesia, that is slated to release during the final season of the show this year.
Character Licensing Character Licensing is another big licensing segment in India. The big players in the character licensing industry in India are Disney India, Viacom 18 and Cartoon Network Enterprises. Characters licensed out by Disney India include Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. Viacom has brought in popular characters from Nickelodeon like Dora The Explorer and SpongeBob SquarePants. The children’s entertainment market is steadily gaining pace even apart from TV and cinema. It has been estimated that market size for character and non-character licensed products in organized retail would be in the region of $ 3.5 billion.RelianceAnimation went beyond the mythological characters and came up with a character that could relate with kids with Singham which is an inspiration from live action Bollywood movie by Rohit Shetty. Traditionally, India has been a children’s entertainment licensing territory. However, as a testimony to the growing entertainment industry and increase in the market for young adults, Marvel, Disney and Barbie are
TOTAL LICENSING profiting from the growing popularity of licensed products across various segments such as apparel, footwear, phone and computer accessories, stationery, gifts and novelties. When it comes to reshaping the Indian licensing industry, Disney always remains the front runner. After the merger early this year with 21st Century Fox, the Walt Disney Company reported quarterly earnings for its third fiscal quarter ended June 30. Disney has seen profits boost 23 percent in its most recent quarterly reports to a net income of USD 2.9 billion. Consumer products and interactive media revenues decreased 8 percent to USD 1.0 billion and segments operating income decreased 10 percent to USD 324 million. The last two years also saw a massive increase in digital property licensing opportunities. With people becoming brand conscious, licensing in India is set to become a booming business with the increase in the retail segment. For licensing to succeed in any market, organised retail is essential. E-commerce has managed to address the issue to some extent, but licensing is most beneficial with a successful retail strategy.
Corporate Licensing Corporate licensing will be growing this year in India exponentially. With the highly volatile retail market every licensee is fishing for a brand that is dynamic and aspirational. Also corporates may adopt licensing in multiple forms as part of different strategies, it could be through a complete brand launch or a season to season affair. Licensing in the corporate segment could be used as a multi directional strategy. It depends how well the licensees are able to explore a corporate brand.
Changes in music licensing industry With the increase in the number of independent artists, people have started understanding the concept of music licensing. Music licensing is
intended to ensure that the owners of copyrights on musical works are compensated for certain uses of their work. Music label Sony Music has launched its global royalty portal - Artist Portal - in India to empower artists by giving them easy access to royalty statements online. The Artist Portal is currently live in 27 countries such as the US, Australia, and China, with over 250 artists and managers. The platform also gives a break up of digital, physical, synch licensing and other revenues. Recently, Facebook inked a licensing deal with Warner Music group to cover the music company’s recorded music and music publishing catalogs for use in social media. Music licensing went digital with PLUS (Performance License For Usage Of Sound Recording), an online portal, where executives can issue licenses, and receive payments within minutes. Social media giant Facebook signed licensing deals with Indian music labels such as T Series Music, Zee Music Company and Yash Raj Films.
Outlook Licensing in India is exploring new avenues with shoe brand Bata partnering with Coca Cola for a new collection of shoes which will be part of the ‘Heritage Collection.’ The heritage collection is a range of tennis shoes that was first launched in 2015. Many eminent personalities and fashion designers in India have started licensing their products to business houses who independently produce and sell on a large scale and give royalties to designers. A recent example is celebrity designer Nandita Mahtani who partnered with Cartoon Network Enterprises for a special clothing collection inspired by characters like The Powerpuff Girls, Johnny Bravo, Dexter’s Laboratory and many more. Exploration of Indian IP’s has become popular with introduction of Indian IPs like Femina Flaunt, Miss Diva, Miss India, Filmfare, ChuChu TV, Adlabs Entertainment, DQ Entertainment, Fashion TV etc. This gives a clear idea on how the licensing scenario has shaped in in the first quarter of 2019 and it looks
promising with good growth and opportunities arising in the industry. Also the attraction of licensing trademarks for business objectives appears to be at an all-time high. It is interesting to note that during the past two years, the number of trademark applications filed has increased drastically. However there has only been a nominal increase in the number of trademark application by foreign applicants. With the licensing industry going the right direction exploring new possibilities licensing scenario in India will depend a lot on how well the country adapts and develops the industry in the next 4-5 years. Though there is a need for some push and support from the government on creating clarity for licensees on licensing laws and a proper licensing policy needs to be in place for the industry to flourish organically. Although licensees across various domains who are working with different brands across the world are voicing out their views in terms of best practices for efficient licensing deliverables in the Indian scenario. It will be interesting to see how the overall licensing scenario in India plays out.
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TOTAL LICENSING The character of the Tin Toy evolved into Buzz Lightyear and Woody was created initially to be a villain. It took many iterations on the story for the film to become the Toy Story that we know and love.
In terms of consumer products, how did the first Toy Story film do? What were the most popular products?
In 2010, Toy Story was the number 1 toy property in the UK and over a million Buzz Lightyear action figures were sold. Outside of toys - fashion, accessories and homeware has continued to grow with great new products including bedding, back packs, footwear, apparel and more. There’s also been
The original Toy Story movie was hugely successful. When it released on 22nd November 1995, it was the first fully computer animated feature film and the highest grossing movie of the year. Consumer products had a similar story – it was the first time Woody and Buzz were introduced as real-life toys, and kids and adults alike were desperate to get their hands on them and emulate the storytelling from the movie, into their own homes.
With Toy Story 4 set to debut, after a gap of nine years since Toy Story 3, and excitement growing over the release of the latest instalment, Total Licensing talked to Mike Stagg, SVP, Franchise and UK Retail at The Walt Disney Company to find out more about this extraordinary property.
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Can you start by teling us about the origins of Toy Story and where the idea came? Mike Stagg: Toy Story actually began as “Tin Toy Christmas” a Christmas special that was only meant to be 30 minutes long. But quickly into production, the Pixar team realised they thought they could make a feature length movie. Disney agreed to back the project, and development on what became Toy Story quickly began.
How did the licensing programme do in terms of subsequent movies? Again, were there any standout products that come to mind? The number of licensees and breadth of product has continued to grow from the original movie. Some of our partnerships have been long term, such as our master toy brands Thinkway and Mattel, who have continued to innovate and bring a vast range of products to different audiences, from smaller figures for kids, to interactive figures for fans.
a demand for nostalgic products featuring Pizza Planet or the Aliens and we’ve seen that these classic characters or memorable moments continue to do well across product ranges including clothing, plush and playsets. Toy Story also continues to be the best seller in the Disney Store all year round and we hope that many retailers see an ongoing opportunity for year round listings on key categories such as dolls, action figures and apparel. Bearing in mind there are now four films, over more than 20 years, how
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Mike Stagg, SVP Franchise and UK Retail, The Walt Disney Company are the characters kept fresh and which characters have been added to the original line-up? As well as appearances from classic characters such as Buzz, Woody, Bo Beep, Hamm, Rex, Mr. Potato Head, Slinky Dog and Jessie, fans are going to be delighted with Toy Story 4, which boasts an exciting line-up of brand new characters, with hilarious background stories to complement our original favourites. There’s Forky, a loveable spork-turned-craft project, struggling to come to terms with the fact that he’s now a toy as well as comedy duo Ducky and Bunny - carnival prizes who are eager to be won. Gabby Gabby is an adorable, forgotten talking pull-string doll from the 1950s, who is found in the antique shop, alongside Duke Caboom - a 1970s toy based on Canada’s greatest stuntman. Not only that, we see Bo Beep back with a new look. Whilst she’s become chipped and faded over time, her strength and sarcasm come to the fore and it turns out she’s an adventure-seeking free spirit! Audiences will also meet Giggle McDimples, Bo’s best friend.
and food, there really is something for everyone. Looking at toys specifically, our Thinkway range features advanced new technology, making them our most innovative Toy Story figures we’ve released to date. The Buzz and Woody figures include fall-down capabilities and are voice-controlled, bringing the film’s storytelling from screen to real life.The range also celebrates new characters like Forky, with figures doing everything from dancing to talking! We also have a fantastic line-up from Mattel who have a large breadth of toys for pre-school children, older kids and teens – there will also be newer ranges appearing just in time for Christmas.We also have fan favourites – Funko pop figures - and Siso Toys, who have developed a range of remote control toys.
Finally, although the brand is movie-based, do you see Toy Story as a ‘classic’ evergreen property now? Why do you think it has stood the test of time so well? Toy Story has become a classic franchise in its own right and this great new movie will only add to its position as one of the most-loved brands in the UK. Remember that Toy Story 3 is still the highest grossing animated movie of all time at the UK box office with £74 million. The kids who grew up watching the original films when they were children are now starting their own families ensuring that love of these classic characters is passed down from generation to generation.
With regards to fashion and home furnishings, we have an incredible and diverse range for children, teens and adults covering everything from tops, jumpers, pyjamas, shoes, backpacks and handbags, as well as an extensive range of homeware product in stores. Separately we have an array of licensed food products which will also feature our Toy Story 4 characters from Kellogg’s cereal to Mission wraps. All of these products also feature our Disney Kitchen banner which pulls out key nutritional information to act as a quick and simple reference point for parents and families and reassures them that the products they are choosing is ‘better for you’.
Pixar’s storytelling really transcends all ages and demographics – they have a canny knack of making their stories relatable, and funny for all audiences and this, above all else, is why it continues to be a smash hit with fans across the globe.
What plans are there for Toy Story 4 in terms of consumer products? How will this differ from previous campaigns? We’re excited about the real breadth and depth of product for Toy Story 4 this year. Appealing to all demographics across multiple categories including toys, games, homeware, fashion
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The Environmental Impact of the Licensing Industry
Total Licensing Special Report By Becky Ash
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Plastic straws. The Pacific garbage patch. Melting ice. Warming oceans. Carbon footprints. Greenhouse gases. Sea level rises. Extreme weather events. The warnings have been here for years, but now, according to experts, is the time to take action on how we, as human beings, affect the global environment as a whole. NASA quotes the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report in that: “The current warming trend is of particular significance because most of it is extremely likely (greater than 95 percent probability) to be the result of human activity since the mid-20th century and proceeding at a rate that is unprecedented over decades to millennia.” It is alarming, no matter if you are a climate change ‘believer’ or ‘denier’. And, on the whole, not a surprise to vast swathes of scientists. The population of earth has grown exponentially; industrial revolutions enabled massproduction and manufacturing but also the depletion of natural resources, air and water pollution and the increased use of fossil fuels. We have become, in many societies, nations of instant gratification.We drive ours cars and ride in planes to get to where we need to go. We, as consumers, buy things that are sometimes discarded, or wrapped in needless packaging. The focus over the last few decades has been to the enormous amount of manufacturing that takes place in countries such as China, and India. However, it is easy to forget that while
the Western world saw its industrial revolution a long time ago, the economies of these countries have grown, due to cheaper outsourcing, masslabour and a competitive edge. For many years we have used plastics and other non-biodegradables in almost every industry and there is evidence to now say, concretely, that there is so much plastic and other detritus ‘dumped’ in the ocean that this could lead to a complete ecological overhaul. No-one individual is to blame – you are not to blame, I am not to blame. Most of us try to ‘do our bit’, as, with increased media coverage and wider eco-concern, many people now recycle, take the bus, cycle to work. Buy locally-sourced produce, introduce energy-efficient light bulbs into our homes. Purchase second-hand clothes and other goods. Take a flask to Starbucks instead of using a throw-away cup. Use our own water bottle. But of course, this is a global issue, and no doubt that while everyone making
small steps will have an impact, there is so much more at stake. There is often a lot of fearmongering from celebrities and media outlets, and conversely, figureheads who completely deny that any change is occurring. We are all encouraged to ‘give up plastics’, and boycott this or that company because they do not use sustainable products. However. It is not possible to completely flip global industries on their heads. Commercial gain and technological advancement are part of the human nature. We grow, as a species, and adapt. So there is no reason why, with all the information we have concerning our planet, that we will not adapt and shift our ways of working and thinking. Evidence that this is happening in big business is right here, in the licensing industry. The licensing, and more specifically toy industry have come under scrutiny, both in the media and on social platforms. There is no doubt that that is truth in this matter – the
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truth is that many toys are made out of plastic. Plastic and its many derivatives have, in turn, no doubt been quite an incredible invention. Even simply looking at hygiene reasons. Your baby chewing on a plastic toy that can easily be wiped down; your fresh chicken from the supermarket in clean plastic wrapping. It is very easy to spearhead a company – for example, a toy manufacturer in Taiwan – and point the global finger at them, decrying at how much waste goes on the miniature collectibles that they mass-produce and then are often discarded after short weeks of play. Perhaps – but, if said company was
forced to shut down, be that consequence from media scrutiny or revenue drop from brand mistrust, what happens to the hundreds of people who work there? What happens to the demand for the toy it produced? You have mass-unemployment and a competitor waiting around the corner to pick up where they left off. The global change will happen, but in gradual and careful steps. As an industry, licensing can make a difference. This can be through working practices, eco policy, and also, increasingly, through education. Throughout this article, we will bring you some high-
lights of how the licensing industry is making a change, how companies can think of implementing their own corporate social responsibility programs, and advice and opinion from experts. We are also looking at content – always key in entertainment, and how bringing the message to the young people of today and the future can make a real, lasting change. Brand values are increasingly important, especially to Millennials and Generation Z.With the rise and rise of social media platforms, knowledge about how brands are updating and changing is influencing purchasing choices. Some big changes are taking place. For example, Lego last year introduced into its playsets leaves, bushes and trees made entirely with sugarcane-based polyethylene, representing about 1-2% of the total plastic elements produced by Lego. Hasbro launched a toy recycling program last year aimed at collecting toys and games from consumers and recycling them into materials to be used in construction of new playgrounds, play spaces and park benches.The program started in the U.S. and is expanding to France and Germany. Alan P. Kaufman, Senior Vice President of Technical Affairs at Toy Industry Association, spoke to Total Licensing about its Smart Packaging Initiative (SPI) Tool, will help companies make simple packaging changes that
Our industry and the environment
There is no time to waste. But change can happen, and it is happening now
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Our industry and the environment
can benefit the environment even as they construct innovative package designs. “Working in partnership with The Walt Disney Company, the SPI tool allows toy companies to determine the environmental impact of their packaging, test alternatives, and benchmark the impact of their designs against those produced by the rest of the industry.This is really an important step towards long-lasting change. We recently partnered with the American Chemistry Council, to get real work going on how to recycle plastics, and even turn that into energy.” Kaufman stressed that there will be no overnight change.“We have to balance children’s safety with ethical manufacturing and changes.You can’t compromise safety by using inferior production materials as a quick-fix. We must all play
our part in making the differences for the future generations.” Viacom Nickelodeon Consumer Products (VNCP) agreed a partnership with Trashcode, the new venture between licensed apparel and accessories company, Cookie Company Group and sustainable textile pioneer, Waste2Wear. Trashcode enables retailers to offer apparel and accessories made from recycled plastic bottles in combination with other sustainable materials. VNCP’s multi-year, pan-Europe, Middle East and Africa deal for apparel, accessories and home furnishings with Trashcode is a first for the character licensing industry, and VNCP is in active discussions with its retail partners to produce its character apparel ranges with Trashcode materials. VNCP’s creative team produced prototypes of
Interview: Sophie la girafe on sustainability... How does your company take measures towards recycling? Our biggest licensee Vulli, manufacturer of the original toy in natural rubber is reducing its impact to a minimum. The plaster used for the manufacturing of Sophie la girafe is sorted separately and recycled in the plastering industry. The waste (plastics, scrap metal, boxes and other) are set aside for recycling. A study on the recycling of all rubber waste is currently being conducted. It is important to acknowledge that during the past three years, the quantity of waste has been divided by four. We only choose partners and licensees who have the same values regarding this subject. What about your ethical work practices? We run tutorials aimed at training the young people in the company and to maintain the skills and employment of established workers. As a French corporation, who is committed to its territory, our company employs and establishes partnerships with local stakeholders in order to contribute to the local economy. A civic and ethical code was forged to forged to respect, create and promote responsible principles of production and entrepreneurship. All our licensees, suppliers, subcontractors and distributors adhere to it. Sustainable development is at the heart of the positioning of our products: Sophie la girafe is made of 100% natural rubber. The latter comes from the Hevea tree growing in sustainable forests. We engaged even more in environmental sustainability with our new partnership with Charlie Banana, manufacturer of reusable eco-friendly diapers. How you think the industry as a whole could do more? We think that due to a lot of regulatory constraints linked to recycling (due to an extremely low chemical level) we are limited. And is sustainable attainable? All countries are not equal towards sustainable environment, which makes it difficult to attain. Also, the massive number of economic and technical constraints slow down our progress, but we make all our best effort to achieve it.
