Category Archives: Media & PR

Mobile games publisher Exient wants to be the go-to partner for IP owners

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The independent mobile games publisher, Exient is looking to position itself as the go-to mobile games partner for IP owners in the games and entertainment space.

Headed up by Dave Hawkins, the firm has success over the last 12 months with the self-published Lemmings Puzzle Adventure. It had previously built its business providing work-for-hire services on IP such as FIFA, Angry Birds, F1, and more.

Earlier this year, the company unveiled a new corporate brand identity, bringing its Sad Puppy and Donut labels under its new Exient Publishing banner. It is now expanding its headcount across offices in the UK and Malta to support the development and publishing of self-funded mobile games based on IP from the worlds of games, TV, and entertainment.

Exient already has several titles lined up for 2021.

Donut Publishing will remain as a legal entity in the UK in order to service existing titles, however all new titles will be published through Exient Publishing going forward. In addition to development roles, the company is focusing its recruitment on marketing, user acquisition and community management to support its publishing activities.

“The success we’ve experienced with Lemmings Puzzle Adventure has given us the confidence to double down on our publishing activity, so bringing everything under a single Exient Publishing brand was the next logical step in our evolution,” said Exient COO Nusrat Shah.

“We have a pipeline of self-funded projects for 2021 based on really exciting IPs and we’re keen to work with IP holders and brands interested in taking their properties to mobile platforms.”

Nick Jr, Acamar and Aardman among licensing line up for Play at Home Fest 2

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Dr Gummer’s Good Play Guide is putting the final preparations in place for the second installment of the virtual family festival, Play at Home Fest, this weekend. Following the success of the inaugural event in May this year, major players from the licensing space are headlining the upcoming event.

Nick Jr. is bringing its Blue’s Clues and You! and PAW Patrol, to feature alongside the likes of Acamar Films, Dreamtex, and HarperCollins with Bing; Rainbow with 44 Cats and its party licensee Amscam, while Aardman will be returning to host a Shaun the Sheep model making workshop.

Also joining this weekend’s line-up are Sylvanian Families, Aquabeads, Geomag, Drumond Park, Trends UK, The Essential One and EasyRead Time Teacher. The event, which was created to make the world a more playful place during the COVID19 pandemic, will be accessible to families worldwide on Saturday 29th August. 

Two virtual stages will be streamed live to living rooms, gardens, campsites, holiday cottages, and anywhere else where children aged eight and under and their families are during the Bank Holiday weekend. 

The event will be hosted by up and coming kidfluencer, Sisi from Sisi’s World, star of West End Musical, Matilda, and daughter of TV presenter Nigel Clarke. She will be guiding and entertaining children and their families during the Bank Holiday weekend. 

The first Play at Home Fest accrued an incredible 71,000 views and was streamed into the homes of 14,000 families, with social media impressions reaching 750,000 on Good Play Guide channels alone. 

“We were blown away by the success of the first Play at Home Fest, and it was a no-brainer to bring families together again for more fun during this period when playful experiences are needed more than ever,” said Amanda Gummer, founder and CEO of Dr Gummer’s Good Play Guide.

“I’m really pleased to have been able to support some amazing brands during a period when marketing and promotion has been particularly difficult, while also bringing fun and play to the forefront for consumers. The calibre of the acts signed up again for this weekend’s event shows just how beneficial this initiative has been for all involved.”

Hasbro extends representation deal with WildBrain CPLG to cover CEE and Turkey

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Hasbro has extended its agreement with the sport, lifestyle, and entertainment licensing agency, WildBrain CPLG to cover both CEE and Turkey. The move is an extension of the deal it had with the firm, naming it the Hasbro sub-representative in the Nordics and Benelux regions as of January 1st this year.

Under the agreement, WildBrain CPLG will now represent Hasbro’s merchandise, publishing, promotions, and short-term location based entertainment business across Benelux, Nordic, CEE, and Turkey regions.

“We are moving our direct business to an agent model in CEE and Turkey as both regions have tremendous growth potential for our consumer products business,” said Marianne James, vice president of Hasbro Consumer Products in EMEA. “We believe that the strength of WildBrain CPLG to cover Benelux, Nordic, CEE and Turkey will allow us to scale our efforts in a meaningful way.

“WildBrain CPLG will develop our strong portfolio of brands such as Nerf, Monopoly, Play-Doh, and My Little Pony.”

