Tag Archives: content

The Emoji Company and WildBrain launch new 2D series Emojitown in major brand extension

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The Emoji Company and WildBrain have forged a new, far-reaching content and licensing partnership to launch Emojitown, a new digital first series and consumer products extension of Emoji.

Under the partnership, WildBrain’s AVOD network and digital studio, WildBrain Spark has teamed up with Emoji to develop and co-produce Emojitown, a new 2D series targeting teens and young adults.

WildBrain Spark holds exclusive global distribution rights to the new series and will premiere Emojitown on YouTube with a dedicated channel launching at the end of May, when viewers will be able to enjoy the first four episodes of the fast-paced, language-agnostic show, followed by additional episodes rolling out weekly.

Tapping into its expertise in brand management on YouTube, WildBrain Spark and the Emoji Company have created the series for AVOD audiences and is supporting the launch with extensive digital-marketing, paid-media campaigns and dedicated social-media strategies.

WildBrain Spark will also exclusively handle branded content opportunities and advertising sales for Emojitown on YouTube.

Meanwhile, WildBrain CPLG will handle the worldwide licensing and merchandising rights for Emojitown, building on the agency’s successful programme for the Emoji brand across the UK, Europe, the Middle East and other territories.

Marco Huesges, founder and CEO of emoji company, said: “This is a significant development for the Emoji brand, bringing our globally recognizable icons into the digital-content space. With their preeminent reputation on digital platforms, including YouTube, and their deep understanding of licensing and brand amplification, WildBrain Spark and WildBrain CPLG are the ideal collaborators for our push into new content creation and consumer products for the teen and young-adult audience. Together we will take this hugely exciting step in the evolution of Emoji.”

Maarten Weck, EVP and MD of WildBrain CPLG, said: “Building on our strong relationship with the emoji company, this expanded partnership combines the strengths of the much-loved emoji brand with our creative and collaborative capabilities across consumer products licensing, digital-content production, and AVOD management.”

Rachel Taylor, commercial director of WildBrain Spark, added: “With its universal appeal, the Emoji brand is ideal for the creation of an animated digital-first content offering, and our creative team has produced a funny, wry and edgy series, underpinned by bespoke data and insights drawn from our premium YouTube network.

“We’re delighted that the emoji company saw us as the right partner to co-develop and launch this extension of its brand for today’s digital-savvy audience of modern teens.”

In Emojitown we see daily struggles and nightmares ranging from the mundane to the absurd. The perils of dating apps, the instant regret of a DIY haircut, the cringe of a poolside bikini fail and more, are all played out in 2D-animated color. The story will focus on Jo, a girl in her late teens who, despite trying to “live her best life” with a cheery, optimistic outlook, simply cannot stop encountering the everyday “horrors” of modern life. Throughout it all, Jo is the relatable underdog, as she, along with her emojitown pals, navigate the pitfalls of life.

Joining Jo in Emojitown are Jaya, Jon, Jess, Jay, Julia and Joanie, plus the bizarre duo of Poophead and Unicorn Man. The cast has been develop to represent not just characters to sympathise with, but for viewers to actively see themselves or someone they know in. They have been developed to represent “real people” – the kind encountered every day, reflecting attitudes, style, ethnicity, gender, ability and sexuality as diverse and representative as real life.

Full steam ahead for Spin Master’s Mighty Express as Penguin Young Readers is named global publishing partner

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The global children’s entertainment company, Spin Master has secured a global publishing deal for its Mighty Express IP with Penguin Young Readers, a division of Penguin Random House.

Under the new deal, the publisher will have the global rights to roll out 8x8s, board books, shaped board books, picture books, novelty books, leveled readers, holiday books, and exclusive rights to sticker, activity, colouring and novelty books, all based on the animated pre-school series.

Spin Master Entertainment launched mighty Express – an original animated pre-school series – on Netflix in September 2020. The series appeals to both pre-schoolers and their parents through inclusive and diverse characters combined with stories that promote hard work and celebrate accomplishments.

Built within a franchise ecosystem that includes the streaming series, a YouTube content destination, a Mighty Express mobile app and a toy line slated to launch fall 2021, Penguin Random House will aim to ‘further enrich the franchise sharing the quirky characters and their exciting adventures with pre-schoolers in new formats.’

“Mighty Express is an exciting franchise, with content developed through the lens of play which reaches preschoolers and their families through a multi-platform approach,” said Juli Boylan, Spin Master’s VP of franchise development and outbound licensing.

“We are thrilled to be working with Penguin Young Readers, who are experts at sharing stories that will continue to build deeper engagement and brand love for Mighty Express.”

Daniel Moreton, vice president and associate publisher, Penguin Workshop, added: “When we first stepped into the wonderfully engaging and adventurous world of Tracksville, we knew immediately that we wanted to get onboard. The Mighty Express themes of partnership, unity, and connection, are universal, and something we all need right now.

