Beanstalk’s Tinderbox Readies eSports Company ESL for Licensing

Beanstalk’s Tinderbox division is handling licensing for the online gaming league and broadcaster ESL in North America and Europe, bringing the agency into eSports for the first time. Beanstalk will seek agreements for ESL in apparel, consumer electronics, audio and gaming accessories and gift and novelty. Germany-based ESL (formerly the Electronic Sports League) was founded as Deutsche Clanliga in 1997 and has operated and broadcast tournaments and leagues on Twitch for Valve Corp.’s “Dota-2” and “Counter-Strike: Global Offensive” games.

Beanstalk also is representing the American Cancer. The agency is developing a seal-of-approval program that will let manufacturers use the Society’s seal on their products. Beanstalk will seek deals for sunscreen, cosmetics, UV-protection sunglasses and other products.

Contact:

Beanstalk, Ivonne Feliciano, Associate Dir. Business Development and Marketing, 212-303-1131, ivonne.feliciano@beanstalk.com

Take-Two Interactive NBA2K 2018 Q4 Sales Fall Short of Q4 Forecast, Unit Sales Rise 17% for Year

Take-Two Interactive’s revenue from the NBA 2K18 console game fell slightly short of the company’s forecast in Q4 ended March 31, company executives told analysts. Nevertheless, the game has posted year-to-date sales of nine million units, up 17% from a year earlier, CEO Strauss Zelnick said. And the game’s revenue per user, including both console and online versions, rose 34% for the year. The shortfall in Q4 sales was due to “any number of factors” surrounding the game’s “level of monetization,” issues that will be resolved with the release of NBA 2K19 later this year, Zelnick said.  Zelnick didn’t provide details and a Take-Two spokesman declined to comment.

The NBA 2K e-Sports league launched earlier this month with 17 of the NBA’s 30 teams competing in a 15-week season that ends in August. All matches are being played in a facility in Long Island City, NY. “We have said along that our risk [with the NBA 2K league] is exceedingly low and that the actual exposure if things don’t work out the way we like is di minimis and certainly not material, and the upside we believe is substantial,” Zelnick said. Dell and Intel have signed as league sponsors and Twitch has the rights for streaming the matches.

The company also is working with Tencent in China on development of NBA 2K Online 2, a version of the console game that’s  a followup the first online version, which has 37 million registered users.

Take-Two’s net income declined 8.4% to $90.8 million in Q4 ended March 31, due partly to $1.7 million in business reorganization expenses. Net Revenue declined 21.2% to $450.2 million.

Contact:

Take-Two Interactive, Henry Diamond, SVP, 646-536-3005, henry.diamond@take2games.com

Former Perry Ellis Executive Continues Battle to Take Company Private

George Feldenkreis, the former Executive Chairman of Perry Ellis International who was ousted last fall, is continuing his battle to take the company private. Feldenkreis, who owns 10.8% of Perry Ellis and is its largest shareholder, nominated four people late last week to the board in advance of the company’s annual meeting. Feldenkreis nominated his son and current CEO Oscar Feldenkreis and three external candidates (Mary Ellen Kanoff, Scott LaPorta and Matthew McEvoy) to overhaul the seven-member board. The nominees will stand for election at the annual meeting, the date for which hasn’t been set. Feldenkreis proposed earlier this year buying all of the company’s outstanding common stock he didn’t own at $27.90. Perry Ellis hired former Macy’s executive David Scheiner last fall  to replace George Feldenkreis.  Feldenkreis was CEO until 2016 when he shifted to executive chairman and was replaced by his son.

Contact:

Perry Ellis International, Jorge Narino, Chief Financial Officer, 305-592-2830, Jorge.narino@pery.com

Endemol Shine Readies Licensing for Black Mirror Series

Endemol Shine Group is launching licensing for the “Black Mirror” TV series. Black Mirror premiered on Channel 4 in the UK in 2011 and Netflix purchased the rights to it in 2015. Netflix commissioned 12 episodes, the first six of which aired in October 2016. The series is produced by Endemol’s House of Tomorrow.

Contact:

Endemol Shine Group, Owen Walbyoff, Managing Dir. Gaming, Licensing and Merchandising, owen.walbyoff@endemolshine.us

Rovio Brand Licensing Revenue Forecast to Decline 40% This Year As It Gears For Next Film

Rovio forecasts brand licensing revenue will decline 40% this year as it gears up for the debut of the Angry Birds 2 film in September 2019. The company’s licensing revenue decreased 0.8% to €8.9 million in Q1 ended March 31. Sales of Angry Birds-licensed consumer products fell to 170 million units in the fiscal year ended Dec. 31 from 250 million units a year earlier.

Meanwhile, the company is launching a licensing program this week at Licensing Expo behind Sony Pictures’ Angry Birds 2 film. Overall, Q1 operating income nearly doubled to €10 million despite revenue falling 0.9% to €66.3 million. Games-related revenue rose 0.4% to €56.8 million. The Angry Birds 2 game, released in 2015, remained the company’s top-selling title with revenue rising 0.9% to €22 million, offsetting a 54% decrease in Angry Birds Match revenue to €5 million. It also will more than double spending to €10-15 million for its Hatch Entertainment game streaming service, which is in beta test across Europe.

Rovio also signed on for early access the Magic Leap’s augmented reality (AR) software development kit (SDK), Rovio executives told analysts. Magic Leap began shipping the SDK and prototype Magic One AR headsets to potential developers in March.

Contact:

Rovio, Simo Hamalainen, SVP Brand Licensing, +358 50 585 9757, simo.hamalainen@rovio.com