Maarten Weck, executive vice president and managing director at WildBrain CPLG, added: “We are very pleased to extend our geographical footprint to represent Hasbro in CEE and Turkey, where we see tremendous opportunity for their leading family brands.

“The addition of these new markets to our remit strengthens our strategic relationship with Hasbro and gives us even more opportunity to synergise our European efforts, without losing the local touch.”

Edutainment Licensing named worldwide distribution partner for kids’ nature series Hooray Hippo

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Edutainment Licensing has been named the worldwide distribution partner for the animated series Hooray Hippo, a newly developed series from Caters Media Group that combines 2D animation with real life footage to teach children about landscapes and animals.

The series has been developed for boys and girls in the pre-school and early year age group. It is Hooray Hippo and her friend Billy the bird who travel the world using captured footage of animals in their natural habitats, filmed by top wildlife videographers, while reeling off fun facts to help children understand the world they live in.

The show will help them learn about different environments and how they might differ from their own, to identify animals and make observations about their characteristics, and to spot differences and similarities between animal species and where they live.

With offices across four continents, Caters Media Group helps power global publishers across digital, social and TV platforms with video, photo and text media. It is also dedicated to producing and sharing, original, engaging content for millions of fans across its own brands, such as Hooray Hippo, Life on the Edge, Deep Blue Discovery, Storytrender and Pawsome Pets.

Italy’s Rainbow celebrates its 25th anniversary in style at the Giffoni Film Festival

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The Italian animation and children’s content studio, Rainbow, celebrated its 25th anniversary at this year’s prestigious Giffoni Film Festival, one of the best-loved kids’ film festivals in Europe that this year was celebrating its own half a century.

A special Rainbow installation set the scene on Tuesday, August 18th, when the opening night paid homage to the entertainment company founded in 1995 by its president and CEO Iginio Straffi. Marking its own milestone, the Giffoni Film Festival will this year run as a four-part special edition, with activity taking place until December this year.

For the duration of the event, visitors can delve in the world of Rainbow through unpublished images and the first cartoon drawings that have conquered the hearts of children and adults, from the birth of the classic Winx Club world all the way up to 44 Cats, a revelation Series of 2018 broadcast in over 20 languages, and the latest news born from the inspiration of Iginio Straffi.

During the opening night at the Yaris Arena, a video celebrating the content company was also presented, and Claudio Gubitosi, founder and director of Giffoni Opportunity, honoured the company with the Giffoni 50 Award, for its 25 years of success.

“There is something magical uniting Giffoni’s story with Rainbow’s one,” said Iginio Straffi, founder of the Rainbow Group. “The same tenacious and passionate ambition to try make a dream come true, to transform a youthful aspiration into a great reality. Claudio Gubitosi loved cinema as a boy and managed to make Giffoni a world capital of cinema.

“I wanted my stories, created by looking at the horizon beyond the Apennines, to be told and heard all over the world. Two impossible dreams, two dreams that, once fulfilled, met each other.”

Among the protagonists of the world entertainment market, Rainbow is a constantly growing reality thanks to the imagination and vision of Iginio Straffi, an entrepreneur who was able to turn his dreams into reality, offering them to millions of people around the world.

The Gruffalo readies new Australian adventure with exclusive The Gruffalo Spotter 2 app launch

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The Gruffalo is taking further strides down under thanks to a new deal that will see Queensland’s The Ginger Factory, Illawarra Fly and Wildlife Sydney Zoo in New South Wales, and Rippon Lea Estate in Victoria come on board as the brand’s exclusive The Gruffalo Trail partners.

Under a new deal brokered by Magic Light Pictures’ Australian licensing agent, Merchantwise Licensing, the three sites will be the first in the world to activate The Gruffalo Spotter 2 app when it launches at the locations across the country next month.

The Gruffalo Spotter 2 app follows the runaway success of the original, ground-breaking Gruffalo Spotter app launched with Forestry England in 2017, when it was the first development of its kind. Using the very latest Augmented Reality technology, the free app brings to life the characters from the much-loved Gruffalo. This second app was produced by Magic Light Pictures, in partnership with Forestry England, developed and animated by Nexus Studios.

Families can learn about the characters from the picture book, written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler, and interact with the 3D characters from the film on the self-led trails, which are lined with facts about forest animals, and fun activities. Through face and body recognition technology, the characters now look at the children directly, encouraging them to play along.

Mixing animated characters with the real-world environment, the app encourages children to get exploring, firing their imaginations and enabling them to have an all-new forest experience. The Gruffalo Spotter 2 app is available for free with no in-app purchases from the App Store and Google Play and requires downloading before visiting.

