EXCLUSIVE: Moonbug Entertainment, the proprietor of the profitable CoComelon franchise, is plotting European growth and has launched its first channel for older youngsters.
The Candle Media-owned outfit has kickstarted a Blippi & Friends 24/7 linear channel within the MENA area. The new community is the primary 24/7 linear providing to be named after the Blippi IP and can characteristic numerous spin-offs focused at 4-8 12 months olds versus Moonbug’s pre-school heartland. These embrace Meekah and the feature-length particular Big Dino Adventure, whereas Blippi – an academic human with a particular bow tie who has numerous cartoon associates – will characteristic in quite a few interstitials.
Nicolas Eglau, who runs EMEA, APAC and world distribution for Moonbug, stated the channel was impressed by the massive success of barely older-skewing variations of CoComelon which have carried out effectively on Netflix just lately.
“We wanted to do something new and innovative and just thought we should name the channel after one of our most successful IPs,” he instructed Deadline. “This content has the ability to deliver values in a playful and fun way, so we take it very seriously.”
Eglau’s group often discusses the potential to maneuver additional into the older children house and he stated they’re “observing the market” however would wish any massive performs to be recognized IP. “The way we want to grow is to work with existing successful brands so if we moved into an older segment then it would be acquisitions,” he added.
The new channel comes because of a distribution settlement struck between Moonbug and MENA outfit Intigral, and is the second in latest weeks following Moonbug’s tie-up with Viaplay-owned Allente within the Nordics.
Notably for an leisure powerhouse which says its manufacturers have 760 million YouTube subs mixed, Eglau was eager to emphasize dedication to linear, as Moonbug makes an attempt to have its content material turn into half of a kid’s day by day routine.
“Kids can watch the channels while brushing their teeth or going to bed, so we are trying to mirror the routine of the day,” added Eglau. “There is this assumption in the era of Netflix and Spotify that pay-TV is dead [for children] but there are still opportunities. And when people see Moonbug next to established brands on platforms like Sky they think to themselves, ‘Wow, they are next to Bloomberg or CNN on the channel guide, they are a legitimate brand’.”
Rather than streaming providers, Eglau stated his “key partners” proper now in nations such because the UK are the likes of the BBC and Sky. “They have embraced and seen the quality of our content on YouTube,” he added. “Our shows are a really good fit to their portfolio. [BBC kids boss] Patricia Hidalgo takes a realistic, pragmatic approach to the kids TV world.”
Pushing into Europe
Nicolas Eglau
These linear alternatives are particularly prevalent in areas which might be watching much less YouTube equivalent to MENA however Eglau has turned his sights to Europe in a giant approach and the primary fruits of that technique is the recently-struck Allente partnership within the Nordics.
Eglau desires to burrow deeper into the continent and his group is actively in search of extra European companions.
“I personally never thought we would be able to do this,” he stated. “Hopefully this is the first step of us entering Western European markets. I have a few more markets on my list for this year.”
The European push comes as world viewers behave in a extra agnostic method, Eglau stated. “Some watch YouTube and some watch Sky but we don’t want to tell people how to watch, we just want to try and be in as many households in the world as possible.”
Moonbug was launched by ex-Disney exec René Rechtman in 2018 and was purchased by Candle Media – the funding car owned by Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs – three years later.
Growth has adopted and the outfit now has a number of hundred staff worldwide, however Eglau cofirmed reviews in Bloomberg from late final 12 months that numerous staffers had been laid off within the CoComelon manufacturing studios, which got here amid mass redundancies throughout the media panorama.
The firm laid off round 30 folks late final 12 months however Eglau careworn that hiring has been at a internet optimistic in latest occasions.
“We have grown in areas like gaming and music but at the same time we looked at where we might grow slower and some productions came to an end,” he added. “We are always reviewing the decisions of the previous year and focusing budget on growth.”
Moonbug is helped alongside by Candle’s backing and Eglau stated he meets with former Disney exec Mayer repeatedly, including of Mayer: “He is in the office from time to time and is not a silent shareholder.”
Along with its European push, the mid-term future, for Eglau, is “having as many touchpoints as possible with our fans,” citing development of gaming, video and stay leisure.
“We feel like we have the freedom to the create the product we want, and this is what the partners want,” he added.