Language-learning apps have been entering into promotional deals with licensed properties for close to a decade, with many of the partnerships having a content component. Properties involved tend to skew toward character/entertainment and celebrity IP, although there are other examples as well. For the language-learning platforms, such pairings spur sampling and potentially new subscriptions, while […]
Tag Archives | Warner Bros.
Uncorking Some Rare Vintages
Wine has started to become a go-to category for lifestyle licensing programs based on fictional TV shows for adults. The trend makes sense given that wine has been one of the most active categories for licensing and collaborations within the alcoholic beverage space since the pandemic began, while TV show-based lifestyle programs have been going […]
Getting Together for a Meal (Kit)
Despite continued challenges in the meal kit industry, including the difficulty of retaining customers, high (and rising) operational and marketing costs, a demand curve that tends to be seasonal rather than steady, and more, the category has remained a viable one for many licensors. These include celebrities, especially chefs, and owners of family-friendly entertainment properties, […]
A Winning Formula
Three of the leading suppliers of pro sports uniforms and associated merchandise have recently brought to life in the real world the looks worn by fictional sports teams, both new and classic, on the on-screen pitch, rink, or court: Earlier this month, Nike and Warner Bros. introduced a collection of kits for AFC Richmond, the […]
Horror Show
Horror films—which represent a perennial-favorite genre—have been doing particularly well at the box office in recent years, with the theatrical success of M3GAN being one of the most recent examples. Streaming of horror movies took off during the pandemic, adding fans not just for new releases and well-known franchise movies but also years-ago classics and […]
Hopping Into Lunar New Year
By Karen Raugust on January 19, 2023 in Character/Entertainment, Fashion, Holiday, International, Licensing
The Lunar New Year is always an opportunity for brands to forge collaborations with characters related to the appropriate sign of the Chinese zodiac, from 2022’s Year of the Tiger to 2021’s Year of the Ox and beyond. This year, starting on January 22, is the Year of the Rabbit, considered the luckiest of the […]
Hoteliers Look to Licensing
Branded hotels had been an up-and-coming form of experiential licensing for at least five years prior to the start of the pandemic, and they are back, if the number of new deals and openings announced in the last year or so is any indication: Lagardère Group’s ELLE magazine brand opened its first hotel, in Paris, […]
Dogs Dressing Up
Several recent licensed pet lines have featured people-like clothing and accessories styles, almost making pets into “mini-mes” that mirror the fashion choices of either their owners or the property (e.g., a celebrity) on which the range is based. While pet lines typically capture the sensibility of the underlying property in their look and feel, these […]
Just the Ticket
Rail stations, train lines, and railway museums are logical venues for certain experiential initiatives. Not surprisingly, a large percentage—although not all—of these ventures involve licensed entertainment properties that feature trains as characters, themes, or critical elements of their fictional universe. Four examples from 2021 and 2022 illustrate: Warner Bros. France paired with railroad company SNCF […]
Classics Changing Hands
Over the last couple of days, news has come to light about the oversight of three significant entertainment franchises changing or expected to change hands. The three situations, each of which is unique in its specifics, involve merchandising as well as other rights, and the goal, at least in part, is to refresh and rejuvenate […]