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SpongeBob SquarePants t-shirts made with Trashcode materials, and the ‘inspiration’ pieces will be showcased at Brand Licensing Show 2019. Sabine Hulsman, CEO of the Cookie Company Group, commented: “On average, a children’s shirt made with R-PET has given a new life to five to eight discarded plastic bottles. A Jacket made out of R-PET fabrics can take up to forty plastic bottles out of the environment. Consumers increasingly expect, or even demand, that their products are produced in a sustainable way.” “Ultimately, acting as a responsible licensor, it is about giving consumers a choice,” says Nickelodeon SVP Mark Kingston. “We know sustainability is top-of-mind for many consumers, and we want to offer them high-quality licensed product. Is it still early days, but our vision is to create sustainable ranges for all our properties.” Indeed, licensors and retailers can lead the way. National Geographic apparel collection made with recycled bottles will be available this fall. Dreamtex recently announced that they are working with Repreve, the leading performance fibre made from recycled plastic bottles, and will be introducing this unique and ethical material into its new National Geographic bedlinen. Creating an ethical range has been an important and long term objective for the team at Dreamtex. The new range will also be sold in recycled packaging, with no polythene bags or single use plastic being used, and initial duvet designs will focus on ocean creatures and dinosaur explorer themes. Ralph Lauren recently launched its ‘Earth Polo’ top made from plastic bottles along with a commitment to convert to recycled poly-fiber from virgin poly-fiber by 2025. H&M recently unveiled its ‘Conscious Collection,’ which this year features apparel made from recycled polyester, organic cotton, linen and silk and Tencel lyocell (from sustainably produced wood pulp). Global gift designer and supplier, Paladone, has announced that it will be the first company in the world to bring BDP (naturally decomposing plastic) to the global gift trade by launching
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When it comes to getting the message to kids, show - don’t tell a range of giftware using Breakdown Plastic technology. While the products will look and feel exactly like their non-biodegradable predecessors, should consumers ever need to dispose of the new lines, natural breakdown will occur at an enhanced rate in landfill, in fact, Paladone saw between 13.4% and 16.5% biodegradation in the BDP treated plastic after 30 days compared to just 0.1% biodegradation in the non-treated plastic – a 16,400% increase. Rainbow Productions is proactive in recycling paper and card, and the company also has a Scrap Scheme in place, where all the scrap fabrics go to schools, charities and arts & crafts projects. “We work with an organisation called Work and Play Scrapstore which supplies non-profit organisations with materials that have been donated by different companies and this is an excellent example of promoting sustainability,” explains Rob Smith, Facilities Manager. Jumbo Games has been producing all its jigsaw puzzles using fully recycled cardboard for several decades, further reducing the impact its manufacturing has on the environment, whilst also delivering high quality product to consumers. Jumbo partners with leading licensors,
such as Disney, Mattel, Slivergate and Penguin Ventures, to ensure that their products are of the highest standard and meet the growing demands for a more sustainable future. This is vital for the manufacturer. Taking their ‘Think Green’ strategy to the next level and different product categories within their portfolio, Jumbo has launched a brand-new range of pre-school games that are produced using 100% recycled materials, such as plastics and cardboard, and all the materials are sourced in Europe and manufactured in Holland. The Good Toy Guide is joining forces with the Scandinavian Toy Institute (STI) to provide comprehensive certification and brand support for manufacturers of Good Toys in the region. The partnership will enable toy manufacturers who gain the STI’s certification if the products carry documented Play and Learning Values. They will automatically be entitled to inclusion in the Good Toy Guide. This inclusion will increase the commercial value of certification, also providing access to the wide range of brand support services offered by the Good Toy Guide. Dr. Amanda Gummer, MD and Founder, Good Toy Guide, commented: “We’re delighted to partner with the Scandinavian Toy Institute. Our two
organisations are based on very similar principles of evaluating, highlighting and supporting toys with great play value and developmental benefits, so it’s a perfect synergy. The partnership will provide huge value to the STI’s clients and their Good Toys.” Nicolas Loufrani, CEO at The Smiley Company, spoke to Total Licensing about the importance of empowering people toward positive change. “It’s very important today for brands to do their bit to make a difference and to do it in a way that empowers people towards change. The new and next generation of consumers (millenials and Gen-Z) are socially conscious and impacted by brands that they view are making a positive impact on our world. All the research I’ve seen conducted shows that unless you’re a brand with social IQ you will struggle to build loyalty and that is why we’ve spent the last few years re-launching our CSR initiatives to embark on a new charitable project - Smiley Movement (CIC) that has environmental issues rooted at its core. “For a brand like Smiley, making the world a better place is embedded in its DNA and it has been involved in a range of global charitable initiatives for over 15 years. However, 2019 sees the company innovating in the charity
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The rise in social media platforms has helped Millennials and Generation Z tune in to the growing social and ecoconsciousness around the globe
space, with the launch of Smiley Movement, a global non-profit business aiming to tackle big issues in society by matching people and organisations that can help solve problems, with others that need solutions. For all intents and purposes Smiley Movement is a ‘matchmaker for good’ platform that will help to mobilise good ideas and social projects and accelerate social investment. “Finally we are organising a number of incubator events (Smiley Talks) that are all linked to UN Sustainable Development goals and we hope these platforms will accelerate the launch of many new social initiatives that will serve to make the world a happier place.” Earlier this year Pyramid International launched a new range of drinkware with the emphasis on an Eco-Friendly world. The Metal Drinks Bottles and Metal Travel Mugs focus on the importance of re-usability – limiting waste. The aptly-named Eco Travel mugs go
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a step further, combining the reused functionality with biodegradable materials (Rice Husk) to create a genuinely environmentally friendly product. All of these products have the motto Refill, not Landfill. These are available now and span across brands including Harry Potter, Friends, Star Wars, Deadpool and more. With entertainment one of the biggest drivers behind the $250 billion licensing industry, it is of course no surprise that more and more content is socially and ecologically aware. The Fixies has been a brand for over ten years, and are a race of little creatures who secretly live inside of our machines, appliances and devices, conscientiously maintaining and repairing them with the aid of their tool-filled pack-o-mats. Thanks to Fixies, our devices run smoother and last longer. Fixies are very industrious master craftsman who show an interest in everything that happens in the world. In our series, which premiered on
television in 2010, the Fixies always manage to find a way out of the difficult situations that any typical day can bring, teaching children how the world works along the way. Over the years, The Fixies developed into one of Russia’s most popular children’s brands of all time with a strong presence on television, in stores, on stage, and online. The Fixies Russian language YouTube channel currently boasts more than 4.5 billion views and 4.2 million subscribers. From the very beginning it was decided that the themes of science, technology, safety and ecology would be central to the stories told and that each story should not only present problems but offer solutions that children could incorporate into their own lives. Its 2014 episode “The Batteries” is a good example of this mission in action. The episode teaches children how batteries work, their dangers, and how to dispose of them properly. In the story the young Fixie students
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have the mistaken idea that if they bury batteries in the pot’s soil, the potted plant can get extra energy to grow. But the students soon discover the plant dying. After their wise teacher intervenes and explains the dangers of what they did, the batteries are dug up, the pot is moved closer to the sunlight, and it is well watered. The plant shows its gratitude by straightening its stem and sprouting a new shoot. Greenpeace and The Fixies are creating a series of educational videos of children, and this year will also see an episode of The Fixies about the principles of separating trash from recyclables. In addition to video content, The Fixies also have their own collection of children’s songs, Fixie-ditties. These songs can also have a positive impact on behaviour.
As with much children’s content, it is often about showing, not telling. Sesame Workshop has recently stepped up its ecological and scientific focus, part of a two-year initiative called My World is Green and Growing. Oscar the Grouch recycles, the series has encouraged children not to litter, and Kermit preserves nature through example. Movies over the last few years, including Happy Feet and Wall-E, have shown audiences entertainment with an environmentally aware message. As a member of 1% for the Planet, SeaBelievers supports the work of the 5 Gyres Institute to research ocean plastic pollution, as well as educate and advocate for solutions to this rapidly escalating environmental issue. The characters, SeaBabies, see their homes
under threat from pollution, and while they have a special immunity to ocean pollution, in order to protect their home and land friends, they assume the task of combating environmental issues. The Mucks are creatures that live on pollution and want to foil the SeaBabies’ efforts. Environmental awareness is a huge part of the brand’s message, as well as waste management and climate impact, all of which can be imparted through the consumer products. Just in time for Earth Day 2019 (April 22), the hit animated preschool series Peg + Cat from Fred Rogers Productions airing daily on PBS KIDS, was nominated for an Environmental Media Award for the episode, The Compost Problem, in the Children’s Television category. The EMA Awards honor film and television productions that increase public awareness of environmental issues and inspire personal action. In the award-nominated episode, the series’ stars, the spirited Peg and her loyal sidekick, Cat, mix different types of compost in just the right way to turn garbage into a garden.
Over the next few pages, licensing experts will impart their advice and thoughts on what positive changes can be made. 105
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Dr Amanda Gummer, Fundamentally Children Children’s industries, in particular the toy business, are an easy place to point the finger at when looking to apportion blame for wasteful and environmentally damaging manufacturing processes. A large proportion of toys are crafted from plastic, and there is increasing research to show that parents throw away an enormous number of toys which are nearly new, adding to landfill and related issues. It’s refreshing to see toy companies, both large and small beginning to address the issue of materials and looking to reduce or eliminate plastic use, sourcing more sustainable, plant-based or recycled materials, and reducing wasteful packaging. Jumbo Games has recently launched an Eco Games range, using 100% recycled paper, cardboard and plastics. The company also now manufactures all its jigsaw puzzles from fully recycled cardboard. In a similar vein, Le Toy Van uses rubber wood – a by-product of the rubber industry - to create its wooden ranges and has pledged to make the majority of its packaging from biodegradable materials. The manufacturer plans to be plastic free by 2021 and is sourcing biodegradable plant-based alternatives for the small amount of plastic currently used in its products. Twoey Toys is another firm which uses raw materials from sustainable sources to manufacture its products. The firm also considers materials and weight during the design and development process, the design team also use minimal packaging made from as much recycled material as possible. Its eco-credentials also run through its business practices: the company burns its own wood waste to heat the shop floor, making it carbon neutral in this area, and all lighting in the building is LED. On a larger scale, Plan Toys is a company whose entire ethos is based on sustainability. It has always created its products from sustainable sources, placing a great emphasis on ecofriendly practices. PlanToys are made
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from rubber wood trees that no longer produce latex, along with PlanWood, a safe, sustainable material. The company also uses non-formaldehyde glue, and its printed materials use soy ink on recycled paper. It’s great to see these companies and some of the bigger players such as Lego, Hasbro and MGA looking to reduce their waste and source more sustainable materials. But the issue runs deeper than recyclable packaging and rubber wood; a full 360 approach needs to be taken here. One of the main reasons the Good Toy Guide was established was to help parents to navigate their way around the plethora of toys available in order to find Good Toys with strong play value, developmental benefits and lots of fun factor. Educating parents in this way helps them choose the right toys for their children, going some way to ensure little ones enjoy the toys, play with them and get good value from them, rather than them being tossed aside and soon added to the toy graveyard. But educating parents is just one side of the coin.We need to make sure that as an industry, we are creating toys with all these benefits in order to get and keep children engaged and playing with them again and again. As a whole, we need to get better at focussing on play value, then marketing those benefits effectively to consumers. There are, however, a multitude of companies already doing just that. Le Toy Van’s philosophy is to invest ‘time, energy and passion to ensure we pack all of our wooden, eco-responsible toys with layers of discovery, so that they become a real investment in play for generations to come.’ Toys created with this level of thought and design are likely to be the ones passed down from generation to generation, reducing waste, but also building a strong brand loyalty among those consumers. There are also simple but effective ways to increase the longevity of products which will also build brands.
