Category Archives: Highlight

Ocean Pacific brings California style to new Heelys designs


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Surf lifestyle brand Ocean Pacific, owned by Iconix Brand Group, has announced a new collection of footwear with Heelys, the original shoes with wheels, owned by BBC International. The collaboration will feature three OP styles, with the added Heelys’ wheel technology.

Ocean Pacific, previously a surfboard brand, became the first company to translate the West Coast surf culture into a lifestyle brand. The brand fuses sports, music, art, and fashion with an echo of the sand and streets of Southern California’s surf and skate culture. The styles will reflect the OP brand’s surf spirit and the Californian laid-back aesthetic, paired with the now-iconic Heelys wheel that gives the wearer the ability to go from sneaker to wheeled shoe by shifting weight on to the heel.

“We are excited to add Ocean Pacific to our portfolio of Heelys collaborations,” says Seth Campbell, Heelys Corporate President. “The west coast culture of the OP brand allows us to infuse our product with their great heritage designs and classic surf colouration — things we know resonate with our core consumers.”

“As we build upon the momentum of OP’s upcoming golden anniversary, we couldn’t be more excited about this perfect partnership,” adds Bob Galvin, Chief Executive Officer and President at Iconix Brand Group. “With OP’s history of bringing together sport and culture and Heelys dedication to adventure, we have brought together two brands who embody the importance of an active lifestyle for a fun collaboration that will appeal to fans of both brands.”

The Ocean Pacific x Heelys collab comes in three styles with ranging sizes: kid’s size 13-8 and adult’s size 9-13. The collection is available now, at www.Heelys.com

 

Genius Brands announces acquisition of WOW! Unlimited Media

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Genius Brands International, Inc. and WOW! Unlimited Media have announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement whereby Genius Brands will acquire WOW! for approximately US$53million in cash and stock.

WOW! Unlimited Media, based in Toronto, Vancouver, New York and Los Angeles, has built one of the world’s leading animation production companies producing for the top broadcasters and IP holders including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Sony, Hulu, Dreamworks, Moonbug, Peacock and Mattel. Based on the last twelve months (LTM) from July 2020-June 2021, the Company’s revenue and EBITDA were US$56.4million and US$5.1 million respectively, and its growing order book has over $62 million dollars of contracted production in the next year alone.

Andy Heyward, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Genius Brands, says: “The acquisition of WOW! substantially accelerates the financial growth of Genius Brands, delivering on our promise to shareholders to execute meaningful and accretive acquisitions, as we seek to rapidly consolidate the marketplace and become the foremost producer, broadcaster, and consumer product licensor of high-quality children’s entertainment in the world.

“I have known and worked with WOW! Chairman and CEO Michael Hirsh throughout my career, and there is nobody more talented, accomplished or well regarded.  His track record of many hits includes the first Star Wars animated programs, Magic School Bus, Care Bears, Babar, Johnny Test and Beetlejuice, among others.

“In addition to the animation productions of WOW! today and the exciting new brand brought to the table for Genius Brands, WOW! has a massive social media footprint across YouTube, TikTok, Giphy, and so on, expanding the Genius Brands kids’ audience demo into the lucrative teens and young adult marketplaces. The company has over 1 billion views per month on its Frederator YouTube Network, with over 2,500 advertiser supported channels, making it the number one talent driven animation YouTube Network.”

 

 

 

 

 

Signature Publishing partners with Cyber Groups Studios to launch standalone Gigantosaurus magazine

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Following the success of the two special issues of Adventures with Gigantosaurus earlier this year, Signature Publishing has partnered with Cyber Groups Studios to launch the new standalone Gigantosaurus magazine. Aimed at pre-schoolers, the title is based on the award-winning animated TV series and Jonny Duddle’s original book, published by Templar.

Gigantosaurus supports early-years learning through fun stories, puzzles, colouring and lots more interactive activities, while each issue comes with a Gigantosaurus toy.

Gigantosaurus follows the adventures of four dinosaur friends – Mazu, Tiny, Bill and Rocky – as they explore the prehistoric world, searching through jungles, rivers and more, hunting down the elusive Gigantosaurus and making new dinosaur friends along the way. The fun-filled adventure focuses on friendship and teamwork as each friend overcomes their individual fears. The hit TV series is available on Disney +, Netflix and Tiny Pop, and was rated Tiny Pop’s #1 show when the new series launched, reaching 1.95million viewers during the three-month period.

“With such a massive following and proven magazine sales we’re really excited to be working with Cyber Group Studios on a regular Gigantosaurus magazine,” says Editor Julie Patten. “Plus, it’s such a lovely timeless story, full of adventure, excitement, friendship and fun but, most important of all… the biggest, fiercest dinosaur of them all!”

Gigantosaurus magazine launches on 4 November, with the first issue priced at £4.99. It’s available nationwide at all good supermarkets and newsagents.

