Kartoon Channel To Rollout Brand New Series, Chikn Nuggit

Through its Frederator Network subsidiary, Genius Brands International, Inc. (NASDAQ: GNUS until June 26th after which the company rebrands to Kartoon Studios and trades on the NYSE AMERICAN: TOON) and BuzzFeed (NASDAQ: BZFD) to develop the latest animated series, Chikn Nuggit, as part of the companies’ exclusive first-look content deal announced earlier this year.

Frederator Network and BuzzFeed’s Animation Lab will develop a premium content series for digital hit Chikn Nuggit based on the original shorts created by Kyra Kupetsky. With over 1 billion views to date on social platforms, Chikn Nuggit is a gender-inclusive, online animated comedy series about a weird, long-eared dog named Chikn Nuggit and his fast-food-named friends. The shorts have attained the a
doration of millions of fans worldwide for their sweet and surreal adventures and comedic, adorable antics. Chikn Nuggit premiered in October 2020 on TikTok, Twitter and Instagram and has since amassed over 300 short-form videos and over 8 million followers.

Frederator Director of Development Isabel Schultz will head global content sales. In addition, Genius Brands’ consumer products’ division will develop the Chikn Nuggit retail program and a full IP slate in close partnership with BuzzFeed Animation Lab.

Michael Hirsh, CEO of WOW! Unlimited Media, the parent company of Frederator Network, stated: “We are pleased further to expand our roster of original animated series with BuzzFeed, giving the global fans of wildly popular IP, such as Chikn Nuggit, more of what they love.”

Zee Myers, Head of BuzzFeed Animation Lab, commented: “Millions of fans have let us know that they need the Chikn Nuggit animated series! We can’t wait to continue expanding our content universe for our global community in partnership with Frederator, a pioneer in animation and television.”

Rovio To Launch An Educational Angry Birds

Finland’s Rovio Entertainment has partnered with Washington-based game developer Legends of Learning to launch new Angry Birds games with a focus on education.

Based on the Angry Birds characters, the games will teach STEM concepts—such as force, collisions and how to measure angles—to kids ages five to 14. The Legends of Learning online platform will release the games this fall.

Launched in 2017, Legends of Learning is a learning hub for elementary and middle school students. Game-based learning improves children’s grades, says Legends of Learning CEO and co-founder Vadim Polikov. The platform, which contains more than 2,000 educational video games, is mostly free but also offers paid options for teachers. It also allows kids to customize avatars by paying a subscription. It’s used by about 10 million teachers and students in the US, according to a release.

Rovio has long seen its Angry Birds games—which have been downloaded over five billion times—as a potential educational tool. The company previously expanded the games into education through a partnership with the University of Helsinki, which focused on creating games that blended fun with learning. And in 2014, it launched a standalone venture called Fun Academy to create educational games. 

Rovio has lately been expanding beyond its core focus of making games. It’s now producing a series for Amazon Kids+ and Prime Video titled Angry Birds Mystery Island.  Meanwhile, Japanese game developer SEGA is in the midst of acquiring Rovio in a US$776 million deal.

BET's Future As A Linear Channel Up In The Air As Tyler Perry Reportedly Backs Out Of Deal

Media mogul Tyler Perry refuses to cough up the $3 billion-plus that Paramount is asking in an auction of Black Entertainment Television — and the fierce haggling has begun to throw a sale into doubt, The Post has learned.

The “Diary of a Mad Black Woman” star has been considered the frontrunner to win the auction for BET Group, whose properties include cable channels BET and VH1 along with the BET+ streaming service.

But Perry is losing patience with the drawn-out process after making an offer that’s short of $3 billion — a price tag that other investors also consider to be lofty, according to a source close to the situation.

The filmmaker, who already owns a 25% stake in BET and BET+, has private equity backing for his offer, the insider added.

“He is used to getting his way and is frustrated,” the source said, adding that final bids are due by mid-July.

Paramount Global bought BET for $2.7 billion in 2000 when the Shari Redstone-owned company was called Viacom. The company wants roughly 10 times the BET Group’s current $325 million in Ebitda, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, sources said.

However, the continuing decline in cable’s popularity as more people cut the cord figures to be a drag on BET Group’s future earnings.

Paramount Global — which includes CBS, MTV, Paramount Pictures, the recently launched Paramount+ streaming service and book publisher Simon & Schuster — had $15.6 billion in long-term debt as of March, according to public findings.

“Paramount’s leverage now is six times Ebitda, so to make this work a sale needs to happen at eight times or more,” the first source said, since after accounting for taxes a sale at a lower multiple will not reduce its debt level.

“There is interest, but not at eight times [Ebitda].”

There was a report by sometime ago that Perry had won the auction, leading to premature congratulations from Perry’s “Madea” co-star Keke Palmer.

Weather Channel owner Byron Allen is also in the hunt, according to an inside source.

Meanwhile, private equity firm CVC Capital Partners — which partnered with Group Black, a media company that teamed with celebrities including Rapper 50 Cent and NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal — is out of the process, leaving Group Black looking for a well-funded partner, two sources said.