Take Orchard Toys’ free parts and replacement service for example. An initiative which costs very little, but makes the difference between a useless or a much-loved and played game. Twoey Toys is another company which offers a replacement parts service for the life of the product. There is also the opportunity to educate children about sustainability through play. Plan Toys not only manufactures toys from sustainable materials, but aims to educate its customers about why it is important. The company says: “We want our children to grow up with a passion to respect and preserve natural resources for future generations.” The company recently launched a Wonky Fruit and Vegetables line to educate children about food waste. Another idea is to reuse waste to create play items. A recent experiment by a Bristol-based nursery who removed all the toys from its setting, proved that with less toys, children’s imaginations come to the fore and they will play with boxes, tins and pine cones. While this may not be particularly beneficial for industry, there are ways to incorporate this approach into manufacturing. Take Junko for example. This new, innovative company has based its product line entirely on recycling. The junk modelling system uses rubbish and various connectors to allow children to create new toys, sparking imaginative play, and helping to reduce waste at the same time. It’s time for our industries to think more strategically about product development. There are some fabulous plastic toys on the market which provide hours of play. If these can be created from sustainable materials, then even better. There are also some sustainable toys which wouldn’t last five minutes with most children as they’d get bored and move on. We need to create sustainable, good quality, fun toys, and educate parents and gift givers about them in order to create a fully ecofriendly industry.
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Trudi Bishop, Director, Bee Licensing When I sat down to write an article on sustainability in relation to the toy and licensing industry a strong memory from my childhood came to mind in the form of reading one of my favourite books – Dr Suess’ “The Lorax”. It feels like a very fitting metaphor for the situation the world is currently in. To jog your memories, ‘The Lorax’ chronicles the plight of the environment with the Lorax speaking for the trees confronting the Once-Ler whose greed causes environmental catastrophe. We see this as a fable about the danger that corporate greed poses to nature using the Once-Ler to represent industry and the Lorax to represent the environment. Written in 1971, perhaps we should have seen it as a premonition but now we need to use it as a stark warning about what we are contributing to as an industry. Don’t get me wrong, I love this industry and I understand the need for commercial gains but I love the planet too. I just don’t want future generations to live like the children in ‘The Lorax’ where they’re sold oxygen in bottles and can only imagine what trees were once like. Our industry is continually creating ‘Thneeds’ for consumers and we are now at an environmental crossroads. Through continual deforestation of
our rainforests to grow palm oil and non-sustainable cotton, industry is creating our own ‘Truffula tree’ crisis. We don’t want to end up like the ‘Once-Ler’ hiding away from the devastation he has created holding on to the last ‘Truffula tree’ seed, pondering the one word left by the Lorax as he departed in sadness – “UNLESS”. And this is even without mentioning the overwhelming plastic pollution. But just as in ‘The Lorax’, all is not lost. We have the opportunity to use our commercial and creative power as well as our consumer influence to help save our planet for future generations. Every action/decision we take in our daily lives, whether at work or in our personal lives has an effect on our environment. It’s the basic law of physics. One of the simplest ways for the licensing industry to affect a quick ecological change is by thinking of your company’s effect on the environment in the same way as you would run your business. Before making the trip to Vegas or anywhere, ask yourselves the question – is my company’s carbon footprint really worth the damage we are doing to the planet – is there another way we could achieve the same results? Do we need as many samples as we create for product approvals? Do all my staff need to commute into the office everyday or could they do the trip less often? How can we waste less? What is my company’s return on investment in the future of the planet? These are simple and only a few of the questions to ask when running our businesses. Our multi billiondollar industry also
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has the creative power to design out waste and create products in a more sustainable way. We cannot put the onus on our consumers to simply recycle what they no longer need or want. We have to take responsibility for the life of our products. We all need to understand the end-toend journey each item we create and consume and its effect on the environment. From generating the raw materials through the manufacturing process, how they’re shipped and marketed, to
their end of life. Part of this journey is also creating products that last or for toys creating fabulous play value so kids will return to the product over and over. No longer can we sit in silos and assume someone else is sorting the problem out. Governments are not acting swiftly or decisively enough to affect change (this inaction is mostly down to career saving) so why don’t we use our huge influence to affect changes of our own? On that, I’d like to leave you with the reflective words of the regretful ‘Once-Ler’: “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”
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Julie Driscoll, Managing Director, Spring and Autumn Fair As shoppers increasingly demand more sustainable, responsibly-sourced and ethical goods, Spring and Autumn Fair’s Managing Director, Julie Driscoll, explains how retailers must respond. “In the next decade, the number one concern for British shoppers will be to reduce packaging and use more recyclable materials. For most, waste reduction would even trump price as the main driver behind their purchases. We are living through a watershed moment with sustainability attitudes and behaviours in retail fundamentally shifting. Retailers who fail to recognise these moving goalposts will lose out – thinking ethically and environmentally is becoming a crucial commercial decision, not a choice. Ignoring or shying away from the public outcry is simply not an option. Retailers must put sustainability at the heart of what they do and take action, whether that means finding alternative packaging materials or making their supply chains more transparent. As a marketplace that shows the best of the retail sector, in terms of products and practice, Spring and Autumn Fair’s agenda aims to empower retailers and suppliers in the sustainability
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sphere, giving them the tools to take action into their own hands. At February’s Spring Fair, we launched our Power of One campaign, challenging visitors, retailers and suppliers alike to take on one sustainable change as part of their contribution to furthering the cause for environmental justice. The campaign, which initially launched at Pure, London’s largest festival of fashion, looks to energise the retail industry towards a better future, by giving others the power to speak up, take action and focus on long-term improvements. Ahead of Autumn Fair 2019, we’ll be encouraging exhibitors to score their products based on a new sustainability rating system that takes into account the environmental impact, supply chain and sourcing of a product. This information will form the basis of an at-show sustainability trail, allowing visitors to easily identify sustainable and responsibly-sourced items throughout the show. We’ll also be putting a renewed focus on sourcing at the Fair, educating the industry on the must-knows on the topic, and supporting visitors and exhibitors in forging essential relationships with like-minded responsible
manufacturers. This, in turn, will help them achieve greater control of their supply chains. Encouraging individuals to take small steps to become more sustainable might not immediately seem to be an obvious driver of change, but it is. The issue of sustainability is undeniably overwhelming in its sheer scale, and this leads to apathy and limits action. Small changes feel much more manageable, and collectively can still make a big difference. We truly believe these pledges made at our show and our efforts with Power of One can play a role in revolutionising the industry’s sustainability, from the ground up. In the upcoming years, we will continue to help identify and profile exhibitors with ethical and sustainability credentials, and will seek to collaborate with more ambassadors to raise awareness of this essential movement. Sustainability challenges have the potential to spark industry innovation; new ways of doing things and a realignment of what we value. Seismic changes are required, but those will only come once we change what is within our means to do so now. “
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In the last 12 months, The Insights People has surveyed more than 20,000 UK, 20,000 US kids and 10,000 expecting and new parents collecting significant data on this generation’s attitudes, behaviour and consumption. When we look to our Parents Insights data, we see this trend for ‘guilt-free’ and environmentallyfriendly consumption continue, demonstrating how these concerns are increasingly felt family-wide. Globally, vegan lifestyles gained popularity and media attention in 2018 and our data shows 17% of over 35s saying they would buy these products, but this increases to 25% amongst younger parents aged 25-34s, showing again how these issues are increasingly important for the next generations of parents. Our data has shown over the last 12 months how children, parents and
families are becoming increasingly conscious of the environment and this is shaping their attitudes, behaviour and consumption across multiple product and service areas. At the start of last year, 1 in 4 UK children thought about the effect of their actions on the environment regularly, but our Kids Insights UK data saw this increase to 1 in 3 by the autumn. This ‘Eco-anxiety’ continues to grow amongst children and we have seen over the last 3 months how 16-yearold activist Greta Thunberg has established herself as a key influencer with children. Our data now indicates
Our industry and the environment
that the number of 13-15 year olds that often think about the effects of their actions on the environment has now reached 62%. These teens are twice as likely to be feeling anxious ‘frequently’ or ‘all the time’ (40%) than those who do not think about their impact on the environment (20%). When we look at boys aged 13-15, concern about the environment has increased by a third in the last year (from 15% to 20%) and, in fact, the number of boys this age who ‘strongly agree’ that they often think about their impact on the environment has risen from 10% to 24% in the same time.
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‘Eco-anxiety’ continues to grow amongst children and we have seen over the last 3 months how 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg has established herself as a key influencer with children... It is no surprise, then, that ecofriendly credentials are increasingly important to this generation and will increasingly affect their buying decisions. Companies are now also realising that a clear and transparent environmental strategy can put them at a competitive advantage. Brands such as Walkers and Adidas have recently launched high-profile projects to make their core products more environmentally-friendly. As our 2019 Kids Insights Future Forecast report (Kidsinsights.co.uk/ futureforecast) predicted, increasing environmental consciousness is going to have a significant impact on packaging and it will be interesting to see how industries such as the magazine industry will adapt, as according to
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our data 41% of children chose what magazine or comic to buy based on what free gift is included. A rise in sustainable toys is expected to help drive the educational toy segment to its projected 11% growth over the next four years and we would expect to see that there are even more significant opportunities for the licensing industry. What opportunities does this present for your business? From all the data we are seeing, we believe that children, parents and families are only going to become more environmentally and sustainability conscious and therefore we would suggest that brands and manufacturers need to be considering how this
is going to affect their business in the medium to long term. As manufacturers are under increasing pressure to reduce the environmental impact of the products they make, reducing packaging waste would seem a logical and easy step, especially as ever more children spend online now (a third more children are spending online now than 18 months ago) which reduces the need for high impact/retail friendly packaging, but of course packaging is just one aspect. One thing which is important is that if a brand is going to position itself as an environmentally responsible, all aspects of its business (and its partner businesses) needs to stand up to investigation. As with this generation of super-informed and constantly connected parents and children, as soon as something is found not to be true, a brand can be dealing with a major crisis. Kids Insights specialises in research and insights on kids and their ecosystems. The company surveys 1,600 kids, tweens and teens every single week across six countries including US, UK, France and Germany. For more information on Kids Insights, a sample report and a demo of its award-winning portal, visit www. kidsinsights.co.uk/totallicensing
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LATIN AMERICA Stability, for sure! I am often in contact with international business people and all of them approach the Brazilian current context fearfully and sometimes adversely. I would like to take this opportunity to share some facts with readers.
Sectors using Licensing the most 1. Garment Industry 2. Stationery 3. Toys 4. Personal Care Brazil is amongst the six countries with the highest revenues in terms of licensing around the world.
Yes indeed, we are going through unstable socioeconomic moments. These are the consequences of the crisis that began in 2014. However, we are striving for success, learning from our mistakes and reinventing ourselves. This is no big deal. This scenario is very well known and has been managed before. After all, consumers remain cautious, researching and checking their real needs. Even with ups and downs in some sectors, licensing remains prominent. Industry and retail understand that this marketing tool generates a competitive differential and makes more room on the shelves. To gain an accurate picture, over 80% of the toys launched in the Brazilian market are licensed. On the other hand, sales of licensed school notebooks dropped during our last “back to school” season, which means
Market Figures in Brazil
Revenues 2018 - over $9b 5% increase compared with 2017
Brazil Market Introduction By Marici Ferreira EP Grupo Managing Director marici@epgrupo.com.br @maricirosana http://expolicensinglatam. com.br/en/
Upward trending: Games licenses Lifestyle Brands Crossover
that consumers are much more selective about purchasing, also increasingly more aware of the difference between spending on a basic item or on a desired product. Apart from toys, other sectors where licenses can be a game changer in terms of sales are fashion, footwear, hygiene and personal care, backpacks, stationery and accessories.
Another positive trend is the marketing crossover strategy to expand film releases, advertise events and products.
And we can also see a very significant increase in demand for licensed products with games and lifestyle brands. This indicates that the young adult segment is increasingly gaining ground in the Brazilian sector.
The brand market here is heated, and lots of good news is coming up. All of them will be presented during Expo Licensing Latam 2019! On August 27 and 28, at the Grand Hyatt - São Paulo. It’s estimated that more than $ 10 million will be generated in new businesses.
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As the only Mexican agency that takes a booth at Licensing Expo, La Panadería Licensing & Marketing is a Mexican agency with almost two decades of experience in developing and representing entertainment brands suitable for long-term Licensing & Merchandising programs. Its almost 20 years of experience have allowed it to understand the market: now it has access to the ingredients and the recipe to bake each brand according to its own needs, in order to reach the market at the right time with development and implementation of content strategies throughout platforms, as well as consumer products, editorial, live events, Esports experiences and alternative content for cinema, strengthening the presence of national and international brands of several recognized studios worldwide. The leadership Panadería has in Mexico is maintained thanks to the clients and brands that consolidate and legitimize its growth, for which it currently holds one of the most relevant portfolios of licenses in the Mexican market. This year, Panadería Licensing & Marketing participated as a judge at the Lima International Licensing Awards.
