License!Global’s Top Stories of 2013

Below are major stories that made headlines in the licensing community in 2013. To read the full list and details of the 13 biggest stories of 2013, click here.

Image courtesy of www.licensemag.com

• DreamWorks made a string of important acquisitions (Trolls, AwesomenessTV).
• Disney unveils Disney Infinity, its new interactive gaming platform.
• Doctor Who celebrated its 50^th anniversary.
• Netflix became a content creator and was chosen by Marvel for its next superhero TV series.
• Activision’s Skylanders property wins Program of the Year.
• Mattel forms its own production company, Playground Productions, to create multi-platform content for its brands including Barbie, Max Steel and Hot Wheels.
• WME buys IMG, creating the world’s largest talent management company.
• Beanstalk launches a division dedicated solely to digital properties. 
• Saban merged its domestic and international licensing divisions.
• ABG made a number of acquisitions in 2013 including two Celebrity Brands, Elvis Presley and Muhammad Ali.
• Sanrio’s collaboration with DC Comics transforms Hello Kitty a Super Hero.

MyMediabox Clients Amongst the Most Influential Brands of 2013

Licensing.biz released their first Power List this month of the most influential brands of 2013. The list, which is voted for by a panel of 200 independent judges in the industry, is split into four categories – Character & Entertainment, Brands, Art & Design and Sports.

Taking the top 2 spots for the Character & Entertainment category are MyMediabox clients eOne for Peppa Pig and Sanrio for Hello Kitty. Other MyMediabox clients that made the list for this category include BBC Worldwide for Doctor Who, FremantleMedia Enterprises for Tree Fu Tom and IMPS for The Smurfs.

V&A Enterprises, also a MyMediabox client, secured the first spot for the Art & Design Category. BBC Worldwide also made the list for this category for the Kirstie Allsopp line, as well as eOne for the Simon's Cat Cartoon Series.

Other MyMediabox clients on the list include The Licensing Company for Jelly Belly in the Brands category, and WWE and Tottenham Hotspur for the sports category. To see the full Power List, visit Licensing.biz.

MyMediabox offers hosted solutions for digital asset management and style guide delivery (Mediabox-DAM), product approvals and other creative workflows (Mediabox-PA) and deal memo management (Mediabox-DM). For more information visit us at mymediabox.com. Click here to see a complete list of all our clients.

Hello Kitty Rocks New Licensing Deal

Image Courtesy of www.licensemag.com

Coming soon to The Hub Network is "KISS Hello Kitty." The network recently licensed the rights to the Hello Kitty crossover and according to Margaret Loesch, president and CEO of The Hub, they are "thrilled to have these two seminal brands... the tone and style of the 'KISS Hello Kitty' TV show is a perfect fit for our network."

MyMediabox client, Sanrio, has been working with KISS since 2010, offering a variety of co-branded products including: apparel, toys, electronics and more. The crossover, while seemingly an odd pairing at first, has been a huge success.

Interested in learning how traditional brands, rock icons, studios, networks and more are leveraging MyMediabox hosted applications (Mediabox-DAM, Mediabox-PA and Mediabox-DM) to lower costs and streamline productivity? Visit www.mymediabox.com or email marketing@mymediabox.com for more information.

Click here to schedule and online demo.

Attending Licensing Expo? Visit MyMediabox at booth #A141.

Mr. Men Little Miss Outdoor Toys Hit the UK

Mr Men Little Miss Characters
Image Courtesy of penguin.com.au

According to licensing.biz, Sanrio UK licensees, H Grossman and Custom Accessories Europe (CAE), are launching an offering of Mr. Men Little Miss active toys (scooters, tricycles, bicycles, ankle ball and skip, frisbees and skip ropes), accessories and safety gear. H Grossman will create the outdoor toys, while CAE will offer the accessories (helmets, bells, baskets, saddle covers, reflective gear, booster seats, sunglasses and car decals).

A MyMediabox client since 2010, Sanrio utilizes Mediabox-PA (product approvals) and Mediabox-DAM (style guide delivery) online applications to streamline their approvals process. Interested in seeing how clients like Sanrio are increasing productivity, lowering overhead costs and maximizing efficiency with the MyMediabox suite? Click here to schedule a demo.

For more information on MyMediabox visit www.mymediabox.com or email marketing@mymediabox.com.

Sanrio Turns to Licensing to Increase Profits

MyMediabox client, Sanrio, discusses their new growth stragety for Hello Kitty--Licensing! Check out the video below to see different products that have come about from Sanrio brand licensing.



Interested in learning how Sanrio uses Mediabox-DAM (digital asset management) and Mediabox-PA (product approvals) systems to streamline the licensing process? Click here to schedule a demo.