Including the Children’s Media Conference becoming ‘The Children’s Media Community’ for 2020 after event cancellation.
Source rounds up more news from the licensing industry across the globe from the week.
The Children’s Media Conference is temporarily becoming ‘The Children’s Media Community’ for 2020 in response to the cancellation of its planned event in Sheffield (due to take place from July 7-9) due to COVID-19. With a revised theme of ‘Still Here Right Now’, CMC will provide an ongoing service to all involved in the children’s media industry, offering a programme of webinars over the next few months, culminating in a virtual conference in July. The first online event is a focus on China, supported by the Department of Trade and Industry. A free of charge webinar on April 21 will look at how the Chinese market is reviving itself, with a focus on opportunities for international companies looking to work in the territory. Meanwhile, there will be limited slots on April 22 to join virtual meetings with key Chinese platforms and co-producers who are looking to work with British companies. Delegates will need to register interest with CMC and pay a fee of £50 (+VAT).
Online fashion retailer boohoo.com has launched the first Babybel licensed t-shirt. The deal with boohoo was brokered by Bioworld, signed as a licensee by Pink Key Licensing.
Silvergate Media‘s preschool animated series, Octonauts is making a splash in new markets, with recent broadcast deals introducing the show to audiences in Latin America and the Middle East for the first time. In a deal brokered by Panaderia, Mexico’s TV Azteca has acquired the broadcast rights to Los Octonautas, marking the property’s first major launch in the LatAm region, where the show debuted in October 2019 and is already demonstrating solid ratings in its timeslot. A recent broadcast deal with Spacetoon has also introduced the series to the Middle East. The agreement was brokered by 20too and saw the first episodes debut from March.
Wizards of the Coast has forged a collaboration with TOHO which will see iconic monsters from the Godzilla franchise coming to Magic: The Gathering. The new series cards will be a special feature of the upcoming set, Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths.
The Crayola brand has developed an At-Home Creative Hub where parents, teachers and children can access educational and crafting resources while they are learning remotely. The hub includes 100s of craft tutorials with complementary ‘how to’ videos and craft recipes, as well as free colouring pages and weekly at home inspirational emails.
Meanwhile, Crayola has also teamed with US ice pop brand, Popsicle on a new line of Popsicle Crayola Scribblers product. Children will be encourage to engage in creative play through upcycled Popsicle stick crafts.
WildBrain Television has appointed Katie Wilson to the role of vp, channels and curation. Katie joins the company in the newly created role from Corus Entertainment where she spent six years as director of programming, kids.
Brazilian retailer Lojas Americanas has signed an exclusive partnership with the emoji brand, Lotus Global and chocolate confectionery specialist Top Cau. The retailer is planning a major Easter celebration, selling 80g D’elicce chocolate eggs with one of six collectable emoji stickers inside, as well as a 160g egg with a ‘ZzZ’ lamp, referring to the sleepy emoji icon.
Australian-based toy company Headstart International has partnered with Chinese digital platform YouKu for the distribution of its upper preschool CGI series, Best Furry Friends.
Jetpack Distribution has secured deals for a host of shows from its catalogue. Discovery Kids (Middle East and North Africa) has boosted its preschool offer through the acquisition of pay TV rights for season three of Daisy & Ollie and season two of Emmy & Gooroo, while it has also bought non-dialogue comedy animation Bucky & Buddy; AMC Networks International (Central and Northern Europe) has picked up pay TV and VOD rights for Talking Tom and Friends, shorts from the same series and Talking Angela videos for its Minimax channels; WarnerMedia Entertainment Networks channels including Boomerang and Cartoon Network in Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Australia and New Zealand have also picked up series four and five of Talking Tom and Friends and Talking Tom Heroes; Super RTL has acquired the SVOD rights for Talking Tom Heroes; CITV has picked up Buck & Buddy; KIKA is on board with animated show Wolf; while United Media has bought the rights for Emmy & Gooroo, seasons one to four of preschool live action show Our Family, The Cul De Sac and comedy animation Barefoot Bandits.
Brand owner Bagdasarian Productions and Maurizio Distefano Licensing – which manages the licensing in Italy for ALVINNN!!! and the Chipmunks – have awarded a licence to Nestlé for the development of a themed ranged of water bottles. The Levissima Issima water bottles are illustrated with characters from the TV series, with five available to collect.
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