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Panadería’s portfolio includes a wide variety of properties. In the preschool arena, the company represents Sesame Street, Masha and the Bear, PJ Masks, Molang and Baby Shark. Sésamo (this year is Sesame Workshop’s 50th Anniversary as a nonprofit organization that allocates all its profits to programs that benefit children. There are 24 million users on their social networks and a presence in more than 150 countries. Peppa Pig is the most awarded series, evaluated as the best preschool series. The primary target is children aged two to five with 0 to 18 months as the
secondary target. Masha and the Bear won best animation award at Kidscreen Awards 2015 and is the third most relevant property for Spin Master. There are more than 5 million users on their social networks, of which approximately 54% are Mexican. The primary target is children aged three to five. PJ Masks is a preschool brand that demonstrated the highest growth in 2017. It is a co-production between eOne and Disney studios with a primary target market of boys and girls aged 2 to 7 years old. Molang was nominated by the Emmy’s as the best preschool series. It is transmitted in more than 200 countries and has a primary target of girls aged four to eight. Baby Shark is the leading mobile content for children in 112 countries. There is YouTube content in 8 languages, with more than 4,000 songs and stories. It is also No. 18 in the list of the most watched videos in YouTube history. There have been more than 1.3 billion views in Central and South America. On the children’s side, Panaderia represents Shopkins, Pikmi Pops and the Dragon Ball Franchise. Shopkins is the leading collectible brand in the world with a primary target market of girls aged five to 10. The
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property generates more than one billion dolalrs in retail sales worldwide. Dragon Ball is a cultural, television and social phenomenon and an icon of the last 4 generations. It has been on air in Mexico for over 15 years and has 750 episodes and 21 movies. It is a multigenerational brand appealing to men aged 19 to 29 years old. The property is all its incarnations has generated more than $5 billion. Pikmi Pops is the leading plush brand with the highest growth in March 2018 in the UK. The latest collectible toy brand from Moose Toys, Pikmi Pops, is aimed at girls aged four to nine. On the teen and adult side Panaderia represent Tasty, the video recipe channel created by Buzz Feed as well as Los Polinesios who have five YouTube channels with over 60 million subscribers. Promotions are important to Panaderia’s business and the company has created a number of successful promotions for their properties. A direct to retail at Suburbia and Bebe Fest. In February and September, Bebe Fest at Suburbia takes place, in which brands such as Peppa Pig, PJ Masks, Masha y el Oso and Sésamo were included. For Children’s Day, activities and exhibitions are held in stores such
as Juguetron and Hamley’s. Products included babywear such as bibs, pants, rompers, T-shirts, sweatshirts, dresses and diapers. An alliance was created to use Suburbia’s own brand “The Weekend” in different pieces of apparel, from babies to adults with the image of Sésamo. The collection was launched in February
alongside “Bebe Fest” and there are still different pieces in store that were made specially for this brand. They are also beginning to develop new designs. POP materials were also developed to be placed inside the store to draw attention to the consumer. A further promotion involved Bolo
Town. This involved 20 Liverpool stores where there was a special exhibition featuring Peppa Pig and PJ Masks. In addition, at 10 Liverpool stores there will be special activities for Children’s Day. Mission PJ Masks with Juguetron was a special contest organised between PJ Masks and Juguetron. The contest included an activity inside the store, which was recorded and transmitted as a child’s day capsule through social networks and via PJ Masks’ YouTube channel. This was one of Panaderia’s 360 strategies that involved both the brand and retail partners and generated an experience that could also be shared via different social networks. Pepsi Co and Los Polinesios was a further campaign where the purchase of Cheetos Huellitas helped street dogs to be adopted. A spot was made for television and YouTube as well as material for social networks. Los Polinesios was also linked to Six Flags amusement park in December where the Los Polinesios song Festival was used to advertise Cheetos. The commercial was recorded in Six Flags in December 2018 and photos made available on social networks. Finally, Masha and the Bear teamed up with Bonafont Kids to launch ranges
of flavoured water including natural, grape, apple, orange and mango (pack of 6 bottles and individual). Product was available for six months and is sold through convenience stores, supermarkets, department stores, small stores and price clubs.
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Experience Licensing on the rise in Latin America By Dalia Benbassat Tycoon Enterprises, Corporate Relations
There is no doubt consumers will be choosey when spending.These choices are strongly influenced by emotion. For those of us fully invested in the Licensing industry, emotion is certainly our game, so we are definitely on the right side of the field, as brands continue to represent the embodiment of aspirations and desire, and remain powerful drivers of consumer choices. Most marketing experts tend to agree that emotional connections work both as brand shields and as brand propellers, they generate consumer loyalty and harden the entry for competitive brands. In times of trouble, these deeper-than-surface connections help brands face market challenges with a smaller risk of losing share. Hence companies in every field must invest in their emotional approach to consumers and reward fans with creative, ingenious ways to experience and enjoy their brands, in order to build deeper, more meaningful connections.
We are seeing a couple of complicated years in our region, as despite the sensible recovery of the big territories of Brazil and Argentina, growth is hindered by the uncertainty over political course in several of our markets, lingering devaluations and a number of local hiccups. Internal spend has also slowed out of caution over uncertainty, and branded consumer product
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sales too have taken a toll. For the last few years, we’ve seen consumers preference switch from product to experiences, and those experiences which are lived through and then shared with friends become much more believable and effective than what the brand has to say for itself. Latin America is rapidly warming up to the emergence of Experiential Marketing as a means for brands to better communicate and establish stronger ties with consumers. Traditional marketing, as well as traditional media, has lost much of its charm and more companies are resorting to digital and interactive marketing, as well as live events, location entertainment, mall tours, street marketing, space licensing or POS activations, altogether branded experiences, as a means to build emotional value. Licensors are viewing this space as a new area for business, not only as a vehicle to generate engagement, but to generate new royalties. And those companies seeking to provide memorable and emotionally impactful experiences to consumers should look at Licensed Experiences to fulfill and surpass this mission. Witnesses of the direction things are taking, Tycoon has become a promoter and enthusiast of this new shape of
licensing, and we hereby share a few examples of our deeds during this past 12-months. Hello Kitty Fun Run 2018 On October 14th the first Hello Kitty run in America took place in Mexico City, brought forth by Total Running, with 2 open categories: a 2K family walk and a 5K race; this event brought together 6,000 people, including women, men and children, as well as Mexican artists and influencers who enjoyed a route full of surprises. Hello Kitty lovers had been waiting way too long for this run! The 5,000 tickets originally planned for the race sold out the same day in less than 8 hours, hence due to fan requests, a thousand more were released and gone in the first 10 minutes. Hello Kitty Mexico social network reached over 1.5 million people and then posts simply multiplied by the minute. Unlike other races of its kind, right after the main event the runners had access to a Hello Kitty Experience Zone, sponsored by brand licensees. Those who always dreamed of tasting a Hello Kitty dessert enjoyed a Kochi Kochi Land delicacy branded in Sanrio characters; little ones had fun in a play space sponsored by Prinsel where they found toys, ride-ons and coloring and crafting activities to spend their
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remaining energy; Hello Kitty lovers could simulate that they were running next to her thanks to a green wall sponsored by SCA-Saba and take part in the several photo-opportunities down the track. A second edition to celebrate the 45th anniversary of this iconic character is now underway. Hello Sanrio x Moyo Sanrio and Moyo Frozen Yogurt teamed up for the launch of a Sanriocharacters promotion available across their 150+ shops in Mexico. The stores were all dressed in Hello Sanrio images, featuring their top characters Chococat, Keroppi, Badz Maru, My Melody, Kuromi, and of course queen of characters Hello Kitty; from wall graphics to containers, to attendants’ uniforms, you could see that Hello Kitty and her friends were truly the stars in this collaboration. Communication efforts included Moyo and Hello Kitty’s social networks, as well as OOH billboards and branded buses in strategic areas of Mexico City, which granted great visibility to the promotion. As a promo special, from October through December, Moyo launched a new flavor, the delicious Hello Kitty Frutti, a surprising combination of banana, pineapple, papaya, orange, strawberry and lemon, made with 100% natural fruit and fat free natural yogurt. For topping, your choice of mini strawberry marshmallows, Nucita or Picafresa, popular Mexican candies; as
well as delicious hand-made cookies in the shape of Hello Kitty, Badtz Maru and Keroppi. The ice cream was served in a cup or cone holder of the different Sanrio characters and a collectable spoon, as well as different special edition stickers! Needless to say, Hello Kitty Frutti was the bestselling flavor of the season. The Simpsons X Anuar Layon launch at MB Fashion Week Anuar Layón, one of the most renowned Mexican street-fashion designers, unveiled his exclusive The Simpsons by Anuar Layón Collection during the Mercedes Benz Mexico City Fashion Week on October 9th, 2018. With several of his pieces becoming iconic in modern fashion (you might remember Layon’s prominent “Mexico is the Shit” bomber jacket which caused international upheaval), Anuar has led the way for a new generation of contemporary Mexican designers. For this Tycoon-led collaboration, Anuar Layón was inspired by the beloved Simpsons family and its strong influence on Mexico’s
pop culture for decades. At MercedesBenz Fashion Week, Layón presented his interpretation of The Simpsons characters, blending local fashion trends with the show’s distinctive voice. The collection launched at the Blackberry Auditorium in ultrahip Condesa neighborhood. The runway had an attendance of 400 guests and was introduced by a spectacle of lights in conjunction with a group of acapella singers performing to the show’s famous theme song, with DJ’s mixing House music. It was an amazing show from beginning to end. The Simpsons collection, consisting of approximately 50 designs for men and women including t-shirts, leather jackets, shorts, pants and sweaters, and reflect Anuar’s attention to detail and love for innovation. Color palette included basic blacks, whites and grays, as well as the iconic yellow of The Simpsons characters. Bursts of color made characters stand out through details like hand-stitches, knits, pins, all in premium materials. Media in Mexico from Forbes to Sopitas talked about the collection and the runway and all agreed that Anuar’s collection scored a 10. The collection launched at a Pop-Up
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Store within high-end retailer Palacio de Hierro and is available online at Amazon Fashion. Hello Sanrio x Kochi Kochi Land A piece of Tokyo in Mexico, Kochi Kochi Land is an extraordinary place to enjoy a delicious experience as it brings from Japan sophisticated desserts full of colors and flavors that are as addictive as they are delicious. A perfect match with Sanrio Characters, a place where you can enjoy a tip of Japanese culture and, beginning October last year, a selection of new beverages and desserts inspired by Hello Kitty and her friends. First products out were the delicious Hello Kitty x Kochi Kochi Land Harajuku Crèpe and the refreshing Hello Kitty Caramel Capuccino, a delicious frappé with cherry syrup topped with a handmade Hello Kitty cookie. For Halloween, Badtz Maru Spooky Tai, a mysterious pumpkin taiyaki with black ice cream sprinkled with Oreo crumbs; in November a Hello Kitty Birthday Crèpe with slices of peach, and in December a My Melody Holiday Crepe with whipped cream and Nutella! A new release every month! The response was overwhelming! On the opening weekend, customers waited in line for an average of two hours before opening and until closing hour and sales increased over 150%. Interaction on social networks increased 200%, and their Instagram followers increased by 82%. Sales increased by 50% on a regular basis. Expectation among consumers is high while everyone keeps wondering month by month which character they will find next! This collab is ex-
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pected to extend throughout 2019. Angry Birds Play Land x Galerías Shopping Malls Kids Day is big celebration time in Mexico. Galerías Shopping malls understood this well. Aware that malls are where the majority of Latin American families prefer to spend their leisure time on weekends, they have resorted to Licensed Experiences to enhance their costumers’ visits and extend their stay. For this year’s Kid’s Day, and in anticipation of Angry Birds 10th Anniversary, Galerías opened an absolutely fantastic Angry Birds play area in their top Mexico City locations. These are free-admission themed play areas of approximately 1,500 square feet, where adults and children can experience the world’s largest mobile game in a variety of ways: the first stage is electronic and customers play the original games on tablets; on the second stage customers test their skills in a real-life version of the game inside two batting-type cages, each equipped with a giant slingshot on one side and several props on the other to form a structure similar to the videogame; on the third stage younger kids can color Angry Birds characters with crayons. All areas are staffed with fully trained operators who are certified to work with children. This Tycoon-led licensed experience launched April 1, 2019 in Galerias Coapa, Atizapán and Saltillo. ATL Marketing included TV, radio, print, digital and OOH, as well as profuse BTL in floor banners, POS and digital media. The event has drawn massive attention and has received over 5,000 kids
Jurassic World at VIVA Shopping Malls Last Summer, as Jurassic World The Fallen Kingdom hit screens the world over, Universal Pictures and Shopping Centers VIVA in Villavicencio and Barranquilla, Colombia, brought back to life the prehistoric era right in the hear of some of the county’s most prestigious shopping malls. Universal Pictures developed a supersized active play area reminiscent of the prodigious Isla Nublar and offered consumers five different attractions: Fallen Kingdom little explorers area, Volcano Island escape, Tryceratops tumbling paws; kids could also test their survival skills in a 20 minute adventure trail across Nublar Island as well as make amazing pictures hatching from giant dinosaur eggs. The attractions hosted kids from 4 to 12 years old who were met at the entrance by qualified staff and attended to through the route. A life size set to truly live through the movie and experience its climatic moments and an undeniable great reason to visit Viva malls with your family and turn the visit into much more than a shopping experience. Latin America has enthusiastically taken on global licensing trends. They expect to see investment in experiential licensing growing substantially in the coming years, as this is clearly of interest to both retailers and brand owners alike. It is time to be bold and creative. Proof yet again this is the most dynamic and fun industry to be in.
Tycoon is the only fully integrated Licensing network in Latin America. Holds offices in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Central America, and a portfolio of selected premium brands from the entertainment and lifestyle fields. It offers the most professional and passionate licensing operation in the region. www.tycoon.mx
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SPONGEBOB AND GRUPO CHESPIRITO COLLABORATE IN LATIN AMERICA properties. The collaboration will be announced in July this year and products will begin hitting shelves this Fall, continuing for a full year. The program will include a wide range of product categories including apparel, collectibles, accessories and more as well as a marketing campaign and various promotions.
Over the last twenty years, SpongeBob has become one of the most wellknown and recognized characters in the world. In Latin America SpongeBob has 85% awareness and is one the Top 3 most popular characters amongst kids ages 4-11. In order to celebrate SpongeBob 20th Anniversary Nickelodeon & Viacom Consumer Products Mexico decided to bring three of the most iconic brands together. Reinforcing the great positioning and emotional connection that these beloved characters have with all generations. El Chavo del Ocho and El ChapulĂn Colorado are television live-action series that started airing in the 1970s and have enjoyed almost 50 years of Latin American broadcasting. In fact, the series have aired in 124 countries around the world and with
daily worldwide viewership averaging 91 million viewers per episode. In 2006 the animated version of the series launched in Latin America. Nickelodeon & Viacom recognized that the three iconic brands had a large number of similarities which would make them ideal for a collaboration. All three properties were multi-target – they have been in the market for a long time and can speak to the target age of children aged four to eleven, as well as to adults and families. All three properties evoke an emotional connection with the characters, as well as engagement and they bring out feelings and memories. Essentially, they are all timeless intellectual properties. For the collaboration, Nickelodeon & Viacom created a brand which represented all three iconic
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KOPA: writing a new chapter A reflection on the last twelve months
Carlos Andrés Carvajal Licensing Director KOPA Licensing
carlos.carvajal@kopa.com.co www.kopa.com.co @KOPA_licensing
With remarkable exceptions in markets such as Brazil and Mexico, it is only fair to say the licensing industry is not growing in Spanish speaking Latin America. Many will disagree, but that is the truth; the market hasn’t evolved beyond the pre-school category. As a result, today we have an oversaturation of properties targeted to children, with licensees unable to differentiate themselves from one another and retailers complaining about the discrete performance of several traditional characters. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, for over a decade we’ve seen how the same formula repeats over and over again; exploited until it finally became generic. It’s no longer adding value, and it is reflecting on product sales. It can be blamed on the economy, right, our nations are paying the price of years of corruption and incompetent rulers (to say the least), no one can argue that; however, the gap shouldn’t be so wide and deep between Latin America and North America. There are many factors to consider, but the lack of knowledge about licensing and absence of imagination might be the reasons that encapsulate it all. Another concerning factor is the position imposed on licensees, who regrettably became shy and fearful suppliers.