“Penguin Young Readers Licenses is thrilled to be partnering with Spin Master once again. Their collaborative creative energy and brand building strategies, aimed at reaching kids everywhere they are, make the journey just as exciting as the destination.”

Mighty Express marks Spin Master Entertainment’s first series launching straight to a streaming platform and is part of the Company’s commitment to a multiplatform content strategy. The Mighty Express franchise is wholly-owned by Spin Master and the Company retains the rights to distribution of the series including licensing of consumer products.

The Penguin Young Readers line of books and activities are expected to launch in autumn 2021.

WildBrain Spark: How kids’ viewing habits changed in 2020 (and how to prepare for 2021)

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As we quickly approach the end of a year heavily affected by Covid-19, and look optimistically toward a post-coronavirus horizon, toy companies and brands have a lot to think about in terms of their 2021 strategies, especially when it comes to advertising in kids’ entertainment. 

WildBrain Spark’s Executive VP and MD, Jon Gisby explores how this year has changed kids’ viewing habits and how to prepare for 2021. 

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As one of the largest premium kids’ and family-content publishers on AVOD platforms, the thing we get asked the most from advertisers is: Where can we make the biggest impact based on Covid viewing trends in the digital kids’ space?

Some of our latest discoveries provide telling answers. Key findings and trends from an analysis of all our WildBrain Spark content, reveal shifts that brands and advertisers would do well to note in kids’ and family viewing habits from before Covid (December 2019 – February 2020) compared to after its arrival (April – September 2020).

CTV viewing overtook mobile and tablet for the first time

One of the first trends we discovered after analysing consumption data and patterns for WildBrain Spark content since April 2020 was that connected TVs quickly outpaced all other types of devices as the primary way to watch video content for children.

Smart TVs became the viewing device of choice for families starting in April and continue to be so, with 46 per cent of WildBrain Spark content watched on these devices even in October 2020. Connected TVs were already growing in popularity before Covid, but the pandemic has pushed families in the direction of co-viewership on larger screens.

Our recent report “Making Screen Time Family Time” in partnership with nScreenMedia, an independent digital TV analyst company, confirms this trend. Of the 3,000 US families we asked, 62 per cent of parents say the smart TV is the most popular platform for co-viewing, with 48 per cent using a connected TV device.

In the kids’ entertainment space, co-viewership on connected and smart TVs is likely to continue well into 2021 and beyond. Two-thirds of parents said they expect time spent with their kids watching TV/movies to remain the same or increase once the pandemic is over.

When preparing strategies, toy companies and brands should be sure to prepare spots optimised for larger screens, and partner with media companies that have a solid presence in the CTV market.

Viewing sessions increased on long-form content

In addition to the shift to co-viewing, we also discovered that viewing sessions on kids’ content have increased by 23 per cent since Covid began, particularly on long-form content of 10 minutes or greater in length. In fact, 57 per cent of all views since Covid began were on long-form content.

For example, the average watch time on long-form WildBrain Spark content between December 2019 and February 2020 was 3.7 times the amount of time spent on short-form content. Since April 2020, this ratio jumped 17 per cent, taking it to 4.3 times the amount of time spent on short-form videos.

This is a major shift in family viewership habits resulting from the rise of viewing on CTV during the pandemic. These trends show that kids and families are officially watching longer videos instead of shorter ones on larger screens for a more premium entertainment experience.

Toy companies and brands should keep this in mind when looking to partner with publishers: Aim to advertise against and sponsor longer-form content to help you reach a more receptive, family-friendly audience.

Media companies caught up to kids’ influencers and creators

While creators and influencers in the kids’ space often pull in billions of views a month, we saw a different viewing habit among children and families during the peak of the first lockdowns and stay-at-home measures in April 2020.

Essentially, premium content from media companies and publishers outperformed creator content, seeing a +22 per cent average view increase versus just a +3 per cent view increase for creators and influencers.

Some genres in particular saw a substantial increase in viewership. Kids’ music jumped 41 per cent from April to June 2020 compared to views garnered between December 2019 and February 2020. Kids’ animation saw a 32 per cent bump in views across these same months, while children’s TV properties came in a close third, at 30 per cent.

This increase of premium content views appears to be here to stay. The rise of premium content shows it’s important to expand advertising strategies to partner with media companies who have known favourites and premium shows that kids and families have turned to this year. This will diversify reach and improve the chances of getting in front of new audiences.

As 2021 draws near, make sure you’re ready to address this new kids’ entertainment market head on. In short, toy companies and brands should prepare their advertising strategy so it’s easily viewed on connected TVs, appears against longer-form content, and can be found alongside premium content from top media companies.