Category: Specials

The X Factor UK is a global sensation

MUMBAI: Syco Entertainment and FremantleMedia International (FMI) today announced an impressive array of sales for the UK version of The X Factor. Created and owned by Simon Cowell’s Syco Entertainment and co-produced by Syco and Thames TV (part of FremantleMedia UK), The X Factor UK has hit global shores for the very first time and has already sold to an impressive 147 territories worldwide.

Networks from all corners of the world, including AXS (US), MNET (pan-regional Africa), RTL CBS Asia Entertainment (pan-regional Asia) andSony Pictures Television Networks (pan-regional Latin America) have taken Britain’s most talked about entertainment show to their local audiences.

Other broadcasters to snap up the hit show include DR (Denmark), TV3 (Ireland), MTV3 (Finland), 365 Media (Iceland), Sky (Italy), Upstar (Africa) , PBS (Malta), TV2 (Norway), SIC (Portugal), Viacom 18 (Sub-continental India), MediaCorp (Singapore), Workpoint TV (Thailand), Chek (Canada), YES TV (Canada), Hotvision (Israel), Fox International (Russia & Poland) CNC3 (Trinidad), TV Channel 17 (Suriname) and Youku Tudou (China).

The X Factor UK has remained a cultural and ratings phenomenon in the UK for the past decade and has launched more international superstar careers than any other TV show, including multi-million selling global artists One Direction, Little Mix, Olly Murs, Leona Lewis and Ella Henderson. The current season of The X Factor UK had its highest rating launch since season 8 with 10.7 million viewers tuning in to watch the show. The audience share was 104% above ITV1’s prime time average and the series is currently consolidating at almost 10 million viewers per episode, making it – yet again – one of the UK’s most popular shows.

Simon Cowell said: “The UK X Factor was the original version of the show and over the last decade it has set the benchmark all over the world for finding and launching international superstars. These shows were created to find artists like One Direction, Leona Lewis, Olly Murs, Little Mix and Ella Henderson who go on to sell millions of records. I’m delighted the UK show is being watched all over the world – as well as there being so many fantastic local versions of X Factor as well.”

Bob McCourt, Acting CEO, FremantleMedia International said: “The X Factor UK has been one of the most successful entertainment shows in the UK for a decade. Each year the series continues to pull in the big audiences and creates an incredible buzz. Our international clients haverecognised this success and sales have been coming in thick and fast since we launched the show at MIPTV. We are hugely pleased to be working with these broadcasters to bring this staple of the UK’s autumn schedule to the rest of the world.”

George Levendis, Head of International, Syco Entertainment said:“The X Factor UK has millions of fans across the globe who have followed our incredible judges, contestants performances and the excitement of our show through social media & digital platforms. For the first time we are now delivering the show to broadcasters globally and audiences can enjoy our flagship production in its entirety following our contestants as they take what could be their first steps to superstardom. We are thrilled to be working with our broadcast partners globally.”

The X Factor is a global hit entertainment format and is now produced locally in 51 territories worldwide. Since the launch of The X Factor UK in 2004, the British-born TV show has been watched by more than 360 million people around the world and can be seen in almost every country on earth. The X Factor format has discovered and launched more international break-out artists than any other singing competition show, with more than 180 million record sales by The X Factor artists globally.

The latest season of The X Factor UK has seen Simon Cowell make a celebrated return to once again lead the judging panel on the original UK version of the hit TV show. In a bid to find the next big singing sensation, Simon is joined by a new judging panel line-up including former Spice Girl Mel B, renowned music manager Louis Walsh and returning judge pop princess Cheryl Fernandez-Versini. The judges are joined by award-winning broadcaster and presenter Dermot O’Leary, who is on hand to preside over all of the tears, joy and drama, while providing support to the aspiring stars.

The X Factor UK contestants compete in two sets of audition rounds taking place across the UK in Manchester, London, Newcastle, and Edinburgh. In the initial closed room auditions, contestants find themselves face-to-face with the judges for the first time. If they impress the panel and receive three or more “yes” votes, they will move on to perform in a packed arena in front of a live audience.

October 13, 2014
Bomanbridge Media Announces Program Deals With AG Properties

CANNES: Singapore-based distribution/production agency, Bomanbridge Media, have signed several deals in Asia following their recently formed sales collaboration with AG Properties for the hugely iconic, hot kids’ properties Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake.