Territories covered by KOPA: • Mexico • Central America • The Caribbean • Colombia • Ecuador • Peru • Chile
Today, few dare to propose something new, much less to contradict retailers. Years and years of experience, knowledge, and expertise are being ignored only to obey a buyer’s desires. The product has to be just like the retailer commanded; otherwise it will find another factory to produce it and -supposedly- at a lower price. Things won’t be changing any time
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soon; however, signs are starting to appear on the horizon. The e-commerce juggernaut, Amazon, has announced big plans for Chile in the coming years and it promises to alter the Chilean retail landscape forever. No one wants something similar to the so-called “retail apocalypse,” but the market is definitely in urgent need of a good shake.
The dawn of a new chapter Despite the difficulties and challenges, our passion for this business has always remained the same, and last year at Brand Licensing Europe the fire that keeps us going was reignited. KOPA is proudly becoming a more specialized licensing agency, with a focus on unique entertainment properties and lifestyle brands. We started 2019 with a renovated portfolio that now includes Godzilla, Route 66, MarieAntoinette, and Panini.
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Panini
To successfully work with such a unique movie icon as Godzilla, you must start by being a real fan of this giant monster (I believe the word is geek) and its 65 years of fantastic stories. Only by understanding the property, its characteristics and DNA, you can truly design a licensing plan for the King of the Monsters.
The first meeting with the licensor at BLE 2018 was, by far, the best we’ve ever had at a trade show. The creative connection with Tony Verdini, Senior Manager and the Panini team was instantaneous.
That’s what KOPA brought to the table, its experience, creativity, and geekiness. It’s been a blast to work alongside Rui Machida from Toho and Legendary again (we did it for Pacific Rim Uprising), and it’s all paying off. For the release of the new movie, Grupo Mantra, from Ecuador, will launch a t-shirt collection for kids and adults; while in the Dominican Republic, stationery licensee Indusnig will release a notebook collection featuring all the Titans: Godzilla, King Ghidorah, Mothra, and Rodan. With the release of Godzilla King of the Monsters in May 2019 and then Godzilla vs. Kong in March 2020, we couldn’t be more excited about what the future holds for the property. Route 66 & Marie Antoinette Tempting Brands is the owner and developer of these two lifestyle brands, Route 66 and Marie-Antoinette. What incredible findings at BLE 2018. ROUTE 66 is an authentic American lifestyle brand with timeless appeal. It is instantly recognized around the globe and stands for freedom, hope, authenticity, originality, and adventure. The Marie-Antoinette brand, well designed, with a scent of romance and history, targets the sophisticated, stylish and fashion conscious woman. Alongside Ariana Popescu (Licensing Specialist) and Lidia Furnica (Director Licensing & New Business), KOPA will be introducing both brands to the Mexican market and will develop the individual licensing programs.
Fútbol (soccer) and Panini are synonyms in Latin America and the times ahead couldn’t be more exciting for the fans; with the Euro 2020 next year, the qualifying for Qatar coming right after and then the World Cup in 2022. It is such a thrill to be working alongside Panini, and we look forward to delivering a licensing program that captures people’s passion for the sport. It wouldn’t be fair to end this article without acknowledging the longtime licensors and licensees that have been working for us for so many years. Me to You & My Blue Nose Friends In Honduras, Cuadernos Quick renewed for another year and released its notebook collection in January 2019. Also from Central America, Manpa Lider released its own, and it will do it again for the 5th time in 2020. Vanyplas, the plasticware licensee from Colombia continued in 2019 with its line of lunchboxes featuring the lovely Tatty Teddy and friends. The Walking Dead The Walking Dead just wrapped its 9th season and will return in October 2019 for its 10th. Torre (Chile) and Tai Heng (Peru) reached its 6th consecutive year with the license, releasing a notebook collection at the beginning of this year. That is the synopsis of twelve months of hard work, many thanks to Total Licensing for the invitation and we look forward to another twelve months of fulfilling achievements.
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SESAME DTR PROMOTION Continuing Sesame Street’s 50 anniversary, a DTR strategy has been launched. The campaign consists of the exhibition and point of sale in 126 Suburbia Mexico retail stores with different products with Sésamo characters for babies, kids, and adults; as well as a special exhibition of Sésamo designed furniture and its 50th anniversary. The campaign was rolled out in 126 Suburbia stores throughout Mexico and started on February 14th with Suburbia’s BBfest. “We are very excited about this association with Suburbia. Our mission has always been to reach as many kids and families as possible, and this association supports this mission,” said Lewis Kofsky, Vice President and General Manager for Latin America, and Executive Producer, International, at Sesame Workshop. “This is only the beginning of an amazing celebration.” Sesame Workshop, the non-profit organization behind Sésamo, has several social and educational programs that benefit kids in Mexico and globally.This is why the synergy between Sésamo and Suburbia is a big success, since all profits coming from Sésamo licensees in Mexico are reinvested in these programs to support their mission and to give kids the tools to develop their cognitive, emotional and physical abilities, and to be intelligent, strong and kind. Suburbia, at its side, is positioned in the mindshare of Mexican families as the retailer where they can always find a wide variety of products. This campaign in Suburbia represents the largest DTR in the history of Sésamo because it includes more than 50 products for babies, kids, and adults. Besides POP, La Panadería will organize several activities with Sésamo characters like Meet & Greet, games and contests, so kids can play along with Elmo and Cookie Monster. Commenting, Maca Rotter, President and CEO, La Panadería Licensing & Marketing, said, “This campaign is only one of the many activities we have prepared to celebrate Sesame Workshop’s 50th anniversary in Mexico, and we know that many kids will be more than happy to see their favorite characters and the products they like the most”. th
GENERAL MOTORS PERSONAL TOOLS General Motors has an active licensing program throughout Latin America, run through their office in Brazil. A major license has been a Chevrolet personal tools product line which was developed in Brazil. Chevrolet is the biggest General Motors brand in Latin America and, in some territories in the region, it is the only General Motors brand whilst in other territories, brands such as Camaro and Corvette are proving increasingly popular.
CONCACAF SIGNS MASTER LICENSEE The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) has signed its first exclusive master licensee and licensing agent through a multi-year agreement with OEG Sports. The agency, part of the One Entertainment Group, will serve as Concacaf’s global master licensee and licensing agent for consumer products. The agreement covers a range of championships through 2022 including the Gold Cup and newly launched Nations League, as well as properties such as development-focused youth tournaments and initiatives. OEG Sports will develop consumer products and merchandising programs across all major consumer product categories for distribution in stadia, online
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and at retail throughout the Concacaf region. The portfolio of licensed products based on the Concacaf brand includes apparel, accessories, sporting goods, novelties, food and beverages, personal care, gaming and apps, music, and premiums. “We are delighted to partner with OEG Sports to build and extend our presence in the consumer products market as part of the strategy to grow
and diversify our business and in partnership with our 41 Concacaf member associations,” Concacaf general secretary Philippe Moggio said. “We view this agreement as a great opportunity to open an all-new consumer products platform in our region to further promote the game of football and engage fans in multiple ways with our Concacaf brand.” OEG Sports already holds similar partnerships with the likes of Mexican Liga MX clubs Chivas Guadalajara and Club America, Spanish LaLiga outfit Real Madrid and German Bundesliga team Bayern Munich. Alex Altamirano, vice-president of sales for OEG Sports, continued, “The growth of football we have seen in the region creates new opportunities that retailers and manufacturers will now be able to leverage through the multiple competition formats Concacaf has developed.”
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BUBU AND THE LITTLE OWLS A BRAZILIAN BRAND SPREADING ITS WINGS An original creation by Brazilian UP! Content, Bubu and the Little Owls are currently on multiple platforms, in different formats and languages, contributing to the educational process of children from many countries around the globe. Due to the excessive amount of information available these days, parents are increasingly worried about what kind of content reaches their children, especially the youngest ones, who are going through their personality formation process, when doubts and curiosities are frequent. Sharing the same concerns, ‘UP! Content’ - a content creation and brand licensing company belonging to the Uatt Group - created the animated series Bubu and the Little Owls. The cartoon aims to help parents throughout the process of educating their children by focusing on interesting teachings about nature and important ethical, social, and family values, always in a fun and positive way. With original songs and forest scenery, the series’ first season - which premiered in January 2018 on Disney Channel and Disney Junior in all Latin America, as well as on TV Cultura in Brazil and on the Playkids online platform - comprised 26 eleven-minute episodes, with dialogues and scenes that cover everyday situations, such as the dangers of leaving home without parents, how important it is to always speak the truth, the benefits of
being an organized person etc. Season 2, featuring the same format and number of episodes, is already under production and has its premiere scheduled for the second half of 2019. The story revolves around Bubu, a little owl who lives in the ‘Forest of Los Arboles’ along with her siblings Biel and Bonie and their parents. Often at the head of the group, Bubu and company make discoveries and embark on adventures! Each character has a specific characteristic. Bubu is creative, fun and fearless. Biel, her twin brother, is super observant and shows his sense of companionship and sensitivity by caring for his sisters while trying to come up with ingenious and intelligent inventions. As for Bonie, the youngest one, she hasn’t even left the egg completely but is so full of energy, super affectionate, and has her own special way to communicate. The Bubu Universe was conceived by the heads of Uatt - the largest Brazilian giftware company in the multi-brand market. “We realized that we were lacking a cartoon that could help parents on the journey of educating their children, as it was a need we felt ourselves. We thought: why not create a character that would deliver this type of content to children? And so, Bubu was born”, explains Bruna Biasotto, executive director and content researcher at ‘UP! Content’. According to Rafael Biasotto - CEO
of the ‘Uatt? Group’ and founder of UP! - in addition to family values, the series pillars lay on the coexistence with nature and respect for the environment, as well as the use of animation to convey educational content: “Each episode allows children to recognize and connect with the conflicts that the Little Owls live and with the values that are taken into account for decision making. We took advantage of the characters’ potential and boosted the success that the Little Owls already had as a product by turning them into communicators of solid and important values as an animated cartoon. Before becoming an animated series, the characters from Bubu and the Little Owls sold more than a million items at physical and virtual stores, and the natural path was for ‘Uatt’ to found ‘UP! Content’ in order to create, license, and develop content related to the series. UP! currently has 30 active licensees spread around the world. While its products are mostly distributed in Brazil, Mexico and China, Bubu and the Little Owls, is currently being shown around the globe: in Latin and North Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Such expansion required the series to be translated into four languages: Portuguese, Spanish, English, and Chinese, accumulating fans and impressing markets everywhere.
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RAINBOW RANGERS ON NICKELODEON LATIN AMERICA On the heels of the recent news that Nickelodeon has greenlit season two of Genius Brands International’s flagship animated series, Rainbow Rangers . Nickelodeon Latin America has licensed season one (52 x 11’) of the series to debut in August on the Nick Jr. channel, and available to stream beginning in June on its NOGGIN preschool mobile app. Rainbow Rangers will be dubbed in Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese. A rescue-based series, Rainbow Rangers follows the adventures of seven girls who are Earth’s first responders, protecting people, animals, resources, and the natural beauty of our world. Since premiering on Nickelodeon’s Nick Jr. in the U.S. in November 2018, the series, which airs Monday through Friday in the afternoon, and on Sunday mornings, has consistently retained its audience and grown from its leadin shows across a variety of different time periods in which it has been
placed for broadcast. Rainbow Rangers continues to garner top ratings in the key demos of girls and boys ages 2 – 5 and 6 – 11. “We are excited to add Rainbow Rangers to Nick Jr. and Noggin’s roster of hit content,” commented Migdalis Silva, Vice President of Programming and Acquisitions for Nickelodeon Latin America. “This colorful and magical series is sure to captivate our preschool audience with its engaging characters and their thrilling adventures while creating awareness
about environmental responsibility. We look forward to the success of the series on Nick’s platforms in the region.” Zasha Robles, Director of Spiral International, Genius Brands’ exclusive content distribution agent in Latin America, commented, “Rainbow Rangers is a light-hearted story that will help open the children’s imagination. We have no doubt that the series is going to be a massive hit in the hands of such an experienced team at Nickelodeon Latin America.”
To subscribe to Total Licensing’s online edition, free of charge, visit www.totallicensing.com/subscribe.html EXPANSION FOR REDIBRA Redibra was founded in 1963, as the agent of the Walt Disney Company in Brazil.The creator of the Disney Babies program, Redibra was globally recognized for its success. In 1994 Disney took over the licensing operations in Brazil and, Redibra returned to the market with a boutique approach and the belief that the market was ready for a new and enhanced business model. Today, Redibra handles a number of properties including Coca-Cola, Nintendo, FOX, Paul Frank, Chevrolet, Caprichio and Balinha Pintadinha (Lottie Dottie).The company has been nominated this year to the LIMA Awards in “Food / Beverage, Restaurant” licensing category, with a successful case study using Coca Cola. Amongst their brand highlights are Coca-Cola signed to Monte Carlo, a local Brazilian jewely company, Nintendo signed to Havainas, The Simpsons and C&A in a carnival promotion with Duffman, Paul Frank with Foroni and Sestini for a strong back to school program, Caprichio and Cacau and Galinha Pintadinha who signed with DTC toys.
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Feeling the Brand Buzz...
How Pop-Ups and Brand Experiences are Generating Fresh Consumer Connections in an Increasingly Digital World. By Lisa Reiner, Managing Director Beanstalk Europe and Asia-Pacific
The “brand experience” is no longer a new concept. More and more brands, across multiple business sectors, are recognising the advantages of developing memorable, immersive experiences as another vehicle to engage consumers. The unexpected, limited and often exclusive nature of these experiences provide brands with an alternative way to make noise in the rapidly-changing and crowded retail environment.