G FUEL launches Party Punch flavour to mark Sonic the Hedgehog’s 30th Anniversary

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Sega of America and G FUEL, The Official Energy Drink of Esports, has announced the latest flavour innovation in the G FUEL Sonic the Hedgehog collection: Party Punch.

Created in celebration of Sonic the Hedgehog’s 30th anniversary and inspired by the Sweet Mountain stage in Sonic Colors: Ultimate, G FUEL’s Party Punch tastes like fruity cereal, has only 15 calories and contains 140 mg of caffeine plus proprietary energy and focus-enhancing complexes for supersonic stamina.

The drink is now available for customers in the U.S. and select other countries to buy in powdered form in 40-serving tubs and limited-edition collector’s boxes, which include one 40-serving tub and one 16 oz shaker cup.

“What better way to celebrate 30 years of Sonic than with a party?” says Michael Cisneros, Manager of Licensing at Sega of America. “We’ve partnered with G FUEL to bring the celebration home with an all-new party punch flavour that will keep you moving. Toss some confetti, make some noise, and party like it’s 1991. We can’t wait for Sonic and G FUEL fans to give it a try.”

Party Punch is the third flavour that G FUEL and SEGA have co-developed and launched, with the first two flavours being Sonic’s Peach Rings and Sonic’s Chili Dogs.

G FUEL Party Punch is available now at gfuel.com.

 

 

The Panini Group to become exclusive trading card and sticker album partner of WWE

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The Panini Group and WWE have announced a multi-year agreement that will make Panini WWE’s exclusive trading card and collectible sticker partner. The agreement will begin in the first quarter of 2022 and will include multiple trading card products and a sticker album collection during the first year.

The first two product releases – 2022 WWE Prizm trading cards and a WWE Sticker Album – will coincide with the buildup surrounding WrestleMania, WWE’s biggest annual event, taking place on April 2 and 3 at AT&T Stadium in Dallas.

“We have aspired to become a WWE licensing partner for a long time and so we are extremely excited to be able to deliver to fans around the world an extended publishing programme,” says Panini Group Licensing Director Peter Warsop. “The WWE is an iconic brand and along with our own brands and in-depth International reach will ensure not only an explosive start to the relationship but a long-lasting trend of continued growth and excitement.”

“Panini has a 60-year history in sports and entertainment collectables and is a leader in the trading card space throughout the U.S. as well as in Latin America, Europe and Asia,” adds Scott Zanghellini, WWE Senior Vice President, Revenue Strategy & Development. “We believe that this partnership perfectly aligns our mutual interests in providing fans with exclusive collectibles and, ultimately, growing this category globally.”

 

Story House Egmont launches CoComelon Magazine

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Story House Egmont has launched CoComelon Magazine, based on Moonbug Entertainment’s successful preschool brand. The magazine aims to help preschoolers learn letters, numbers, and colours, and will cover important life lessons, providing parents with an opportunity to teach and play with their children as they enjoy the content together.

On YouTube, CoComelon is the no. 1 kids’ channel, the no. 1 educational channel, and the no. 2 channel worldwide. CoComelon garners 2.5 billion monthly views on YouTube and is adding to its 119 million subscribers every day.

On Netflix, CoComelon was 2020’s most watched show, and so far in 2021 it has been featured in the top 10 list for 258 consecutive days.

With further reach on BBC iPlayer, Cartoonito, Tiny POP and SKY Kids, this makes CoComelon the world’s most watched kids’ show, with the largest kids’ audience ever.

CoComelon is the latest addition to Story House Egmont’s pre-school portfolio which currently includes Thomas & Friends, Milkshake!, Ryan’s World, PAW Patrol, the UK’s no. 1 preschool magazine, and PAW Patrol EXTRA, which launched into the UK market in August this year. The launch issue comes with a Doctor Playset and complementary content inside the magazine which encourages young fans to ‘Play Doctors’. Issue 1 also includes 45 stickers alongside a tick-and-stick reward chart to incentivise all those mini milestones that young children achieve every day.

Over 14,000 retail outlets are stocking the magazine in the UK, enhanced by mass-market listings achieved across all major grocery, convenience, and discount outlets. Further promotional activity is happening in-store to celebrate the first issue at Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Co-op, and LIDL, to drive prominence and awareness among consumers.

“We are delighted to be launching the CoComelon magazine and sharing this joyful brand in a printed format with thousands of young families across our publishing network,” says Laura Adnitt, Story House Egmont Publishing & Brand Management Director. “CoComelon, with its mind-blowing reach and ‘of the moment’ relevance, is a wonderful addition to our publishing portfolio. We are incredibly excited by this new entry into the market and can’t wait to see the consumer reaction to CoComelon magazine.”