“Bomanbridge Media is very pleased to represent such great children’s programming from AG Properties in the Asian region. Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears will surely enjoy large audiences here, based on how quickly we closed several deals in the past 2 months since we started; and we expect to close many more at MIPCOM,” said Sonia Fleck, CEO of Bomanbridge Media.

“AG Properties is pleased about extending the viewing reach of Care Bears andStrawberry Shortcake further into Asia with our strategic partner Bomanbridge Media,” said Gia DeLaney, Vice President of Program Sales, AG Properties. “Children from around the world love these characters and we are excited to share them with Asian audiences.”

Deals Announced:
*Care Bears / Strawberry Shortcake – Solar Television Network, Inc (9TV)
*Care Bears DVD sales, Indonesia with PT Unggul Cipta
*Care Bears TVB, Hong Kong

Program Information

Care Bears:
First introduced by American Greetings in 1982, Care Bears has become one of the world’s most popular and beloved children’s properties, known to children and adults through consumer products, greeting cards, and an animated CGI television show. The Care Bears share hearts and hugs with children, helping them understand feelings and emotions through love, music, belly badge magic and Care Bear hugs.

Strawberry Shortcake:
Strawberry Shortcake debuted in 1980 as a line of social expression products, as well as toys, videos, games, crafts and books. Today, the little girl with the big personality is winning the hearts of a third generation of consumers on multiple platforms

October 13, 2014
Bomanbridge Media Announces Multiple Sales at MIPCOM

CANNES: Singapore-based distribution/production agency Bomanbridge Media announces a round of deals closed at MIPCOM from several countries.

“This is our best MIPCOM ever, we came strong with our recent expansion, including major investment from Hera Capital; opening our Korean and Mongolian offices and new hires. We are thankful to all our broadcast partners who trust us to bring them the best programs from around the globe which we are confident will ensure great ratings,” said Sonia Fleck, CEO of Bomanbridge Media.

India
– Latin Angels sold to Fox Life
– Nutri Ventures (produced by Nutri-Ventures) educational animated series on nutrition, sold toSun TV India

Indonesia
– Nutri Ventures, (Nutri-Ventures) educational animated series on nutrition, DVD deal with Pt.Unggul Cipta

Japan
– FBI Files: Polly Klaas Kidnapped and Diagnosis Unknown: New Epidemics produced by New Dominion, sold to TV Asahi

Malaysia ( Pan Regional)
Cake Walk (13 X 60) from D360 and Food Truck Face Off from Peace Point; sold to Li TV for SE Asia feed

Malaysia
It Only Hurts When I Laugh and Planet’s Funniest Animals sold to Media Prime
(distributed by TV FILMBIZ)

Mongolia
Bomanbridge procures Mongolian rights for telenovelas La Impostura (NBC Telemundo) and Eva Luna (Venevision)

Singapore
– Nutri Ventures (Nutri-Ventures) educational animated series on nutrition, sold toMediacorp’s Okto & Toggle

October 13, 2014
MIPCOM 2014: Culture Machine to bring What’s Trending to India

CANNES: MIPCOM 2014, now in its 30th year, is the biggest hub where the industry’s major players converge to turn every moment into an opportunity. Making the most of it, Culture Machine, a next generation digital video entertainment company, has announced a strategic tie-up with the award winning US based network, What’s Trending.

In a first-of-its-kind content alliance, Culture Machine will launch the India channel/network for What’s Trending and create exclusive programming under the brand for the region. This strategic alliance will not only strengthen Culture Machine’s leadership in the space but also provide digital consumers with a wide array of international quality content.

Through this alliance, Culture Machine will work closely with What’s Trending to create content, featuring talents and brands across the Indian sub-continent and syndicate What’s Trending India and International content in the region.

The video entertainment company will use its network strength of over 500 YouTube creators, brands, state-of-the-art production facilities and proprietary technology capabilities to grow the What’s Trending brand in the country. This marks a first time partnership where an original digital property is formatted locally by an international digital network.

“Culture Machine and What’s Trending both work with the core objective of creating entertaining, trending and shareable digital video content that reaches out to audiences at scale through powerful, creative and path-breaking digital programming. This alliance is a perfect match. We are delighted to partner with What’s Trending and spearhead the first international digital format partnership in the space,” said Culture Machine CEO Sameer Pitalwalla.

What’s Trending is an award-winning US-based media company which gives its audiences the hottest trending videos and internet culture every day, starring the biggest traditional and digital stars anywhere. With over 50,000,000 views on YouTube, What’s Trending works with the biggest brands in the world to entertain audiences via any and every screen.