Brand extensions have traditionally involved the creation of new products. Expansion through experiences requires additional considerations to insure the consumers’ expectations of the brand are being met. In today’s digital world, translating a brand’s core equities into relevant, ‘Instagramable’, moments to connect with consumers is critical, and, in fact, creating social media buzz is frequently the driving force behind the creation of pop-ups and more permanent brand experiences. Experiences that immerse consumers with a brand may include popups, festivals, theme parks and hotels to name a few, and these can be developed through a licensing model or through brand investment as a marketing activity. Over the holiday period last year, Beanstalk client Baileys®, the world’s No 1 liqueur brand, opened its highly anticipated “Baileys Treat Bar” pop-up for the second time in London. Building on the
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brand’s objective to be the number one “Grown Up Real Treat”, the Treat Bar hosted an indulgent getaway for visitors. From salted caramel espresso martinis, to chocolate reindeers filled with Baileys, the pop-up provided an alpine-themed space where guests could let their imagination run free and treat themselves with personalised drinks, gifts and delectable Baileys chocolates by licensee Lir. The attraction also featured a cosy snug area with neon signs, candy wallpaper, message walls and an infinity mirror, which actively encouraged visitors to create and share social media moments. It should also be mentioned that digitally native brands (DNBs) are going off-line to create experiences in the real world that produce tangible moments for consumers. Examples of this include online furniture retailer Wayfair, who invited shoppers in their homes to explore the unlimited possibilities enabled by its flagship e-commerce site through two pop-up stores in New Jersey and Massachusetts for the Holiday 2018 season. Mattress brand Casper recently partnered with Nordstrom to participate
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in its Sleep@Nordstrom experience, whereby consumers were offered a carefully curated collection of products and brands devoted to helping them find everything they need “to achieve the best rest and relaxation possible”. Even large technology giants such as Google and Facebook have used brick-and-mortar to deepen connection with consumers. Facebook partnered with The Market@Macy’s to showcase products from 100 small businesses and on-line brands, thereby promoting itself as a supporter of fledgling and digitally native brands. Building on the tremendous brand loyalty behind adventurer and global television personality, Bear Grylls, a Beanstalk client, “The Bear Grylls Adventure Park” opened in partnership with Merlin Entertainments at Birmingham NEC in September 2018. The park is designed to allow the visitor to experience real-life challenges that the survival expert has faced, such as indoor skydiving, shark diving and climbing the highest free-roam high ropes in Europe.
quer their own Everest. Never give up.” There are also examples of great pop-ups that purely create media attention and do not always relate back to the brand’s core offerings but still generate interest from consumers. An example is Staples’ “Pop-up Happiness Experience” which was held in London on Blue Monday, the third Monday of January, and the so-called “most depressing day of the year”.The objective was to give office workers a happiness fix. Although Staples’ popup did not extend its core equities of providing stationary solution to industry professionals, it gave guests some-
thing to smile about with puppies to cuddle, massages, healthy snacks and other enjoyable elements. As experiential marketing gets more innovative and brand experiences more prolific, the question must be raised on what will brands do in the future to stay ahead of the curve and how will they continue to compete for and win the consumer’s attention? In the meantime, a brand experience that offers something unique whilst being engaging and memorable to consumers remains a key ingredient to a successful, engaging marketing strategy.
Bear Grylls said, “The scale of challenges that can be found at the Bear Grylls Adventure are truly mind blowing and it allows millions of others to find the courage and tenacity to con-
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The Rise and Rise Toy Influencers Toy influencers can reach millions of fans and are a potential goldmine of opportunity for the licensing industry
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Eavesdropping on a conversation between two women with their children the other day in a café, I heard one of the mothers recounting, in utter bafflement, how the only time her four-year-old son will sit still is watching videos on YouTube – unboxing videos. She said she thought there had to be something ‘more’ to these videos, but no – her child was fascinated by watching children he has never met unbox and play with toys. The two nodded together sagely and wondered how times had changed so dramatically in the last twenty, or even ten years. Technology and trends often seem out of reach to parents who will recall, perhaps to the music of the Hovis advert, how they grew up playing with toys, not watching screens; how they didn’t know what an iPhone was, how they were always running around outside. How children are just growing up too fast. However, what they might not know is that, when referencing Ryan ToysReview, that the eponymous Ryan,
seven years old, made a staggering $11 million in 2018. He is followed by 13 million on Instagram and 11 million on facebook. His videos have reached over 46 million views on You-
Tube. These astronomical figures may indeed baffle those of us who grew up without YouTube and such things as ‘toy influencers’ – but the ethos of play and imagination is still very much
TOTAL LICENSING there. It just comes through a different medium. And there are hundreds of these influential little people! What better way, indeed, to decide if you like a toy, or want your parents to buy a toy, than watching someone play with it and give it an honest review? As there are hundreds of influencers, this is a veritable goldmine of opportunity for the licensing industry. Never in years before has marketing to the right audience been so direct. We’ve seen it for a long time – when a member of the Kardashian clan, for example, wears something and puts a snap of herself on Instagram, her millions of followers see it instantly. Product sales go up. Sometimes these are paid partnerships, sometimes not.
In 2017, Ryan’s parents signed a deal with pocket.watch for Ryan’s YouTube channels, and last year pocket.watch and WildWorks created an app called Tag. In 2018, Walmart released the first line of Ryan toys. Ryan Toys Review and pocket.watch have also produced a 20-episode television series for pre-schoolers which debuted in April of this year. However, the monetary scale of influencers can be hard to quantify, and millions of fans do not necessarily equate to millions of dollars in revenue.
The influencers that are seeing real business success are the ones that have the ring of authenticity. Kids aren’t stupid – they know if their little idol is enjoying the toy, and they know that if an adult put out a message telling them they like this toy, their attention would wander elsewhere. The unboxing trend has of course gone hand-in-hand with the rise of collectibles at retail. The element of surprise is what keeps the video, and the toy, fun. Children and their natural curiosity, as well as instinct for play and fun, mean that unboxing videos are becoming a strong element in a purchasing decision. And what better way of reaching millions? KidToyTesters, a joint channel run by five siblings, creates content that is fun and kid-friendly. The children test out different games every week and upload their reviews on their channel. These kid influencers also engage their 3 million subscribers through giveaways and challenges.. Their most popular video is the one where all of the kids recreate a scene from “The Little Mermaid.” It has garnered over 38 million views.
They produce videos that earn them around $3,000 to $20,000 per sponsored video. California brothers Gabe and Garrett, 11 and 9, introduce their audience to new games through their YouTube channel, reviewing everything from Power Wheels to Sidewalk Cops. JANGBRiCKS, reviewing popular Lego sets and bundles, has over a million subscribers on YouTube. Brittany the Toy Reviewer takes a look at many different kinds of girls’ toys that are both popular and indie, including some that aren’t dolls or figures. She reviews everything from Barbie and My Little Pony to food sets and kids make-up. While you can definitely watch Brittany’s reviews for the latest on traditional properties,, some of her videos cover alternative toys like food making sets and make-up bundles for kids. Nicole Sykes saw over three million views of her video unboxing Num Noms, Shopkins, and Smooshy Mushy. She has also done slime and putty reviews for the many members of her ‘Sykes Squad’. On doing some research for this article, I got lost down the rabbit hole of unboxing videos. They are colourful, fun, noisy and appeal highly to children – even if it might seem like a different language to their parents. And increasingly, the licensing industry is seeing the great value in the reach and influence of these pint-sized power houses. Now, if you will excuse me, I’m just heading back to YouTube to watch with increasing envy as Ryan gets to play all day long!
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THE With so much more content coming from non-traditional forms today, it can be difficult for licensees to judge where the next ‘big thing’ might come from. Streaming services, such as Netflix, Amazon, HULU, Now TV and Starz have now become household names. Disney is meant to be releasing its on SVOD service later this year, and it remains to see what effect the powerhouse’s own streaming service will have on the rest. Apple and Warner SVOD launches are also anticipated. Netflix, which now puts out around 50/50 between licensed and original content, seems to be releasing a new Netflix Original every day. With so much content arriving to keep audiences constantly entertained, this has left the licensing industry in something of a dilemma. The Netflix Effect also refers, of course, to the quick peak and trough of popular shows. Remember, thirty years ago, when a blockbuster movie was set for the summer launch and the merchandise plans were finalised and retail shelf space knew where it was? Times are different now. Event-level television still exists – you only have to whisper ‘Game of Thrones’ to know this – but on the streaming services, content can be picked up and dropped at the user’s will. Making it hard for licensees to know what on earth to place their bets on.
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EFFECT Added to this it has been notoriously difficult, over the years, to get statistics from Netflix, meaning that companies might feel like they are entering into a deal with no substantial back-up. This is not to say there have not been deals – Stranger Things saw a range of apparel released by H&M, for example. Netflix now has started to release viewership numbers, adding an ele-
ment of security for those looking to enter into licensing deals. Netflix’s subscriber base increased 25.2% from a year ago to 148.8 million in March 2019. Statistics released include Umbrella Academy with 45 million views in its first month of airing, and The Highwaymen, with 40 million. But where Netflix has really upended the terrestrial television era, the fu-
ture looks like there will be a crowded, competitive market where content, as ever, will be key. Green Gold Animation has announced the successful launch of ‘Mighty Little Bheem,’ a break-through, 3D-animated series now streaming on Netflix. This is the first story-telling animated, preschool adventure to be released on Netflix based on life in India and the adventures of Bheem, a toddler who has super-power strength and a supersized appetite to go with it. This non-verbal, slapstick series, ‘Mighty Little Bheem’, is the first preschool series of the popular ‘Chhota Bheem,’ an established franchise in India. Both shows are being streamed on Netflix in over 190 countries. Of the countries that launched ‘Mighty Little Bheem,’ the response has been significant across geographies including the US, Latin America, UK, Australia, Canada and India. Mighty Little Bheem is now one of the top streaming shows on Netflix. 9 Story Distribution International has entered into an agreement with Vancouver-based Slap Happy Cartoons to acquire the animated series The Hollow, aimed at children 8 and up. Following its worldwide Netflix premiere, 9 Story Distribution has retained all other distribution rights worldwide. The first season of The Hollow premiered June 2018 on Netflix and has received widespread critical acclaim for its edgy, serialized storytelling.
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About The Insights People It has been quite the eighteen months! The Insights People launched Kids Insights UK in May 2017. Since then, we have continued to grow and expand, and have Kids Insights in US, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, and we of course have Parents Insights UK as well/ Our vision was to become the most comprehensive and dynamic market intelligence resource on all thing’s kids, parents and families, not just in the UK but globally – and looking at where we are now, I would say we are on track to achieve that. We survey 1,600 kids aged four to 18 every single week, which is more than 80,000 every year across 6 countries. Parents Insights surveys 200 expecting and new parents up to the age of 4 every week, or 10,000 different parents a year, too. We work with some of the most respected research panels in the world to collect our data, all of which is collected ethically and compliant with GDPR and COPPA legislation. Due to the frequency with which we survey
and the size of our data sets, our results have 99% statistical significance too. This ensures our survey findings are independent and unbiased, meaning our clients receive a fair, full and honest picture of what is important in the world of today’s kids and parents. As we are providing this information in real-time, with expert insights into flash and global trends, every quarter, our approach means that we are recognised as the go-to insight company by some of the world’s biggest brands such as Guinness World Records, games business SEGA, toy manufacturer Hasbro, trading card company Topps and broadcaster Turner. We do this because we firmly believe market intelligence has never been more important. It is our belief that the sector has failed to innovate and continues to produce market research which relies on small data samples which are often out-of-date. Instead, our vision is to be the market intelligence company of the future today – by innovating, being agile, utilis-
By Nick Richardson, founder and CEO of The Insights People
ing technology to provide clients with access to the most comprehensive and dynamic market intelligence.
The benefits of this approach This means our clients have the most up-to-date research available to help inform their decision-making at crucial times of the year in the runup to major events such as Easter, the summer holidays, Halloween and Christmas. Our data and insights are
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TOTAL LICENSING used by brands, retailers and agencies to inform their: Advertising, Content, Licensing & Merchandise, Marketing, Product & Sales strategies.
Our data shows that children now have increased spending power, as 63% of kids now manage their own money, be it pocket money or savings accounts. Using data to inform licensing decisions
For further information on how Kids Insights can help and to receive a complimentary copy of their Future Forecast report visit www.kidsinsights.co.uk/ totallicensing
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When considering the potential of licensing tie-ins, our latest quarterly report, released at the end of October, found that video game purchases related to films have continued to increase to become the most popular merchandise across the 10-18 age group of both genders, accounting for 18% of purchases. Meanwhile, 53% of toy purchases for 4-9-year olds relate to film releases. It should be remembered that licensing opportunities in other areas exist too. We all know the brand licensing and merchandise industry is going through one of the most significant changes since its inception, with properties, manufacturers and retailers all aware that both agility and personalisation are required for this generation of consumers. The traditional model needs to evolve, and properties who identify and respond to opportunities quickly have a far greater chance to succeed. Our portal technology very much has this at its heart. The portal enables our clients to view, filter and analyse the data to their own specific requirements with the interrogation tools enabling them to identify specific relationships. For example, children who support Manchester United are more likely to buy related merchandise than any other sports team in the UK.
In addition, our data shows that children now have increased spending power, as 63% of kids now manage their own money, be it pocket money or savings accounts. The use of the pre-paid credit card for kids GoHenry has also doubled from 4% to 8% since the start of the year too, with a further 9% of children using other cash cards. Given children now increasingly have more financial independence, then if licensees ensure they license the sports teams, celebrities and media properties proving the most popular with kids, they could potentially generate significant revenue streams.
What’s next for The Insights People? Our new data portal launched in November, enhancing the offer to clients even further by offering more useful data, including cross-referencing with Office for National Statistics (ONS) in the UK and the National Census Bureau in the US to provide illustrative real-world numbers in addition to the percentages given in our results. We continue to build our US operation, and we were delighted to welcome the arrival of Nickelodeon’s former head of production, Howard Blumenthal, as a non-executive director. Howard brings significant and invaluable experience from both a broadcast, media, brand and agency perspective and we are actively recruiting as we look to expand our US operation in 2019. 2019 will also see our continued expansion into new territories and, with our award-winning portal technology,
The use of the pre-paid credit card for kids GoHenry has also doubled from 4% to 8% since the start of the year too, with a further 9% of children using other cash cards.
clients will be able to look at our data from a global or region-specific perspective – we will be releasing future details on our expansion in the coming months. Finally, our Future Forecast 2019 report has just been released, setting out what we believe will be some of the key trends to look out for. And with 9 out of 10 of our 2018 predic-
Video game purchases related to films have continued to increase to become the most popular merchandise across the 10-18 age group of both genders, accounting for 18% of purchases. Meanwhile, 53% of toy purchases for 4-9-year olds relate to film releases. tions coming to fruition, we are quietly confident that our form will continue for 2019! Before you prepare your 2019 strategies and budgets, and commit your spending for the coming year, I urge you to think about how in-tune you are with your audience and if you can afford to not be the first to know the latest trend or not be aware of the insights behind the data. For example, children between the ages of 4-6 who like Paw Patrol are 20% more likely to purchase Paw Patrol toys and games than those who prefer other shows. By choosing to license a different children’s TV show, you could potentially be missing out on a further 20% of revenue from, licensed products. Please do let us know if there is anything we can help you with by calling +44 (0) 330 159 6631 or visit www. kidsinsights.co.uk/totallicensing for further information.
