Hasbro is ending Entertainment One’s (eOne) agency agreements for Peppa Pig, PJ Masks and Ricky Zoom as it shifts licensing for the properties to 25 local offices of the newly combined company, Casey Collins, SVP-General Manager for Global Consumer Products, said today at Hasbro’s investor conference in New York.

At the same time, Hasbro will assume responsibility for “select” eOne-related licensed categories that previously were handled by third parties. Peppa Pig-related products generated $1.3 billion in global retail sales in 2019, Collins said. The first of the licensing agreements will expire in fall 2021 and Hasbro’s internally-developed products with eOne properties will ship the following year, said Samantha Lomow, President of Branded Entertainment for Hasbro and eOne. eOne’s major toy licensees include Jazwares (Peppa Pig), Just Play (PJ Masks) and Tomy (Ricky Zoom).

Hasbro and eOne have begun combining their licensing and consumer products groups to “fully harness the expertise of our people and use eOne’s knowledge of the industry to drive and leverage the story-led brands,” Collins said. Bringing licensing for the eOne properties inhouse creates a “direct relationship” that “is very powerful and will drive further growth,” Collins said

While eOne will deepen Hasbro’s business in the preschool category and further expand in “retail distribution and digital offerings,” Hasbro will bring Peppa Pig, PJ Masks and Rick Zoom into fashion collaborations, Collins said. Hasbro also will expand the eOne properties’ reach in location-based entertainment, which is a “critical” part of the company’s business going forward, Collins said.

In addition to licensing, eOne is expected to greatly expand Hasbro’s entertainment production capabilities.

Among projects underway is a new animated My Little Pony film slated for release in fall 2021. The studio also will work on Transformers and GI Joe-related content. Hasbro, between its own studios and those of eOne, will produce about 750 hours of content this year across PJ Masks, Peppa Pig, Ricky Zoom, Transformers and My Little Pony.

With the acquisition of eOne, Hasbro expects revenue to increase this year by a “mid-single digit” percentage to $6.2 billion from $5.9 billion in 2019, CEO Brian Goldner said. He expects toy industry sales in the U.S., which declined 4% in 2019, will be “up slightly” this year, he said.

Meanwhile, the Coronavirus outbreak in China has been “disruptive” to manufacturing there and the delays in returning to full production could “bleed in to” Q2, Goldner said. It will have a “small impact” on Hasbro’s Q1 business, which is typically a slow period for production given the shutdown of plants for the Chinese New Year.