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Nickelodeon UK (stand 799) will be bringing some of the biggest names in the children’s entertainment business to Brand Licensing Europe for the 2008 event. These include hit Nickelodeon and MTV properties Dora the Explorer, Go, Diego, Go!, SpongeBob SquarePants, South Park, Backyardigans, Avatar and the Legend of Aang, as well as such exciting newer properties as Wonder Pets and iCarly. It’s been yet another amazing year for pre-school favourites Dora and Diego. Dora the Explorer-branded products have generated billions of dollars worldwide since the brand’s launch in 2001 through licensees as varied as VTech, Fisher Price, Smith & Brooks, CWI Mega Bloks and Character World to name just a few of over 95 licensees in total. Recent licenses have included such diverse products as console accessories, digital picture frames and video games specially designed with the help of the show’s audience and their parents not only to be entertaining but to offer environmental education. 
In only two years, Go, Diego, Go! has been syndicated in over 70 markets worldwide. Licensed product from over 50 licensees includes books, toys, DVDs and jigsaws. More recently, licensees such as Fisher Price, Character World and Trade Mark Collections were joined by video games publisher 2K Play via the Go, Diego Go!: Safari Rescue video game, which, like the show, both educates and entertains. SpongeBob SquarePants too continues to offer major licensing opportunities. His retail figures are staggering: more than $7.5 billion in worldwide retail sales to date. And, because his fanbase extends well beyond his enormous popularity with children, as well as products aimed at the pre-school market there have also been SpongeBob square crumpets, kitchen roll, collectible figurines, multivitamins, USB cables, karaoke and even electric guitars. Among Nickelodeon’s newer properties at this year’s show are two series that have already gained a strong following: Wonder Pets and iCarly. Teamwork, friendship and fun is the message of Nick Jr’s Wonder Pets, a photo-puppetry animated series for pre-school viewers about three classroom pets who travel the world working – and singing - together to save young, rare and endangered animals. 
Already a hit on DVD, the show’s popularity (it is syndicated in over 60 markets) has brought a growing number of licensees on board including master toy, books, plush, beanies and stickers. And many more are on the way, reflecting the success of a series whose wit, originality and positive messages about working together and saving the planet are already a hit with its pre-school viewers and their parents. Also a big hit, but with a very different theme, is iCarly, a comedy series about a 13-year old girl who becomes an overnight tween sensation presenting her very own live web TV show called iCarly. The top rating kids show in the UK’s cable and satellite homes, iCarly combines hilarious characters and storylines with an innovative concept that includes the use of videos from real Nickelodeon viewers and even a functioning website at www.nick.co.uk. iCarly hit the airwaves in the UK on 24 March this year. Already over 4.7 million viewers have seen it - and up to a quarter of a million kids aged between four and15 are tuning in regularly to watch the show. Clare Piggott, VP of Consumer Products, Nickelodeon UK, says: “At this year’s Brand Licensing Europe, Nickelodeon UK is again proving its dedication both to popular, innovative new programming and to the support and development of our established hits. Visitors to stand 799 will be able to hear more about how we are building on our success and the attractive licensing opportunities offered by all our properties.” Nickelodeon UK will be one of more than 200 European exhibitors showcasing thousands of exciting new licenses at Brand Licensing Europe in London, 1-2 October. For more information, please click here. |