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The economy of South Korea is the 4th largest in Asia and the 11th largest in the world. It is a mixed economy dominated by family-owned conglomerates called chaebols; however, the dominance of the chaebol is unlikely to last and engenders risk of slowing down the transformation of Korean economy for the benefit of future generations. South Korea is known for its spectacular rise from one of the poorest countries in the world to a developed, high-income country in just a few generations. This economic growth is called, by some, a miracle, and described as the Miracle on the Han River, which has brought South Korea to the ranks of elite countries in the OECD and the G-20. South Korea still remains one of the fastest growing developed countries in the world following the Great Recession. It is included in the group of Next Eleven countries that will more than likely dominate the global economy in the middle of the 21st century. On the following pages, we take a look at the South Korean licensing marketplace - a market now estimated
to be worth $1.8 billion at retail annually, and growing significantly. With a population of 51.4 million, 13.03% of whom are aged fourteen and under, South Korea’s per capita GDP is now $39,500 and growing at around 3% a year.
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TOTAL LICENSING By Hyon-Kyong Kim, President, KVISION INC.
Korean Contents Market 2019 Webtoons now leading the new Korean Cultural Wave Today’s Webtoon Market The domestic market size for Korean style manhwa comics in 2017 was one trillion Korean Won (approximately US$857 million) according to estimates from the Korean Contents Cultural Agency (KOCCA), a national government body. A separate body, the KT Economics and Management Research Institute, predicts that the webtoon market in 2020 will also be worth the same amount. Webtoons have only a small share of the domestic Korean market compared to mainstream content such as movies, publishing, online games, music and TV programs. However, in a shrinking market for traditional print manhwa comics, domestic webtoon consumption and its overseas export have increased, driving continued growth. In fact, all the indications are of more sustainable growth in the future.Three factors are behind this - (1) the combination of the emergence of platforms where webtoon creators can launch their content; (2) having access to more diverse ways to monetize large volumes of original content that
serves the expanding consumption needs of all age ranges; and (3) the ability to gauge the response of overseas markets.
Characteristics of Webtoons “Webtoon” is a Korean term given to an online reading content format that is available on the web or via mobile platforms. Each episode is less than five minutes in duration and delivered in weekly installments. Webtoon pages are in an easy-to-read format and pages can be quickly turned via a swipe of a mobile device or scroll of a PC screen. The short-form content is
perfect for the so-called “quick snack culture” type of content consumption popular now. In particular, the “anytime, anywhere” format of mobile webtoon services has increased accessibility for content and contributed to the explosive growth in consumption of thousands of titles. This trend has encouraged fandom, and webtoon creators who have become popular through their work enjoy a celebrity status that is beyond that of mainstream entertainers. The unique personalities of webtoon creators are highlighted by appearances on TV programs which increases their popularity even more and brings them closer to their fans. Webtoons consumption has created a strong common bond between the creators and the general public. Webtoons at first targeted a specific age demographic but now they appeal to all ages.The wide viewer demographic has made spin-off content possible in popular genres such as drama, movies, and games.
The Webtoon Ecosystem The ecosystem for webtoons is dominated by major internet platforms Naver and Kakao. However, smallto-mid sized platforms such as Lezhin Comics and Ktoon Episodes are gaining popularity. These mid-sized platforms offer enticing webtoon sto-
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TOTAL LICENSING entire number of Japanese manga titles ever produced. A wide range of fans have emerged particularly for epic drama installment type webtoon content but the characters that appear have not generated a strong following. So generally, it has proved difficult to develop character merchandise licensing programs as a result. One exception is “Yumi’s Cells” where licensed products have sold very well. Merchandise licensing for webtoons is forecast to grow because of the diverse variety of content and age targets.
Webtoons in Global Markets
rylines and/or better incentivized payment schemes for creators including fixed income contracts and revenue share programs. The smaller players have displayed good growth because they look after their webtoon creators. Platforms catering to specific genres such as adult content, women-focused content and romance have also emerged and these have become gateways to webtoon success for new creators. Remuneration originally started either as one-off payments for specific quantities of webtoon installments or a standard advertising revenue share. Now, it has evolved into a system whereby creators get a larger income from the sale of subsidiary rights e.g. for movie and drama. The licensing business has been steadily increasing too.The entire ecosystem has encouraged cooperation with webtoon creators to produce rich and varied selections of content across many specialized themes.
Webtoon Stories and Characters Different webtoon platforms have different markets. Naver focuses on the ten-to-twenty-yearold demographic who like fantasy and high school story themes. Kakao has
Naver Webtoons has relied on LINE, the mobile messaging platform to distribute webtoons internationally with a focus on Asian markets and its growth has been striking. Naver Web-
an older audience of twenties-to-forties who like long-form epic drama with strong storylines. While the consumption market share is low compared to Naver, Online Webtoon portals Kakao’s content is widely used for film and drama https://comic.naver.com/webtoon/weekday.nhn adaptations. Lezhin Comics and other platforms’ http://webtoon.daum.net/ webtoons are also licensed to garner consumhttps://www.lezhin.com/ko er attention. The reverse has also happened for Kakao Page where a popular web-based novel was adapted into a toons is especially popular in markets webtoon, which attracted a great mar- where LINE has a strong user base inket response. cluding Indonesia, Taiwan, Hong Kong According to one specialist in the field, annually about 5,000 webtoon titles are created, which is the same as the
and Thailand. Kakao and Lezhin Comic use China’s Tencent and other platforms. Growth in China has been remarkably sustainable despite the political sensibilties that can make it difficult to export content to China. Expansion into western markets such as the U.S. and Europe has also exceeded expectations. With care being taken to develop webtoon fan bases in Europe building on the popularity of K-Pop and Korean culture, the future looks bright for webtoons as a new form of successful content to lead the Korean cultural wave.
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TOTAL LICENSING Korean news provided by Top Licensing Asia
ROBOT TAEWKWON AT JISAN ROCK FESTIVAL Robot Taewkwon will collaborate with the Jisan Rock Festival this year. Innocean Worldwide announced that the agreement for developing the internal landscape of Jisan Rock Festival was concluded as Robot Taewkwon was selected as the main character to represent the Rock Festival. Working with D2 Global Company, the owners and producers of the 2019 Jisan Rock Festival, Innocean, who own Robot Taewkwon licensing have planned to present Robot Taewkwon V to appeal to both the
older nostalgic market and the younger generations. Innocean explained, “Both Robot Taewkwon V and the Jisan Rock Festival will be considerably invigorated by providing visitors with a diverse products group and an internal landscape developed with the theme of Robot Taewkwon V which has a long history and huge recognition in Korea.” The 2019 Jisan Rock Festival will be held at the Jisan Forest Resort, Icheon-si Gyeonggi in South Korea for three days, July 26 to 28.
GOOLYGOOLY FRIENDS IN LARGE-SCALE COLLABORATION Having created a major collaboration for the Winter Festival with COEX Mall last year, goolygooly friends will be the subject of a major promotion with SPC Group beginning next January. This collaboration will take place across six SPC Group companies including Paris Baguette, Baskin Robbins, Dunkin Donuts, Jamba Juice, Pascucci, and Samlip Bread Promotional products will be presented by each company, namely, mini humidifiers from Dunkin Donuts, coin banks with figures by Baskin Robbins and Paris Baguette.
Wet tissue products for infants will debut in February and Dong-A Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. is set to launch Garglin for children in April. Further diverse collaboration products such as tissues, toothbrushes, cosmetic cotton, slippers, etc are to be launched worldwide in Watsons stores.
KATURI RETURNS Applauded by audiences, the musical Katuri – Birthday Party with Korean Rat Snake is set to return.. The Seoul performance was held in Yongsan Art Hall Grand Theater Mir from April to May. The first musical launched last October and was rated as the best family musical ranked on Interpark and the Kopis box office. A 5m super large Korean rat snake train appeared for the first time on the stage. Besides the Korean rat snake, new animal friends like frog, etc. appeared, providing diverse scenes and spectacles which were enjoyed by the audiences.
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The 2019 Asia Content & Entertainment Fair in Gwangju (2019 Gwangju ACE Fair) will take place from September 26 to September 29 at the Kimdaejung Convention Center, located in Gwangju, Republic of Korea. Main exhibition categories include Broadcasting, Animation, Game, Character, Knowledge Information, Content Solutions, and Culture Content Licensing. As Korea’s most comprehensive cultural content exhibition, Gwangju ACE Fair continues to expand into industries relating to entertainment and welcomes participation from new and emerging categories.The ACE Fair Secretariat and the Gwangju Information & Culture Industry Promotion Agency (GITCT) have been supporting the growth and development of local companies. For a complete list of companies that are part of the GITCT incubator program, please visit their website at http://www.gitct.kr/eng/. Animalgum HamaHama by Sangdan Studio
Space Bug By Studio W.BABA
The best type of gluttony! Load and Hoody’s gluttony and fitness trainer. Woopy who tries to stop them. Will the heroes meet their goals and escape from the gym?
A space station lost in space. Cricket Hakase and spider Marubo awaken the chironomid Midge from a long sleep. Midge and his friends leave the space station. The insects’ space adventure to return to planet Earth begins.
Jurassic Cops By Studio Button
Pimpim By Pingo Entertainment
Baron Munchhausen is a historic showman. His show is a mix of illusions and scientific demonstrations. It portrays a unique discovery that challenges the minds of the audience.
65 million years ago, 5 members of Jurassic Cops locked the Death Varian on the moon. Today, Jurassic Cops in the form of vehicles live on earth. The leader, Dr Joo, appoints Gongchan as a Jurassic Commander.
Day by day Aram and friends take a trip and make new friends. Whenever they encounter something new they face emotions and learn how to express them through dance and music.
Roger and Goldi By e-motionbooks Inc
Storm Warriors By Studio Navy Co Ltd
Nana’s Family By GoldFrame Studios
Humans and AI - a crossroads of survival and evolution. A journey to find reasons and origins.
Heneul, Hyesong and Eunha try to be the best Dron Battle Fighter player in the world. The friendship and confrontation between three friends is explored.
A charming novel story about a genius girl Nana and her cute robot friends.
Monster Mansion By Xin Animation
Bread Barbershop By Monster Studio
Duda & Dada By Eyescream Studio
The tale of Mori and Jiri, the guardians of the mansion who protect the pyramids from Dori and Gulta.
The premium bakery in Seoul where bread and desserts compete to be displayed. So the burned and ugly bread can’t go onto the display stand.
The story of how a young happy go lucky mole, Duda, discovers the world above ground and befriends an explorer, Dada.
Fairytale Adventures By Culture Planet There are fairy tales in Story Lane. However the villains always try to interfere with their imagination. Despite this, can the elves send the books safely to the children? Mindblowing Breakthroughs By Grafizix
Pricing and registration available at www.acefair.or.kr Please direct all inquiries to the ACE Fair Secretariat (e-mail: os@acefair.or.kr phone: +82-62-611-2247) 136
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CJ ENM’S HAUNTED HOUSE - A KOREAN CASE STUDY For children in South Korea, a little green goblin called Shinbi from an animation called The Haunted House is well-known as the “Tween’s choice”. As one of CJ ENM’s in-house productions, it broke the highest record in the history of Tooniverse (Korea’s No.1 children’s channel) since 1995. Ratings peaked at 10% with a share of over 50% among 4 - 13yrs. This strong viewership among kids is based on its distinctive characters including Shinbi and ghosts with ‘unresolved dramatic stories.’ This popular series is now actively expanding its visibility for its local audiences via a musical, movies and games, as well as building its robust licensing line up of consumer products.
Impressive Growth of Master Toy Aurora World, the master toy company for The Haunted House, has launched an augmented reality card game along with mainstream toys such as a ghost ball, figurines and plush. Featuring a ‘horror’ concept within the game, this new line has totally overtaken the market, giving the first quarter revenue a growth rate of 540% compared with the same quarter last year.
Active Retail Presence with Major Licensees The growth of the Haunted House is driving major licensees to sign across a number of categories from fashion
accessories and household goods, to even F&B. The leading outdoor brand Black Yak launched The Haunted House Backpack Collection during the Back-toSchool season, which sold out in just three months. This impressive sales record led Black Yak to release apparel lines featuring The Haunted House. LG Household & Healthcare launched toothpaste and other oral products for children, and for F&B, Lotte Foods launched a special edition of confectionery and ice cream via Korea’s leading e-commerce website and broke the sales record among the categories. Samsonite is preparing to release travel products soon.
Expansion throughout Diverse Categories Back to School products including tableware, souvenir sets, cups, etc., have also been available since last January. The Haunted House licensed items ranked #1 among the infant tableware categories. In terms of publishing, six licensees have published more than 60 SKUs, exceeding a million units sold. CJ ENM also released alkaline batteries and children’s mouthwash with the Shinbi characters. In terms of batteries, sales overtook those of Brexel and Energizer at the MegaMart.
Expansion into Musical, Movie, Drama, and Game Besides merchandising deals, The Haunted House has also developed into a live-action musical spin-off, as
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well as games. The Haunted House musical is the record-breaking kids live musical, which maintains its number-one position in terms of family musical sales. After launching two shows successfully, The Haunted House musical will be back with all-new show this summer. The Haunted House: The Secret of the Cave is a feature-length special , and ranked as the sixth top animated films ever launched in Korea showing on more than 250 screens worldwide. The live-action drama The Haunted Memory is the spin-off from The Haunted House. It is set soon after the events of The Haunted House.The Haunted Memory also covers teens, with launches of new licensed apparel and accessories. Shinbi has been transformed into a mobile game as well. The mobile game Ghost Hunter has two play modes - Puzzle and AR. It has been ranked #1 in all categories of Google Play in the first three weeks after its release and already has more than 2.6 million downloads. Six months after its launch, the number of monthly active users is ranked in the top 10. It is also preparing for a global launch in the second half of this year.
