Including Acamar Films celebrating success in the toy category for its preschool hit, Bing.
Source rounds up more news from the licensing industry across the globe from the week.
Acamar Films is celebrating success in the toy aisles for its preschool property, Bing. The property is listed in the top ten fastest growing toy licences from January to June 2020 in the UK (according to NPD data). Golden Bear‘s initial toy line for autumn/winter 2019 was a big hit, with the soft toys, figurines and wooden puzzles proving to be the company’s fastest selling range in years. This has resulted in Golden Bear doubling the number of lines, while key retailers have doubled their listings going into autumn/winter 2020. In addition, 8th Wonder will be creating wooden toys, while MV Sports will launch wheeled toys for the brand.
Caroline Mickler has secured a deal with production group Argonon to develop a UK licensing programme for ITV’s hit reality show, The Masked Singer. Over 8.4 million viewers tuned in to see Girls Aloud’s Nicola Roberts crowned the winner of the first series, with a second series being planned. “This completely bonkers, unique and joyous family show has enormous appeal and we are looking forward to working with retailers and manufacturers to create ranges of product that fulfil fans’ appetite,” said Caroline.
Kids Insights has revealed a new webinar in collaboration with The Social Store taking place on September 17 at 4pm. Speakers will include Kids Insights’ founder and ceo, Nick Richardson, and Ian Shepherd, founder and ceo of The Social Store. The free webinar – Opportunities for Licensing & Retail in a Digital Centric World – will highlight the impact of technology and social media in the retail and licensing industries over the past few years. It will look to address the challenges which the retail industru faces with emerging technology, as well as the long lasting effect of COVID-19 and how the industry can evolve with the increase in online spend during this time.
Edutainment Licensing has been appointed as the licensing agent for the NSPCC’s brands, Pantosaurus and Buddy, and will be launching both at Festival of Licensing. The NSPCC’s Pantosaurus is a bright yellow friendly dinosaur known by millions that encourages parents, carers and teachers to #TalkPANTS and help to keep children safe from abuse. #TalkPANTS is an annual campaign created by the NSPCC that gives parents, carers and teachers the support they need to explain the Underwear Rule to young children aged 4-8 in a simple and age-appropriate way, without using any scary words or even mentioning sex. Each letter of PANTS provides a simple but valuable rule, highlighting that their body belongs to them, that they have a right to say no and that they should tell an adult they trust if they’re worried or upset. Meanwhile, Buddy is the mascot of the national children’s charity and is a bright green ‘speech bubble’ used to communicate the ‘Speak Out. Stay Safe’ campaign, which has so far reached 90% of primary schools nationwide.
Sonic Vault has appointed bRAND-WARD – the company launched by Jean-Philippe Randisi and Trudi Hayward last year – to offer music, special effects and voice-over services to content producers.
WildBrain CPLG has secured a deal with Polish streetwear brand PLNY LALA for a limited edition fashion range to mark the 70th anniversary of the Peanuts brand. The range – targeted at women – includes sweatshirts, t-shirts, dresses, tops and socks inspired by Snoopy and the rest of the gang.
Meanwhile, WildBrain Spark has inked a deal with Funrise Toys to support the launch of the collectable doll brand BFF Bright Fairy Friends with a digital-first content strategy. The two companies will be producing over 100 minutes of short-form animated and live action digital content for the brand on YouTube, with new episodes of the original series posting weekly. WildBrain Spark will also be executing a paid media campaign and handling channel management across the global English language channel, which has already received over 1.4 million views and 1.6 million minutes of watch time.
Crunchyroll made a series of announcements at its first Virtual Crunchyroll Expo. The company revealed a strong slate of new content and collaborations including Shenmue, an original anime series based on the hit SEGA game franchise. It has also teamed with Loot Crate, with two different crates being created – the Crunchyroll Crate and the Limited Edition Mobile Suit Gundam Life Crate. The Crunchyroll Store also released seven tropical themed shirts alongside an exclusive, limited edition ARTFX J Shoto Todoroki figure to celebrate V-CRX 2020. A slate of new anime series was also revealed including hotly anticipated horror anime series, Jujutsu Kaisen.
With the second season of The Boys beginning on Amazon Prime Video, Sony Pictures Consumer Products has launched a range of consumer products. These include apparel, accessories, collectable toys, costumes, novelty and home goods. The show’s initial wave of products is being sold on its home platform on the Vought International-themed storefront on Amazon.
Merchantwise Licensing has promoted Kerryn McCormack to gm licensing, while also welcoming Natalie De Freitas-Ariente as gm licensing and retail.
Brainbase has confirmed two new hires as the company continues on its recent growth trajectory. Gautam Godse has joined as svp of product and will oversee the expansion of Brainbase’s product offerings to further help brands manage and monetise their IP. Meanwhile, Henri Kroosmann arrives as vp of engineering with a remit including product optimisation, recruiting and positioning the company for long-term platform scalability.
US heritage tennis brand, K-Swiss is collaborating with collectable and digital collectable card game, Magic The Gathering. A limited edition trainer – Magic: The Gathering x K-Swiss Gstaad ’86 – has been inspired by the vanguard of strategy card games, with the popular Planeswalker acting as the design inspiration.
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