Katie Wilkinson, Publishing Manager for Moonbug’s EMEA Licensing Agent, ThePoint.1888, says: “To launch a new title into 14,000 retailers in the UK from the start is quite incredible and shows the immense popularity of CoComelon.  Story House Egmont have done an incredible job capturing the essence of this brand in a new magazine and are supporting with an exciting marketing plan.  I cannot wait to see this launch.”

CoComelon magazine will launch in UK, Poland, Sweden, Norway, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Croatia in 2021, with Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland all due to market in early 2022.

Pocket.watch partners with YouTube sensations The Onyx Family for new animated series, video games, apparel and more

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Kids and family entertainment company Pocket.watch today announced the wide release of animated comedy series Onyx Monster Mysteries and related games, merchandise and original music, marking an expansion of their successful ‘Onyx Family’ partnership.

Season 1 of the series, consisting of 12 episodes, will be widely released across dozens of streaming services just in time for Halloween. A special sneak preview of all 12 episodes of Season 2 is available exclusively on Amazon Kids+ beginning today and will go into wide release in December.

In Onyx Monster Mysteries, created by Albie Hecht, pocket.watch’s Chief Content Officer, and starring the Onyx Family (3.5 million subscribers), the Onyx Family is transformed into cartoon characters in an adventure series about the most endangered and misunderstood species in the world: monsters.

Onyx Monster Mysteries promotes diversity throughout the production, with the voice and musical talents of the Onyx Family as well as diverse production talent behind the camera. The show is proud to include the perspectives of showrunner Doreen Spicer (The Proud Family), Producer Jon Barnett and Creative Consultant Adrienne Lopez.

Fans can now stream Season 1 of ‘Onyx Monster Mysteries’ across 20+ platforms and Season 2 exclusively on Amazon Kids+.

The soundtrack of songs, all written and performed by the Onyx Family, is available across all major music services, including iTunes and Spotify, and weekly music videos featuring the animation will drop on the Onyx YouTube channel and across the family’s TikTok and Instagram accounts.

Four Onyx Monster Mysteries HTML mini-games, ‘Yeti Family Rescue,’ ‘Matchup!,’ ‘Spot the Difference,’ and ‘Word Search’ are available now on the pocket.watch mobile app.

Finally, Amazon will carry a brand new collection of Onyx Monster Mysteriesmerchandise, which includes t-shirts, sweatshirts, PopSockets, phone cases, and tote bags. Product is launching globally and available at amazon.com/onxyfamily.

“We are so lucky to get to work with the incredibly talented Onyx Family,” says Kerry Tucker, Chief Marketing and Franchise Officer, pocket.watch. “Onyx Monster Mysteries is an animated celebration of everything that makes this family so popular – music, humour, adventure and teamwork. At pocket.watch, we strive to create franchises that proudly represent our diverse global audience and we are thrilled to bring it to so many people, in such a unique way, through this many platforms at once.”

Amassing over 7 million social media followers, more than three billion views on their YouTube content and many more viewers more across major OTT platforms and streaming services including Hulu, Prime Video, and The Roku Channel, the Onyx Family consists of parents, Mirthell and Rita, and their four children Shalom, Sinead, Sade (Shasha), and Shiloh. Their mission is to reach families around the world to “Tell the Story, Feed the soul, Make them Laugh, Heal the heart.” Through funding community outreach programs, contributing to HBCU scholarships, and participating in various mission projects, their vision is to give back by inspiring families and children around the world to live out their greatest hopes, dreams, and aspirations.

The Onyx Family’s multi-million dollar portfolio includes videos, books, music, courses, podcasts, branded merchandise, consumable products, websites, speaking engagements, television appearances, animations, and streaming shows on multiple platforms and streaming services.

 

 

StoryToys announces New LEGO DUPLO Marvel collaboration for preschool app

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Team17, a global games label, creative partner and developer of independent video games and edutainment apps for children, has announced that its subsidiary StoryToys has partnered with the LEGO Group and Marvel Entertainment on the LEGO DUPLO MARVEL mobile app.

The new app will allow preschoolers to join Spidey, Captain America, Ghost-Spider and other heroes for learning adventures and imaginative play. Each activity will feature a play experience where kids can help their favourite Marvel hero save the day by shooting webs with Spidey and his Amazing Friends or rescuing a kitten with Captain America.

The LEGO DUPLO MARVEL app is aligned with the Headstart Early Learning Outcomes Framework to ensure it meets the developmental needs of 2–5-year-olds. Each activity will feature fun and engaging challenges to support learning and development skills including early maths, creativity, reasoning and problem-solving.

The LEGO DUPLO MARVEL app launches worldwide in 28 languages initially, with more to come in 2022. The app is now available for pre-order on the App Store and Google Play and will launch in December 2021. The LEGO DUPLO MARVEL app will be free to download and include additional content to purchase.

