With nearly 15 million channel views and 45,000 subscribers for SpacePOP on YouTube since launching in summer 2016, Genius Brands International continues the momentum and expansion in 2017 with new content licence agreements for distribution with WeKids Asia of the music-driven animated series in China. Additionally, Genius Brands has greenlit the development of season two of SpacePOP for global distribution, anticipated for fall 2017.
“SpacePOP demonstrates that music, fashion, fun and adventure are universally appealing to girls, bonding them to a shared experience regardless of where they live or what language they speak,” explained Genius Brands, president (worldwide content sales, global consumer products and marketing), Stone Newman. “Expanding brand awareness and building the SpacePOP franchise through media partnerships in China, the UK and Southern Europe – we’re successfully building the brand in some of the largest and most influential markets in the world just three months after SpacePop’s initial release in the U.S. The response from licensing partners, retailers and viewers has been incredible, which is why we’re eager to get moving on season two of SpacePOP.”
Genius Brands has licensed the content distribution, licensing and merchandising rights for the series to WeKids Asia to launch a brand program across China in summer 2017. The company has also licensed the rights to the SpacePOP original music videos to U Music TV for distribution across the U.K. via their popular app, and subsequently through their content block Sky TV, FreeSat and FreeView.
“Genius Brands has done a phenomenal job in developing SpacePOP and in introducing it to young American consumers through the platforms they frequent,” said WeKids, founder and CEO, Sean Chu. “WeKids can replicate that rollout, with simultaneous launches of music videos, merchandising and the animated SpacePOP series through online streaming video, IPTV, OTT TV, iOS and Android based apps for mobile and tablet devices throughout China. As Genius Brands has shown us, this type of organic launch supported by local and regional promotions not only reaches the intended audience but also invites and encourages them to participate in introducing this amazing content to their friends, which is the most authentic method for growing a hit brand.”
The deals with WeKids and U Music TV follow a recent agreement with Luk Internacional to handle the content distribution and licensing and merchandising campaign for the series in Southern Europe (Spain, Portugal and Italy). Luk International is creating a dedicated Spanish-language SpacePOP YouTube channel for the market in Spain, utilizing Genius Brands’ U.S. marketing strategy by partnering with influencers and regional promotional partners.
“U Music TV combines apps, television, online platforms and merchandising in the creation of a truly multiplatform entertainment experience that is ideally suited to Genius Brands’ SpacePOP,” U Music TV, CMO, Claire Palmer stated. “Today’s young consumers want to be part of a property’s development; they want to claim responsibility for the popularity of songs, content and consumer products and SpacePOP clearly puts them in the driver’s seat. It may be a unique growth strategy today, but other content developers will be emulating it for years to come.”