Pick up Total Licensing at The Korea Character Fair and the GwangJu Ace Fair
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SMILEY AND THE SOUTH KOREAN MARKETPLACE The Smiley Company has enjoyed some real success in South Korea in recent years. Barth Montarello, Sales
Director at Smiley, spoke about why this is, “Fashion is becoming a huge part of Korean city culture today, Ko-
reans aren’t content with simply consuming fashion anymore, they want to be a part of creating it and some of the creativity we see coming out of our streetwear-inspired fashion partnerships, are some of the best in the world.” “I think this is why Smiley is enjoying such success in the market today, our fashion lifestyle image seems to really resonate with South Koreans and our brand collaborations are also giving us great exposure at retail and with influencers. Smiley’s authentic message of happiness and positivity has a real impact amongst Asian people and these ingredients are helping us to develop some powerful top tier partnerships.” One such partnership has seen Smiley team up with Beanpole Sports, a leading young sports fashion brand in South Korea and a division of the Samsung Group. Beanpole created a dedicated capsule collection of 23 styles that sold across 90 standalone stores, featuring tops, bags, shoes and accessories for young men and women and the partnership was a resounding success. Montarello added “It’s activations like with Beanpole, that showcase the attention to detail in the market and the appetite for brand experiences amongst South Koreans. What we see from these types of partners is not just flawless product development, but also immersive and integrated marketing experiences to support their launches and this really engages consumers with the Smiley brand.” A great example of this was a huge year-long promotion Smiley had recently with department store giants Hyundai, which featured; in-store displays, out of home advertising campaigns and pop up events across 15 department stores and 5 outlets across South Korea. Smiley continues to take the South Korean market so seriously that the brand even recently launched its own fashion brand website - Smiley.co.kr
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TOTAL LICENSING By Alice Yang, Licensing Project Manager of China Toy & Juvenile Products Association and Daisy Wang www.tjpa-china.org
(Data source: China Licensing Industry Report 2019
CHINA LICENSING INDUSTRY REPORT 2019 RELEASED Retail volume of licensed merchandise in China reaches $12.7 billion As the fifth largest licensing market in the world, China has great potential to grow more impressively. The market is so big that it is always difficult to see into detail. To understand the rapidly growing licensing industry in China, China Toy and Juvenile Products Association (CTJPA) conducted a professional survey and issued the China Licensing Industry Report 2019 earlier this year. It is the only report in the world that focuses on the Chinese licensing market. This is the third year that CTJPA publishes such report. According to the statistics from the Report, the total retail volume of licensed merchandise in China in 2018 reached USD $12.7 billion, showing a 14.6% growth year-on-year. Profile of licensors in China According to the Report, 412 licensors (26.0% growth y-o-y) were active in the licensing market in China by the end of 2018. And 1,473 properties (42.7% growth y-o-y) and brands were involved in licensing in China as at the end of 2018. The top three popular properties by category were Entertainment (59%), Art& Design (16%), and Lifestyle & Fashion (15%). Also, more and more museums have joined in thanks to government encouragement and market demand. And museum licensing in China is more recognized as part of the art licensing category. The beautiful merchandise created by museums in the name of art licensing has become trendy and fashionable in China, and more high-end consumers prefer
Properties by Category
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Properties by Region
to choose these products to demonstrate their life style. According to the statistics released from Forbidden City, China’s largest museum, their retail volume of licensed merchandise had surpassed USD $223 million in 2017, and the volume of licensed merchandise reached over 10 thousand SKUs. Art licensing in China is growing. More popular properties in the licensing industry come from foreign coun-
have begun to explore more possibilities in the business. Profile of licensees in China Licensee companies in China cover many different industries, from traditional toys and apparel to the emerging theme space. Licensees have realized the value of properties and are more willing to invest in the licensing business. Overall Chinese licensees cover six-
Licensees by Industry Category
tries, taking 69% of the whole market share. US, Japan, South Korea and the UK are the top four regions. What is worthy of a mention, is that the properties regions are becoming more diversified than before. After over a decade of development, more and more international companies recognize the potential of the Chinese licensing market, and they are more willing to enter and explore the market.At the same time as the licensing market in China growing, more and more Chinese companies realize the importance of brand licensing, and
teen main industries. The top five licensee industries are toys (17%), apparel (14%), food & beverage (9%), gifts (7%), and themed space (7%). The most impressive growth goes to the category of food and beverage, which increased from 7% to 9% in the whole category in 2018. As the consumption became more competitive in the market, how to get attention from the consumers is a question manufacturers are thinking about every day. Brand licensing offers them an ideal way to be spotted immediately among all the similar products on the
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Increase of merchandise sales driven by licensing
Consumers’ behavior and licensed merchandise As China’s licensing industry is getting more mature and continuously increasing, its consumers who earn more money are more willing to spend money on what they want, instead of what they need. The most popular licensed merchandise sectors in the market were apparel (60.4%), toys (55.2%), and consumer electronics (51.4%).
shelf. More licensees in food and beverage are starting to cooperate with licensors to keep their market share and growth. Themed space also remains a trend in the industry. Themed exhibitions in the shopping mall, themed coffee bars, themed restaurants, themed convenient stores, themed planes and metro… all have witnessed a boom in recent years.
Purchasing by online channels
With theme parks, films, co-productions and retail shops, they’re creating an ecosystem to bring consumers in and foster a broader buzz and awareness, by themed space licensing alongside retail sales.
Price consumers are willing to pay for licensed merchandise compared with regular products
According to the investigation, the Report found there is a good increase in merchandise sales driven by licensing. More than one third of companies (36%) admitted that they have achieved a 20 - 49% increase in sales because of licensed merchandise.
Purchase by Category
Thanks to the smartphone, online purchasing is becoming easy for all Chinese people, and online shopping plays a big role in the licensed merchandise purchase too. When asked about the price which consumers are willing to pay for licensed merchandise compared with regular products, over 39 percent of the consumers questioned accepted a price that was 21-50 percent higher than generic products.
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Legally Speaking
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Licensees Beware the Transfer Clause By: Gregory J. Battersby and Edmund J. Ferdinand Most merchandising license agreements include as part of their “boilerplate” a provision that prohibits the assignment of the agreement to a third party without the consent of the licensor.
Some licensors will make approval conditional upon the transfer or sale of a majority of the licensee’s assets rather than a minority share which makes it a bit more palatable for the licensee.
The reasoning for such a provision is that most licensors look upon their choice of licensee as a personal choice, i.e., they have personally selected and vetted the licensee, and, as such don’t want the licensee to assign or transfer the agreement to a third party who the licensor might not otherwise want selling its licensed products.
There is also a growing trend among licensors, particularly the studios and sports leagues, to impose a “transfer fee” on the licensee as a condition for their approval of such a transfer. This is specifically aimed at licensees that are going public or are being acquired. Their rationale is that the enterprise value of the licensee has increased because of the the licenses and, as such, the licensors should realize a share of such increase. Such transfer fees are based on many different factors, including the amount of royalties paid during the past year or two by the licensee for all its licenses from the licensor. As such, it’s not uncommon to see transfer fees in the six and seven figures.
The reason why such “anti-assignment” provisions are included in license agreements is that license agreements, like other contracts, can typically be sub-licensed or assigned to third parties without the licensor’s consent absent an express provision prohibiting such assignment. Hence, most merchandising license agreements will so prohibit their assignment. An issue that has been of prominence in recent years involves the “transfer” of a license agreement, where it moves along with a corporation that was acquired by another corporation. In such event, no assignment of the agreement is typically required since it is not being assigned per se outside the realm of the corporate entity. To avoid this outcome (or at least assert some authority over it), many licensors expressly prohibit the “transfer” of the license agreement if control of the licensee changes hands. This provision can have serious consequences on a licensee who is seeking to be sold or go public since, at the very least, it requires the licensee to obtain the approval of the licensor before proceeding with the sale or public offering which would, at best, slow down the process or, at worst, bring it to a crashing halt depending upon the position taken by the licensor. Such a provision puts the fate of the licensee’s destiny in the hands of the licensor.
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Licensees beware! If a licensee knows that there is a possibility that it might be in play during the term of the license agreement, they should look long and hard at this provision and try to have it eliminated or at least minimized since, at the very least, it will slow down the ultimate transaction and potentially make it prohibitively expensive, particularly in those situations where the license agreement or agreements constitute a de minimis percentage of the licensee’s overall business operations.
Gregory J. Battersby Battersby Law Group, LLC 25 Poplar Plains Rd. Westport, CT 06880 (203) 454-9646 • (866) 579-9591 (Fax) gjbattersby@gbiplaw.com • www.gbiplaw.com Jed Ferdinand, Senior Managing Member, Ferdinand IP www.FerdinandIP.com NY Phone: (212) 220-0523 • CT Phone: (203) 557-4224
TOTAL LICENSING By Martin Brochstein SVP Industry Relations and Information Licensing International www.licensinginternational. org
Welcome to.... Licensing International Allow me to introduce you to Licensing International.
Those words indicate the culmination of a months-long process to forge a new identity for the organization that the licensing business has long known as the International Licensing Industry Merchandisers’ Association or, more simply, as LIMA. But this is more than a name change; it signals the launch of a new era for the association. So if you’re already a member of Licensing International, let me give you insight into why it was time to take fresh look at the brand. If you’re not yet a member, we invite you to take a closer look at the resources we offer, and how we’re addressing this ever-changing business. Through the years, LIMA has been at the center of the licensing industry, promoting best-in-class successes, supporting professional development of our members and inspiring commercial and creative excellence in licensing. For our membership, we serve an ever-growing global community by connecting members and brands across the world to the information and resources unique to our industry. Our new identity as Licensing International is symbolic both of the changes that have occurred in the licensing business over the past three decades – for example, the rise of experiential and location-based licensing means that we’ve gone well beyond the word “merchandising” -- and of the future path the association will forge on behalf of our members. Licensing has grown in so many
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ways during the 30+ years of the association’s existence, passing the $270B mark in 2017. What was once a business in which the vast majority of products were bought in North America – 70 percent or more – is now a more global enterprise, with North America now generating a bit more than half of revenue. So the “International” aspect of Licensing International acknowledges and celebrates the reality of that expansion, and looks forward to its continuation. With offices and representatives in 12 countries, we are committed to serving our members’ local needs as well as providing the information and tools their need to expand their business to other parts of the world.
The introduction of Licensing International comes in conjunction with several other changes. They include: Website Redesign – We’re in the midst of a total transformation of the LIMA website, which will be faster to load, easier to navigate, and a more intuitive tool to give you the latest industry news, access to key research, industry job listings and a host of other industry resources. In short, it will help users better plan and execute their strategies in a very competitive marketplace. Database Upgrade – At the same time, we’re installing a new Association Management System framework for the LIMA Database that will let us more accurately and efficiently understand and address members’ needs, and develop programs and products
that are meaningful to them and their businesses. A Truly Global Awards Program – For the first time, the hundreds of entries for the 2019 LIMA International Licensing Awards was judged by a roster of more than 150 judges that include a diverse mix of retailers, brand owners, licensees, agents, consultants and journalists from all over the world. The members of Licensing International then voted for the entries that made it through to the final ballot. Mark your calendars now to honor the winners on the evening of Tuesday, June 4. Stop by the Licensing International area at Licensing Expo in Las Vegas. You’ll see a new configuration that brings together information, meeting space and -- for the first time -- the educational offerings of Licensing University as part of the overall Expo experience. Our commitment to the advancement of the licensing trade keeps Licensing International pointed to the future. With innovations in technology, brand experience, and social platforms, we are reaching our members with streamlined communication, information and news. Our breadth of programming is also evolving to bring current market leaders and future professional generations together through shared industry experience and knowledge. With an unparalleled network worldwide, we continue to optimize the state and scale of the licensing industry for tomorrow. Welcome to Licensing International.
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Licensing Expo E3 Pitti Immagine uomo Fancy Food Show Children’s Media Conference India Licensing Expo Korea Licensing Fair Licensing Expo China Autumn Fair Licensing Expo Japan The Licensing Awards Mir Detstva Gwangiu Ace Fair Brand Licensing Europe MIP Junior MIPCOM Frankfurt Book Fair China Licensing Expo
June 4 – 6 June 11 - 13 June 11 - 14 June 30 - July 2 July 2 - 4 July 8 - 9 July 17 - 21 July 24 - 26 Sept 1 - 4 Sept 3 - 6 Sept 11 Sept 24 - 27 Sept 26 - 29 Oct 1 - 3 Oct 12 - 13 Oct 14 - 17 Oct 16 - 20 Oct 16 - 18
www.licensingexpo.com www.e3expo.com www.pittiimagine.com www.specialtyfood.com www.thechildrensmediaconference.com www.licenseindia.com/expo www.characterfair.kr www.licensingexpochina.com www.autumnfair.com www.licensingexpojapan.com/en www.thelicensingawards.co.uk www.mirdetstva-expo.ru/en www.acefair.net www.brandlicensing.eu www.mipcom.com/mipjunior www.mipcom.com www.buchmesse.de www.chinalicensingexpo.com/en/
FALL/AUTUMN 2019 ISSUE Key feature: Major Brand Licensing Europe Preview, Licensing in Spain Deadlines: Editorial: 19 August 2019 • Advertising: 5 September 2019 Contact:s: Editorial: Francesca Ash. francesca@totallicensing.com • Becky Ash. becky@totallicensing.com Advertising: Joanna Cassidy. joanna@totallicensing.com - Jerry Wooldridge. jerry@totallicensing.com
Anima ................................................................................67 Animaccord ................................................................19, 20 Asia TV Forum and Market .........................................147 Beano Entertainment ....................................................... 7 Bologna Licensing Trade Fair ......................................145 Born Licensing .................................................................11 Bulldog ...............................................................................13 Children’s Media Conference .......................................41 China Licensing Expo ...................................................141 Cyber Groupe .................................................................47 Discovery ..........................................................................49 El Ocho ............................................. 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 Expo Licensing Latam ..................................................123 Gwangju Ace Fair ..........................................................137 Kiddinx ........................................................................29, 81 King Features ...................................................................45 Konami Cross Media ................................................51, 53 Korea Character Licensing Fair .................................135 Licensing China ................................................................57 Licensing International .................................................150
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Licensing Japan .................................................................93 MIP Junior .......................................................................149 Mondo TV .........................................................................55 Rainbow Productions .....................................................33 Rainbow SpA .................................................................. 2, 3 Roi Visual ...........................................................................59 Santoro London ..............................................................25 SEGA Europe ...................................................................23 Sesame Street ..................................................................43 Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair ...........143 Smiley ................................................................................17 Studio 100 ........................................................................73 Sunrights ...........................................................................91 TF1 Licences ...................................................................... 9 The Licensing Awards ....................................................10 The Wiggles ........................................................................ 5 Those Licensing People .................................................31 Tonico/Ultra Zombies ....................................................27 Viacom Nickelodeon ........................................................ 1 List correct at time of going to press.
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