StoryToys has produced apps with many leading children’s brands, including LEGO, Disney, Pixar, Penguin, Warner Bros, Sesame Workshop, Hasbro and Nickelodeon. Key titles include LEGO DUPLO WORLD, Disney Coloring World, and Hungry Caterpillar Play School.

Viacom18 Consumer Products launches exclusive range of Garfield merchandise in India

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With 18 million social followers, global awareness of 92 per cent and licensed across 111 countries, Garfield – the lasagne-loving orange cat – is one of the best known entertainment icons in the world. In an endeavour to bolster Garfield’s fandom beyond television screens, Viacom18 Consumer Products is set to introduce an exclusive range of Garfield merchandise to bring young Indian fans and their families closer to their favourite character.

Over the past year, Viacom18 Consumer Products has appointed 10 new licensee brands across 10+ categories for apparel, accessories, eyewear, furnishings and more, aimed at both adults and kids.

“At Viacom18 Consumer Products, we have endeavoured to constantly expand our reach and build a portfolio of iconic characters and become the one-stop destination across multiple touchpoints for the fans in India,” says Mahesh Shetty, Head of Network Sales, Viacom18. “Garfield is an iconic and relatable character in the animation ecosystem for both kids and adults. The character’s quirky and honest appeal is unlike any other. Starting from a comic strip, Garfield has grown to become a globally sensational character. With the addition of Garfield to our products portfolio, we aim to get one step closer in our endeavour to provide our viewers with an opportunity to connect with their most-loved characters beyond screens.”

Mark Kingston, Senior Vice President, International Licensing, ViacomCBS Consumer Products, says: “At ViacomCBS Consumer Products, we aim to provide vital support to our consumers who have been trying to navigate through the unprecedented situation of the pandemic. As families are adjusting to the new normal, our team has been at the forefront to translate ‘content watched to products purchased’. With the launch of Garfield merchandise in India, we aim to bring truly unique products to the market that fans will enjoy and appreciate.”

 

 

The LEGO Group announces UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 partnership

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Today the LEGO Group announces a new partnership as National sponsor of the UEFA Women’s EURO England 2022. The partnership will see the LEGO Group sponsor the tournament hosted in England next summer and forms part of the company’s ‘Ready for Girls’ campaign that celebrates girls who are rebuilding the world through creative problem solving and challenging outdated gender stereotypes.

As a National sponsor of the tournament, the LEGO Group is planning a series of initiatives in the run-up to the tournament that will provide fun, interactive ways for fans to get involved. More details will be revealed in early 2022.

The tournament is due to be the biggest women’s European sport event in history and takes place from 6 July – 31 July 2022 in 10 stadiums, across nine cities in England. There will be over 700,000 tickets available, with extensive coverage of every game of the tournament on free-to-air television, radio and online. As part of its legacy, the tournament aims to inspire long-term, sustainable positive change in women’s and girls’ football.

A recent study from the LEGO Group and Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media found that girls feel less restrained by typical gender biases than boys when it comes to creative play (74% of boys vs. 62% of girls believe that some activities are just meant for girls, while others are meant for boys), and they are more open towards different types of creative play compared to what their parents and society typically encourage. For example, 82% of girls believe it’s OK for girls to play football and boys to practice ballet, compared to only 71% of boys. However, despite the progress made in girls brushing off prejudice at an early age, general attitudes surrounding play and creative careers remain unequal and restrictive, according to the research.

Parents from this study are almost five times as likely to encourage girls over boys to engage in dance (81% vs. 19%) and dress-up (83% vs. 17%) activities.  Adversely, they are almost four times as likely to encourage boys over girls to engage in program games (80% vs. 20%) and sports (76% vs. 24%) and over twice as likely to do the same when it comes to coding toys (71% vs. 29%).

Speaking ahead of the UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 Finals draw, Isabel Graham, Head of Marketing, the LEGO Group UK and Ireland says: “We know that different types of play are still heavily judged as being gender specific which is why we are committed to championing inclusive play and ensuring that children’s creative ambitions – both now in the future – are not limited by gender stereotypes. It’s fantastic to see the UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 tournament getting more and more prominence and we’re proud to help support this by being a National sponsor for 2022.”

“We are delighted to have the LEGO Group join us as one of the first national partners of UEFA Women’s EURO 2022,” says Guy-Laurent Epstein, Director of Marketing at UEFA. “The addition of this major brand is further proof of the scale of this event and our ambition to make it the biggest women’s European sport event ever. It is important for us to have partners on board who share the same values, working together collectively to deliver what is set to be a record breaking tournament that further grows the women’s game.”

The Final Draw Show for UEFA Women’s EURO England 2022 takes place this Thursday, 28 October Live on BBC One from 16.30 when the groups and resulting fixtures will be drawn.