After the launch of the free digital Kartoon Channel! across multiple AVOD and OTT platforms, and COPPA-compliant Apple iOS app Genius Brands International has acquired approximately 230 new episodes of programming, with Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V, based on the trading card game from Konami.
“Led by Yu-Gi-Oh, these new program acquisitions truly showcase the quality and diversity of content we are striving to bring to young audiences discovering the Kartoon Channel! and offer opportunities for a wide range of ad partners to drive revenue for the channel. We are extremely proud of the rapid expansion of Kartoon Channel! and the positive responses we are receiving from kids and especially parents, who feel we are providing a safe destination for their kids’ entertainment. Our reach now extends to over 100M U.S. television households and over 200M mobile devices; we have our first iOS app which has thousands of positive reviews and 5-star ratings, and we have new apps launching on Android, Roku and Amazon Fire, with the same interface as on iOS. And, we are continually looking for unique ways to fill our offering with the best children’s programming in the marketplace, with titles such as Yu-Gi-Oh!, Babar, Angry Birds, Roblox, and our upcoming Stan Lee’s Superhero Kindergarten. This is just the beginning of our mission to build what I like to call the FREE ‘Netflix for Kids,” said chairman and CEO Andy Heyward.
In addition to the 148×22’ episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V is now being offered on Kartoon Channel!, Genius Brands has also licensed the English language rights to 25×4’ episodes and Spanish language rights to 5×30’ episodes of Youtube series My Dog Chocolo, from Productora Atiempo, which has over four million subscribers and more than three million daily views and a total of over two billion views. The Company has also acquired 52×11’ episodes of the 3-D comedy series Invention Story from Mondo TV, which follows a quirky fox inventor who tries to fit into Carrot Town, a place full of rabbits—hopefully winning them over with his big heart and his amazing gadgets; and 26×22’ episodes of Mysteries of Alfred Hedgehog from Muse Entertainment, a series which encourages science exploration and teamwork—by thinking, linking and deducing, kids can be entertained and learn while solving the puzzles and problems of Alfred’s mysterious world!
The Kartoon Channel! and their iOS app has offer access to a wide variety of Genius Brands original and acquired family-friendly content, with more added daily, including Babar, Angry Birds, Stan Lee’s Mighty7, Thomas Edison’s Secret Lab, Baby Einstein, Baby Genius, Llama Llama shorts Warren Buffett’s Secret Millionaires Club, and more. Additionally, Genius Brands is adding more family-friendly gaming content, including Minecraft’s Journey to the End and Fairy Horse Quest, Octodad, PixArk, and Big B Roblox Challenge, from Tankee. Genius Brands will also premiere on Kartoon Channel! the upcoming comedy-adventure series, Stan Lee’s Superhero Kindergarten, which is currently in pre-production and fearures Arnold Schwarzenegger, on Kartoon Channel! in Q1 2021.
