Bioworld Launches Heroes & Villains Star Wars Apparel

Bioworld launches its new Heroes & Villains brand with Star Wars, and plans to extend it to other properties, says a company spokesman.

The limited edition Commando (nine pieces) and Imperial (11 pieces) collections, which are being shown at Comic-Con in San Diego this week, range in price from a Scout Trooper “Dad” hat (Imperial) and Rebel Commander bi-fold wallet (both $25) to a copper-colored men’s bomber and women’s denim jacket (Imperial, $100 each). The Scout Trooper bi-fold wallet was already listed as sold out for pre-order on the heroesvillains.com web site.

The Heroes & Villains collections are the second premium line Bioworld has introduced this year. It showed the Anime Pls brand at Anime Expo in June consisting of t-shirts, hats, socks and accessories featuring the anime properties Dragon Ball Super, My Hero Academia, Tokyo Ghoul, Bananya and Attack on Titans.

Contact:

Bioworld, Jennifer Staley, VP Licensing, 972-812-2813, jennifers@bioworldmerch.com

Superman Brand Enters Phone Booth Business

Superman phone booths are moving into the office. Cubicall, which specializes in developing licensed phone booths for open-space offices, will ship a 80th anniversary limited edition Superman version in September priced at $8,495 (a similarly featured non-licensed version is $6,495) under an agreement with Warner Brothers Consumer Products. The two-person booth, which measures 42×42 inches and stands eight feet high, is equipped with a 120-volt outlet, two USB connectors and features red acoustic panels, blue vinyl leather, and a yellow desk. The first 80 orders get a commemorative 80th anniversary plaque and will ship start shipping Sept. 10. Cubicall, which launched in June 2017, also has phone booths featuring the licensed artwork of Vincent van Gogh (Irises), Edward Munch (Starry Night) and Claude Monet (Sunrise).

Contact:

Cubicall, Michael Pucci, Co-Founder, 818-319-4000

Mega Man Animated TV Series to Launch on Cartoon Network in August, Products to Follow

DHX Media and Dentsu Entertainment co-produced 10-episode “Mega Man: Fully Charged” animated series will launch on Cartoon Network Aug. 5, with the first licensed products to arrive in spring 2019, says a DHX spokesman. DHX’s CPLG agency is handling licensing for the show. Jakks Pacific is the master toy licensee, but additional licensing plans haven’t been finalized, says the DHX spokesman. Mega Man was created by Capcom and first released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in December 1987.

Meanwhile, Sony’s acquisition of a 39% stake in Peanuts Worldwide for $237 million is expected to close by month’s end, having been extended from its previous June 30 deadline. DHX, which purchased an 80% stake in Peanuts for $345 million last year, will retain a 41% interest while the estate of Peanuts creator Charles Schulz has 20%.

Contact:

CPLG/DHX Media, Steve Manners, EVP, +44 20 8563 6111, smanners@cplg.com

Pocket.watch Closes $15 million Funding Round

Pocket.watch raised $15 million in a round led by Viacom, providing fresh funding for licensing, merchandising and developing new program franchises, the company said. As part of the agreement, Viacom, which gets a seat on Pocket.watch’s board, also entered a commercial pact for content, advertising and talent. Pocket.watch represents YouTube stars with a combined 34 million subscribers, the largest of which are Ryan ToysReview (15 million) and CaptainSparkelz (10 million). Bonkers Toys is readying the first Ryan Toysreview toys for launch next month at Walmart and also has plans in 2019 for other Pocket.watch-represented properties including EvanHD (5.5 million subscribers) and HobbyKidsTV (3.1 million). Pocket.watch and Viacom previously partnered on children’s sketch comedy “Skoogle,” created by and starring Saturday Night Live’s Keenan Thompson for Nickelodeon. Viacom’s Paramount Players also has purchased a pitch from Pocket.watch for a film tentatively titled The Unboxed Movie. Pocket.watch has raised $21 million, including the recent round, since its launch in March 2017.

Contacts:

Pocket.watch, Stone Newman, Chief Revenue Officer, (917-371-0779, stone@pocketwatch.com

Viacom, Sarah Levy, Chief Operating Officer, 212-846-6700, sarah.levy@viacom.com