Culture Machine COO Venkat Prasad added, “Culture Machine has a unique and unmatched understanding of India’s digital market and through our proprietary technology, we not only understand what the audience sitting online wants but have the capability to deliver it and scale it, consistently, time and again. We are confident of our capabilities to provide the best platform to What’s Trending in India and make the brand grow in the region.”

“We are incredibly proud to partner with Culture Machine, a company that shares our vision of creating television quality entertainment for the digital generation,” said What’s Trending CEO Damon Berger. “With Culture Machine, the format of What’s Trending will inform and delight audiences all over India and Southeast Asia,” he concluded.

October 13, 2014
Russia will present over 30 new films and TV series at MIPCOM 2014

CANNES: The major international market of audiovisual content for all platforms – MIPCOM stars working on Oct, 13 in Cannes. MIPCOM opens wide opportunities for searching of international distribution channels and establishing communications with top players of the industry, that’s why for most Russian companies this market in one of the key events of year. Russian distributors will present domestic cinema under Russian Cinema brand for the second time in Cannes.

Special attention of stand work will be paid to the promotion of the Russian cinema new (2014) line up and project at the production stage, having a high commercial potential and focused in wide international audience. According to the distributors` experience at the previous markets, Russian comedy, big–budget historical costume series, action films, and full–length animations for family viewing have the greatest demand among foreign buyers. That’s why participating companies of RA stand emphasized precisely such products in their catalogues.

Bazelevs Distribution is going to announce its debut on the Israeli market as direct distributor. A new comedy Kiss Them All 2 will be the first Bazelevs release of that kind. The sequel to the most profitable film in the history of Russian cinema will hit the screens of the Israeli network Yes Planet simultaneously with its release in Russia. The film will be shown in Russian with Hebrew subtitles. According to the information from the company`s press-service, they plan to continue showing all our new films in Israel in that format. Ahead of the launch, the Russian-language Israeli broadcaster Channel Nine Israel will air the first Kiss Them All film. In addition, Kiss Them All will become available to subscribers of the HOT cable network in Israel. They are planning to finalize the transfer of TV premiere rights to and discuss in detail their further cooperation with Israeli partners. There are also other projects: Christmas comedy Yolki 1914: Tsar Christmas (December, 25, 2014), Fools’ Day (release – November, 2014), Paws, Bones & Rock’n’roll (January, 2015), Kiss Them All 2 (October, 2014), Kiss Them All (2013).

Planeta Inform Film Distribution will present the new series productions. There are premium-series Catherine the Great (produced by Mars Media by the Channel One Russia order), Rasputin, Headhunters, The Three Musketeers in the company’s set. Catherine the Great is on production stage now, the work over Rasputin has been recently completed, but the telefilm isn’t on the air at present moment. On the territory of the Russian Federation Channel One holds the rights for both projects. Anastasia Bankovskaya, a head of International Sales & Acquisitions Director, shared that at MIPCOM the new promo of Catherine the Great and the 1st episode of Rasputin would be presented to the foreign buyers of TV content. The company made over 30 appointments with the representatives from Germany, France, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Poland, Romania, Czech Republic, Korea, Italy, Brazil, Turkey. The talks about sales of The Three Musketeers, a film and the series to Turkey, China, France will be carried on. Earlier the film was sold on the territory of Germany, Poland, Korea, Israel and the USA (digital rights). According to A.B, the first reports from the realization of the films set over digital platforms in the USA will be available in November. But it has already become known that The Three Musketeers took the leading positions with the number of views in the film catalogue, supplied by company`s partner VOD-platforms. Also Planeta Inform Film Distribution will carry on their work over Metro (2012), Chempiony (2014), The Brest Fortress (2010).

Wizart Animation will keep selling their full-length projects Sheep and Wolves (2015) and The Snow Queen 2. An English version of the last one has recently been grown by a star cast. Animated characters will be dubbing by Sean Bean, Sharlto Copley, Bella Thorne and Isabelle Fuhrman. The release of The Snow Queen 2 is scheduled on January, 1, 2015. According to the results of the previous markets, the first film of the franchise The Snow Queen was successfully sold in more than 35 countries and triumphantly conquered all the continents.