Meanwhile, a further deal executed by Merchantwise Licensing will see a Smiffys range of The Gruffalo dress-up costumes launch next month ahead of October’s Book Week in Australia.  The ‘onesie’ costume available for sizes three to five years, will launch across a number of Australian retail destinations including Spotlight and Costumebox.

“We are thrilled to be announcing the partnership with The Ginger Factory as an exclusive Australian The Gruffalo Trail location in time for the global first launch of The Gruffalo Spotter 2 here in Australia. The trail continues to be as popular as when it first launched at Illawarra Fly, Wildlife Sydney Zoo and Rippon Lea Estate last year, so we anticipate it to be a must-do experience for those in and visiting The Ginger Factory on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast,” said Merchantwise Licensing’s general manager, Kerryn McCormack.

“For the first time, The Gruffalo dress-up costumes will be available here in Australia and we are pleased to be launching this range with Smiffys ahead of Book Week in October across a number of our key retail partners.”

Mayflower 400 cultural anniversary programme gets underway with extension into 2021

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Arts Council England and the Mayflower 400 team are hitting the play button on a programme of activity surrounding the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower. The programme started in Southampton earlier this month with the launch of Wampum: Stories from the Shells of Native America, a national touring exhibition curated by The Box, Plymouth.

This will be followed with an online documentary presented by the TV historian Dan Snow on September 16, marking exactly 400 years to the day since the Mayflower ship set sail. The documentary will reflect the story of the Pilgrim’s journey, its impact on the Native American people who helped them when they first arrived and the wider colonial context of this journey.

It will also include a look at some of the cultural projects involved in the programme.

The Mayflower 400 programme will then run through to 2021 culminating with a Four Nations Commemoration Ceremony involving the USA, Netherlands, UK and Wampanoag nations on July 11 next year.

Deputy leader of Plymouth City Council, Pete Smith, said: “It’s been an extraordinarily challenging year, but we’re delighted to be able to carry so much of the Mayflower 400 commemorative programme into 2021. A huge amount of work has already gone into all of these events, so it’s fantastic that locals and visitors will still be able to enjoy what is an impressively varied and creative programme throughout the next year. 

“The finale will be the spectacular Mayflower Four Nations Public Ceremony on the Hoe; it’s going to be an unmissable event which brings together all four nations involved to reflect on the Mayflower story.” 

Adrian Vinken OBE, Chair of Mayflower 400, added: “After all the recent uncertainty I’m delighted that we’re finally in a position to confirm the key elements of the Mayflower 400 programme starting now and taking us through to next July. We look forward to people across the country engaging with these remarkably diverse activities and the raft of other smaller Mayflower community projects based on the voyage and its many impacts.”

The Mayflower 400 programme is supported by national supporters and sponsors; Womble Bond Dickinson, National Lottery Heritage Fund, Arts Council England, Department for Culture, Media & Sport, Visit England, Visit Britain, Plymouth City Council, Royal Navy and Babcock. 

For all Licensing enquires please contact enquiries@lmiuk.com 00 44 (0) 1425403430

Moose Toys teams with family YouTube channel Collins Key for new activity range

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Moose Toys is teaming with the family YouTube channel, Collins Key starring the online stars Collins and Devan Key, to launch an activity line that will allow fans to recreate the DIY challenges and projects the pair undertake, at home.

CollinsKey is recognised as the number one YouTube channel for compounds, activities, and creativity. Collins and Devan Key boast more than 21.5 million subscribers and over 5 billion total views. The CollinsKey  collection taps into the pair’s authenticity, energy and passion, and their over the top challenges to bring innovative play to the activity aisle.

The new range will launch this autumn and will feature boxed play-sets in two categories: Fake Food Challenges and pranks and Collectables. The hero item in the first collection will be the Fake Food Challenge Wheel, inspired by the show’s own Mystery Wheel Challenge. Players will take turns spinning the wheel to receive their challenge, and then use their tools to shape and mould their compounds into food items.

“We worked closely with Collins and Devan to translate their vibrant and engaging personalities and approach to family-friendly fun into tangible games for everyone to enjoy,” said Joe Smith, director of global marketing, licensed brands, Moose Toys.

“This is Collins and Devan’s first national partnership in consumer products, and we’re honored to work with like-minded innovators to bring their wildly popular challenges to their biggest fans — and introduce new fans to their world.”

