Online Properties, Offline Products

Original entertainment series distributed on streaming platforms, rather than on traditional television, have quickly gained traction as viable licensing opportunities. The first licensed products for these sorts of IP, which began to emerge in the world of licensing nearly two years ago, tend to be toys and/or books.

Some examples:

• Jim Henson Productions’ Word Party, a preschool series focusing on vocabulary, has been extended into playthings with SnapToys. Plans include plush, figures, playsets, and electronics. The show is a Netflix Original.
• RBWY, a female-centric action-adventure show streaming on Rooster Teeth (which also handles licensing for the property), is featured in a line of collectible figures from Jazwares. Other products are available through the Rooster Teeth online shop.
• The DreamWorks Animation series Spirit Riding Free, licensed by Universal Brand Group and streaming on Netflix, boasts Just Play as its master toy licensee, Reeves International’s Breyer division for model horses, and Little, Brown for novels and other books.
• The Mattel-owned American Girl brand has a spin-off series on Amazon called Wellie Wishers, with Mattel making toys and American Girl producing dolls and books. A few other licensed products are also available.
• Lego Elves, one of Lego’s many proprietary sub-brands, is featured in a streaming series on Netflix that premiered in 2016, following the launch of the first building kits in 2015. Apparel from Kabooki is among the licensed products on the market.
• Hanazuki: Full of Treasures, a YouTube-distributed animated series from Hasbro with emotions as a core theme, will be featured in comic books from IDW and books from Abrams, in addition to its core Hasbro toy line.
• Voltron Legendary Defender, another DreamWorks/Universal property, is in its second season on Netflix, with Playmates serving as master toy licensee for action figures, role play, and other categories. Lion Forge is also on board for comics.
• Masha and the Bear, licensed by Animaccord, has inspired toys from Spin Master and books from Little, Brown. The series, which has been extensively licensed in Russia and parts of Europe, airs on Netflix in the U.S. and also attracts significant viewership on its YouTube channel.

As these properties illustrate, a streaming property these days can be considered licensable even if it is not backed by an ongoing franchise. Lego Elves and Wellie Wishers are rooted in strong, current franchises, of course. But some of the others, while franchise-based, are new to today’s young consumers in the U.S.: Masha originates in Russia, Voltron is familiar to parents who grew up in the 1980s but new to kids, and Spirit Riding Free continues a story originated in Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, a 2002 film. Meanwhile, Hanazuki, Word Party, and RBWY are true streaming originals.

To read more about the early evolution of streaming properties in the world of licensing, read “No Longer Niche?” (September 2015) and “Swimming With The Stream” (June 2015).

A reminder that Raugust Communications’ March e-newsletter goes out tomorrow, March 21. If you haven’t subscribed to this free email publication, you can do so here. The March “Licensing Trend of the Month” examines the reasons property owners sometimes take a step back from licensing and opt to manage some or all of their brand-extension activities in-house.