Sovtelexport, an overseas distributor of Russia’s television and film content, will showcase its new extensive catalogue of the programming in various genres: feature films, documentaries, series, adaptations of Russian classics, TV shows and concerts, at MIPCOM 2014. The catalogue contains the content of Russia Television and Radio and other leading Russia’s production companies – in particular, these are Russia Today, Nikita Mikhalkov’s Studio TriTe, Bazelevs Production, the Star Media studio and Format TV. The historical drama Ekaterina is the company’s flagship project in this season; it tells the incredible story of a great empress and ill-fated woman, the world-renowned Ekaterina II. According to the company’s management opinion, the popularity of the genre, a substantial budget, magnificent costumes, superb acting, multiple filming locations, authentic interiors and stunning scenery combine to make an impressive production with real appeal on the international market. Sovtelexport also highlights in its line-up as promising projects: drama mini-series Demons (2014) based on the eponymous Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novel and biopic The Iron Ivan (2014).

New People Film Company will bring to Cannes Battle for Sevastopol (2015), Russian-Ukrainian production. Mila Rozanova, a film producer, tells that to announce project Battle for Sevastopol is the main target of company`s participation at MIPCOM market. This project has two formats: film and mini-series. Mrs Rozanova pointed out: “Now we are mostly interested in TV-buyers, who will be ready to buy right for mini-series, for this target MIPCOM is just an ideal market.” Also the company will keep on promotion of the Ivan Tverdovsky`s film debut Corrections Class (2014).

Russian World Vision (RWV), performing a wide range of local comedies and action films, announced in its set series Insomnia (2013), Fort Ross (2014), an action Spiral (2014), Kazakh-Russian action The Witch’s Brook (2014), a comedy Sex Competition 2 (2014) by Sarik Andreasyan, which new film American Heist, created in co-production with the USA, participated in the competitive program of just ended 39th International Toronto cinema festival (Canada).

All Media will continue international sales of a comedy Kitchen in Paris (2014), based on the original Russian TV series Kitchen.

October 13, 2014
MipJunior 2014: Revolution Studios names Miramax as global TV and digital distributor

CANNES: The ongoing MipJunior at Palm Beach in Cannes, France is the hotspot for major announcements from world over. In one such development, Revolution Studios has announced its association with Miramax which will now manage the Studios’ global television and digital distribution licensing titles, including all titles from the recently acquired Morgan Creek international film library.

While the terms of the agreement have not been disclosed, the agreement expands the current alliance, under which Miramax has represented Revolution in the US since June 2012. Miramax will begin representing Revolution’s titles internationally as rights begin to revert back to Revolution, while Morgan Creek titles are immediately available internationally from Miramax.

“We are excited to take this next step in our relationship with Miramax, which has proven to be a formula for success on the domestic front,” announced Revolution chief executive officer Vince Totino.

Revolution COO Scott Hemming said, “The Miramax global sales team is among the most respected and creative in the industry and we look forward to working with them to broaden our diverse library worldwide. Miramax representing Revolution globally is the next natural step in continuing our collaboration of our already established and strong domestic foundation.”

Revolution titles represented by Miramax include more than 40 top tier Hollywood films such as: Black Hawk Down, America’s Sweethearts, 13 Going on 30, Maid in Manhattan, XXX and Daddy Day Care.

The Morgan Creek titles acquired by Revolution and now represented by Miramax include: Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, True Romance, The Last of the Mohicans and Major League.

“Miramax is proud to expand its partnership with Revolution and we are excited to now represent the Revolution and Morgan Creek titles internationally. This fantastic collection of content is highly complementary to the Miramax catalog, providing us unique positioning within the international TV and digital landscape,” said Miramax executive VP worldwide TV sales Joe Patrick.

The Miramax global sales team has successfully brought hundreds of titles to existing and emerging platforms in nearly every country in the world, including free and premium linear TV, subscription video-on-demand and ad-supported video-on-demand. Miramax will now include the Revolution and Morgan Creek titles in their international offering, maximising distribution of these film catalogs around the world.

October 12, 2014
China’s ‘Emmy’ wins MipJunior International Pitch of the Year

CANNES: Kids content creators have a huge task in hand: to be able to woo the broadcasters who are looking for content that is unique, has great visual and concept, is innovative and has educational eminence, while avoiding cliché and having original ideas.

Looking at all these aspects was the MipJunior International Pitch of the Year, which this year saw 130 entries. Of this, six projects made it to the finals of MipJunior International Pitch of the Year, the winner of which was Emmy produced by LeftPocket Animation Studio, China.

Emmy is a story of a little girl who is not only brave, creative and clever, but she lives next door to a magical forest filled with the most wonderful creatures, including her best friend Gru. In every episode Emmy uses her own practical, common sense approach to life to help solve the very unusual problems that arise in the magical forest.