Another theme seen within Collins and Devan Key’s programming is lighthearted and fun pranks. The Ultimate Unboxing Game pits two players against each other, racing to find the key within one of three mystery boxes, with the losing person presented with a gross surprise.

For the Mystery Box Collectible, players are tasked with blindly feeling around inside a box and guessing what’s hidden inside.

“Devan and I had a blast rolling up our sleeves and collaborating with a category leader like Moose Toys,” Collins Key said. “We’ve loved seeing what we’re so passionate about authentically come to life in this new line of products, and we can’t wait for the #KeyperSquad to try all the wild challenges within this collection.”

Earlier this year, Moose Toys announced it was named the global master toy partner for the Collins Key brand. The Collins Key collection is available exclusively at Walmart.com, Walmart stores starting Sept. 1, and online and at retail locations across the US.

Mattel Television to launch new musical Barbie movie to Netflix, Barbie Princess Adventures

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Mattel Television has partnered with the animation studio Mainframe to launch a new animated musical adventure to Netflix this year in the shape of Barbie Princess Adventure. The new feature animation will launch with its own soundtrack which will be made available across all streaming platforms on August 28th.

The new adventure feature follows Barbie and her friends as they are chosen by their school to travel the country of Floravia to meet Princess Amelia, who, nervous about becoming queen, is looking for an escape and devises plans to trade places with Barbie. When a rival prince finds out what has taken place, Barbie and her friends must team up to stop him, and rescue the princess in time for her coronation.

“Barbie is an iconic character who provides endless storytelling opportunities. She inspires the limitless potential in all kids, and this brand purpose resonates deeply with children and parents alike. Barbie Princess Adventure builds on that purpose with a focus on empowerment, self-discovery and finding your voice in the age of social media,” said Adam Bonnett, executive producer, Marvel Television.

“Barbie Princess Adventure captures a range of musical genres which enables the audience to connect with the story in a variety of ways. Original music will continue to be an integral part of Mattel Television content moving forward – for Barbie as well as other brands.”

Barbie Princess Adventure features songs by Matthew Tishler and Andrew Underberg, with score and additional songs by The Math Club. The musical numbers are animated to the choreography of Paul Becker.

The digital soundtrack includes “Try It On,” “Somewhere New,” “(Not) A Picture Perfect Girl,” “Life in Color,” “King of the Kingdom” and “This Is My Moment.”

Universal Music Group strikes partnership with Soundtrack Your Brand

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Universal Music Group has signed up another global licensing deal, this time with a pioneering business-to-business cloud-based music streaming service called Soundtrack Your Brand. The new deal will allow the music platform offer tracks from the library of music produced by Universal Music Group’s own artists.

The aim of Soundtrack Your Brand is to deliver flexibility of music-streaming technology to brands and businesses for an ‘improved user and consumer experience.’ The model is based on full song trackability, and the deal will offer UMG’s artists and songwriters compensation and credit when their music is played in business and public environments.

Insight fro Soundtrack Your Brand has shown how playing music that reflects their brand’s value positively impacts a business, from noticeably moving sales to directly affecting customer satisfaction.

Ola Sars, founder and CEO of Soundtrack Your Brand, said: “Together with partners like UMG, we have re-imagined the licensing and business-to-business model. We hold the conviction that music has intrinsic value as an art-form and that creators must be compensated for their contribution to a business.

“Brands can benefit artists in accessing new fans, if their in-store music is matched to their customer and brand values. It is my belief that through Soundtrack, there is substantial value to be unlocked for artists, rights owners and brands.”

In 2019 Soundtrack commissioned Nielsen to carry out the biggest study on background music to date, engaging with 5000 small businesses across two continents and seven countries. Nielsen reports that 21.3 million businesses are using illicit consumer services, leaving potential revenue untapped for the global music industry. With 88 per cent of businesses playing music four or five days a week and 86 per cent prepared to pay for an improved service, the opportunity is substantial.

James Healy, SVP digital strategy and business development, Universal Music Group, said: “In Soundtrack, we have a partner whose technological and strategic re-imagining of an evolving business-to-business model will support us in ensuring creators are valued and fairly compensated.”

Paul Stuart, head of licensing and business affairs, Soundtrack, added: “Whether you run a bar in Brooklyn, a café in Sydney or a multinational brand, customer experience is everything. I couldn’t be happier for our customers who can now access UMG’s incredible artists and their music through their unrivaled catalogue and new frontline releases.”