Licensing news
New licensing opportunities for hit animation Bluey
Product ranges from master toy partner Moose Toys will be rolled out in Italy and Greece this Easter
ToyPro to bring Smurfs toys to MENA
Live experiences, cartoons and toys set to introduce a whole new generation of kids to the loveable blue creatures
‘Ryan’s Rescue Squad’ coming to PC and consoles in 2022
New video game marks further expansion of the Ryan’s World brand
Studios and ABC Children’s, the much-loved global hit animation Bluey continues to make an impact, having recently launched in Italy on Rai Yoyo and on ERT in Greece. BBC Studios is also set to debut a new Italian language YouTube channel in January 2022, featuring clips and bonus content from the series. Master toy partner Moose Toys will lead
the product launch this coming Easter with its highly successful toy range, distributed by Italian company Giochi Preziosi. Other Bluey licensed products from partners including Penguin Random House are set to follow.
BBC Studios has named Maurizio
Distefano Licensing as its licensing agent for Bluey in Italy, and is in the process of finalising the appointment of Partner Plus to as licensing agent in Greece and Cyprus. Giochi Preziosi will again handle distribution of Moose Toys in Greece and Turkey.
The deals mark further expansion in EMEA for the award-winning animation about the six-year-old Blue Heeler dog who loves to play. The series has won the hearts of kids and parents around the world since it first launched in Australia in October 2018, and now screens in over 60 countries. In the UK, Bluey was the most viewed show on CBeebies in August last year, while during Q2 2021, across Disney Junior and Disney Channel in the US, the show was the number one most-watched TV series among kids aged 2–5.
36 | toy news | Jan/Feb 2022
Spacetoon, the family edutainment content provider, producer and broadcaster, has partnered with IMPS to bring The Smurfs to The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) through the Spacetoon TV channel, entertaining on-ground branded events and new toys. Working in partnership, Spacetoon and IMPS – the world licence holder for the Smurfs – will work on re-introducing the show to young audiences in MENA by broadcasting the localised, Arabic-dubbed version of the new The Smurfs 3D CGI series, in addition to recreating the original 2D series from the 1980s that mums and dads grew up with. The new CGI show has won critical acclaim and has been praised by fans for adding new characters such as Willow, the female Smurf who leads a tribe of Smurf girls. The deal also includes bringing new Smurfs
toys to the MENA market in collaboration with ToyPro, the leading toy distributor in the region. The toy line by Jazwares, the global master toy partner of The Smurfs, includes action figures of The Smurfs characters that reflect their distinctive personalities, as well as playsets, vehicles and plush toys. “The Smurfs is a multigenerational title that has been resonating with audiences for 40 years now, and we are proud to have it back in MENA as a TV show and as branded events,” said Kamel Weiss, Strategic Business Development Director, Spacetoon. “We are aiming to pull all family members together to live various entertaining experiences that suit all ages, and present values to kids and parents at the same time.”
Outright Games and digital media studio
pocket.watch have teamed up for new video game ‘Ryan’s Rescue Squad’, coming to consoles and PC in 2022. The game is based on the YouTube
phenomenon Ryan’s World, featuring Ryan Kaji and his family, which began life as Ryan ToysReview. Ryan’s YouTube channels reportedly attract more than one billion views per month and have 48 million subscribers. The side-scrolling platform adventure
features two-player screen-sharing travel across slime-filled planets to rescue Ryan’s friends, who have been captured by the evil Dark Titan and his wicked allies Robo Combo and Packrat. The game will feature collectables such as sun coins, surprise eggs and more, with the surprise eggs used to unlock new shop items. The announcement followed the first
ever Ryan’s World FanFest, a real-time live streaming event that took place on 27 November last year. The stream was free to view globally for all of Ryan’s 30M+ fans and was an interactive event featuring puzzles and challenges, photo booths, downloadable content and voice-activated emojis. Ryan’s Rescue Squad will be released in 2022 on Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, Playstation 5, XBox Series X, XBox One and PC.
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