This year, the International Pitch also saw a special prize being given to a very creative concept showcased by Belgium’s Contentinuum, called My Dream Job: A Customized series with Dad, Mum and Me!

The series focuses on a kid who wakes up every morning, with different dreams of his parents being in different professions. The show has paper dolls animated via stop motion, CGI and FX. A custom app lets kids produce their own versions of the series, putting their faces, and their parents’ faces, in place of the existing protagonists.

The other projects that made to the finals were QB9 Entertainment’s (Argentina) Krakatoa, a 12 minute episode series, Isi by Edebe Audiovisual Licensing, Spain, Larva in New York by Tuba n Co, South Korea and Oongu Loongu: Animal Palace by OOMPH! Animation, South Africa.

October 12, 2014
MipJunior 2014: Broadcasters look for creative content creators to attract kids

CANNES: MipJunior 2014 has established one thing for all kids’ content creators and broadcasters: kids want to watch their favourite programme at the place of their choice and time. But the big question now is how to reach these kids who are consuming content using different platforms? This remained the main focus of the panel discussion on ‘What do buyers want: Emerging multi platform acquisition trends’ on day two of MipJunior 2014.

While a lot is being spoken about kids moving to the second screen to consume content, Australian Broadcasting Corporation head of children’s TV Deirdre Brennan informed that in Australia even now close to 89 per cent of children’s viewing happens on traditional TV.

Today, kids are ready to watch the content over and over again. “With so many platforms, we will now have to devise ways to reach to these platforms,” said Disney Channels Worldwide VP worldwide programming strategy, acquisitions and co-productions Karen K Miller.

The increasing number of platforms poses another problem, of not being sure about which platform the consumer is consuming content from. Citing the example of Germany, ZDF head of international co-production and acquisition Nicole Keeb said, “90 per cent of content viewing happens on TV. Being a public broadcaster, ZDF is also obliged to deliver content for TV first, followed by online or other platforms.

Broadcasters world over feel that the television monitoring data is still evolving. “The quality of data is important, since we want to monitor the behavior of the consumers. Better data also helps us strategise better and know which platform is better for our audience,” said Cartoon Network VP content acquisitions and co-productions Adina Pitt.

The session also delved on what these tech-savvy kids are doing on portable devices. “They are watching their favourite shows, playing games, they are using it in every way possible for entertainment,” informed Miller.

With numerous kids’ channels offering almost the same content, it becomes important for channels to ensure that kids associate with the brand. “Kids are smart. They know the brand and associate with it. For us, word of mouth publicity helps. In fact the consumer becomes the marketer,” said Pitt.

The broadcasters, while they have their core target audience, they also feel that there should be entry points. “So while Disney is considered more of a girls’ channel, we do have entry points for boys,” added Miller.

For Australian Broadcasting Corporation, until a few years back, it had started looking at children as a separate audience. “We have now started looking at bringing both parents and kids together through our content,” said Brennan.

Brennan also feels that reality shows have seeped in Australian television industry. “I want to bring back storytelling on television,” she opined.

Another key point brought out during the session was that while internet has increased access to content, it is the responsibility of the content creators to ensure that kids are able to find the content.

On a parting note, when World Screen group editorial director Anna Carugati, the moderator for the session, asked what was missing in the kids broadcasting space, Amazon Studios head of kid’s programming Tara Sorensen said, “There is a need for more creative content. The creators need to spend time in creating content.”

October 12, 2014
‘Peanuts Re-imagined’ at MipJunior 2014

CANNES: “We are looking closely at India,” said Peanuts Worldwide SVP media Kim Towner during the MipJunior keynote which focused on the glorious 50 years of Peanuts and the 65th anniversary of the comic strip. While Peanuts may make in-roads to India in the future, currently the important markets for it are Japan, China, Brazil and Germany, apart from the US and France.

The keynote themed: ‘Peanuts Re-imagined’ was moderated by author and consultant Christopher Erbes and was attended by France Télevisions executive director Julien Borde, Normaal Animation producer Alexis Lavillat and Towner. It focused on the new TV series, a huge theatrical premiere and many other innovative initiatives being undertaken by Peanuts.

The year is big for Peanuts which has restored its entire library to 4K quality for modern viewers. “We have re-signed the deal with ABC for five years,” announced Towner. Not only this, the company has done production deals with Fox and Blue Sky as well. Talking about the other developments, Towner said that Peanuts: The Movie, a 3D CGI animation will see its premier in November 2015. “With development budget of $100 million, the movie will be distributed in over 100 countries. Another $100 million will be put for marketing the property,” she said.

With audience moving towards digital, Peanuts is also looking at partnering with a major gaming company. “We will announce the partnership soon,” added Towner. With this, Peanuts aims at building on the 15 million downloads of its existing apps. Currently, the animation sees one billion social media impressions in a year. “We see 1.8 million engagements at any given week,” she said, while adding that “2015 is the year of Peanuts.”

Talking about its strategy on apps, Towner said that while currently most of the apps are games for kids, they do realise the diverse audience.

The key to Peanut is to make it funny and heartwarming for kids. “We want to find humour for kids,” said Lavillat.

Giving a background to the new show, which will be a seven minute episode, Borde said that Peanuts has been re-imagined, since family oriented programming is important for television today.

October 12, 2014
NEWS FROM HIT ENTERTAINMENT AND MATTEL AT 2014 MIPCOM

·        New content added across HIT and Mattel portfolio, including all-new Bob the Builder and Little People series

·         New global content distribution team structure announcedBig year for Thomas & Friends in 2015 as the brand celebrates 70th anniversary

ALL-NEW BOB THE BUILDER

HIT Entertainment, one of the world’s leading pre-school entertainment companies and a subsidiary of Mattel Inc, has unveiled the all-new look for Bob the Builder who will bring construction to life for millions of children in the upcoming CG-animated series of the show.

The new series – which will be delivered in late 2015 – will see Bob the Builder continuing to bring the world of construction to life for kids, with exciting characters, new relatable locations and an aspirational hero.

All of the show’s core characters return for the new series, including Wendy, Roley and Dizzy, plus popular vehicles Lofty, Muck and Scoop. There will be new faces for viewers to meet, including apprentice Leo, Mayor Maria Madison, young sports club members ‘The Spring City Rockets’ and two new machines: a heavy-lifting low-loader truck ‘Two Tonne’ and a tower crane named ‘Tiny’.

The all-new series of Bob the Builder will air on Channel’s 5’s Milkshake! in the UK, PBS KIDS in the US and Super RTL in Germany, beginning next year.

LITTLE PEOPLE

HIT Entertainment has announced global entertainment company DHX Media as its animation partner on a brand new CG animated series of Little People.

Based on the iconic Fisher-Price® Little People® brand, the new series is being produced out of HIT’s UK content hub and will feature imaginative and energetic characters that are contemporary and relatable to today’s young children.

The animated pre-school series of 52 x 11’ episodes, planned for release in late 2015, showcases a unique format and emphasizes the power that imagination and group play can have on discovery and critical thinking skills.

PORTFOLIO UPDATE

With a focus on exceptional storytelling, HIT Entertainment (Stand R7.B2), arrives at MIPCOM 2014 with its largest portfolio to date.

In 2015, the HIT and Mattel portfolio will add new content across its premier, iconic and globally renowned portfolio of brands including Barbie®, Hot Wheels®, Monster High®, Thomas & Friends®, Bob the Builder, and Fisher-Price® brands, including Little People®. Content formats include new movie specials, new series, and new short-form content.

In 2015, Barbie will continue to delight girls of all ages with three new CG animated feature-length movies.   Thomas & Friends DVD “Dinos & Discoveries” will launch Q1 2015 and DVD feature-length special “Sodor’s Legend of the Lost Treasure” in the autumn. Series 19 will also launch on air introducing all-new characters.

Edward Catchpole, Senior Vice President and General Manager, HIT Entertainment, said: “As the business evolves from producing shows for traditional TV to include digital distribution outlets and in readiness for new emerging platforms, our capabilities in this space will provide us breadth and depth of content critical to global production and the business across the Mattel portfolio.”

NEW REMIT FOR HIT

The updated content portfolio coincides with an all new global content distribution team structure.. Consolidated under Mattel’s HIT Entertainment division, led by veteran industry experts across broadcast distribution, home entertainment, and emerging media, the team will be responsible for distribution of content across all of Mattel’s leading brands including, Barbie®, Hot Wheels®, Monster High®, Thomas & Friends®, Bob the Builder®, and Fisher-Price® brands, including Little People®. The new structure has been designed to maximise the impact of the strategic, global distribution of its content and leverage its leading pre-school, girls, and boys portfolio of brands and will be led by Edward Catchpole.

The combined Mattel portfolio currently has more than 600 hours of content, with additional content being green lit for production every year.   Across all its brands, Mattel content is viewed by more than one billion households more than 185 global territories and 40 languages.

October 12, 2014