Canal+ To Acquire A 26% Stake In Hong Kong Based Streaming Platform VIU

PCCW and Canal+ have announced a strategic partnership through which the French media giant will become a significant minority shareholder in PCCW’s Asian streaming service Viu.

Canal+ will make a staggered investment of $300M in Viu, including an initial investment of $200M, resulting in a 26.1% stake. It also has an option to make a further investment and turn that stake into a controlling 51%.

In a statement, Canal+ talked expansion opportunities and plans to collaborate with Viu on premium production:

During the year, the French company expanded their stake in MultiChoice beyond 30%. This move similar to VIU raises speculation of a possible takeover and should that be the case one has to wonder what would become of Showmax and VIU in South Africa if it's operated by Canal+.

"This new strategic partnership will enable the further growth of Viu, leveraging the global strength and expertise of Canal+ through various initiatives including collaboration on premium productions and content creation, expansion of global market reach for Viu, and continual user experience improvement. The partnership will allow Canal+ to take a major step in developing Asia as its next growth engine.”

Viu is one of Asia’s leading streamers with more than 66 million monthly active users (MAU) and 12 million paid subscribers across Asia, the Middle East and South Africa. The service, which operates a combined AVOD and SVOD model, consistently ranks as the top streamer in terms of MAUs across Southeast Asia and second in terms of subscribers.

It produces a wide range of local-language drama series and lifestyle programming, with a focus on Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, and was a first mover in the acquisition of Korean content. In 2022, Viu reported $250M in revenue, representing growth of 36% year over year.

Maxime Saada, Canal+ Group CEO, said: “Canal+ already has leading market positions in Europe and Africa. We are now looking forward to developing Asia as an additional growth engine for the group. Our investment in Viu is a major step towards achieving this goal. Viu is already a business with scale, with its hybrid AVOD and SVOD business model and focus on local content, it has all the ingredients to deliver superior growth and continue to be a leading service in the region and beyond.

Janice Lee, Viu CEO and PCCW Media Managing Director, said: “When we launched Viu, we had set our sights on creating and transforming our media business into an international play by tapping into larger addressable markets in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and South Africa. Having created a robust streaming business, we are excited to have the addition of Canal+ as a strategic investor to further accelerate growth by drawing on Canal+’s global strength in premium productions, content creation and distribution expertise.”

BETA: Lost Youth Channel For The DStv Platform Has Surfaced The Net

K-TV is a defunct kids brand operated by M-Net which was the pay-tv channel's first attempt in the kids market followed by Koowee which too were erased from existence. But during the timeline of these channels, there were reports that MultiChoice was planning to launch a rival brand to Disney Channel and Nickelodeon.

In a press statement about the channel:

DStv will be launching a new channel in July aimed at teenagers. According to channel head, Helen Smit, no one has really focussed on this audience. "National research tells us that this market has an estimated R6 billion in disposable income. And our internal research has revealed that that's the tip of the iceberg - these kids get spending money on top of their monthly allowances."

Not much was known about the channel at the time only that Helen Smit served as the channel head. She worked as a television producer for over a decade and is well known figure on Paramount, SABC and M-Net.

Just as you thought further details about the channel was lost you come across various graphic designs which was shared through Behance account.

Through this we know that the channel was called BETA as the logo appears on the proposed graphic designs. We also got to see some of the content that would have been seen on the channel including Gossip Girl, Rad Girls, Robot Chicken and Celebrity Rehab.

Although we may never know why this channel never launched as intended. We assume it may have to do with VUZU. Back when the channel was still on air, it was seen with some of this content and when you kind of look like at the channels do share a resemblance.

Honestly, if BETA had launched as intended it would have probably wind up like K-TV, Koowee and M-Net City brands which were popular amongst consumers but had their content build the lineup of another channel or in this scenario M-Net and Nickelodeon.

Recap To The Year: Da Vinci's Family Entertainment Has Been Undergoing Several Changes

Da Vinci is a educational children's channel featuring a mix of live-action shows such as Operation Ouch, Animal Embassy and Treehouse Stories alongside animated shows such as Superhero Galore, Wild Kratts (currently seen on PBS Kids) and Doki.

It also offered a family oriented block featuring a lot of factual content and documentaries from Knowledge Kids, Discovery Science and National Geographic namely Genius and Future Human Al.

For several months, the company behind Da Vinci has been building its original portfolio with the recent rollout of Bear Grylls' celebrity tailored Becoming Xtraordinary with the slapstick comedy Fantastic Antics to rollout on the channel by the end of the year.

Aside from that, Da Vinci got rebranded during the year eliminating "Kids" from the name. It also led to a number of changes for its linear offering particularly the family offering catered to audiences aged 18 to 49 which has become a reruns graveyard for kids shows.

It doesn't come as a shocker considering not much investment was going onto that area of the channel for new content. Another was the hours in which the content was allocated as not a lot of households are tuning into those channels much less Da Vinci.

The phasing out of family from Da Vinci is similar in a way to the introduction of the 24 hour service for Cartoonito from Warner Bros Discovery as both channels are now tailed for preschoolers and taking on brands like Disney Junior, CBeebies and Nick Jr.

Unlike Da Vinci, Cartoonito doesn't create division amongst consumers as they have shows like Mr. Bean and Tom And Jerry shows which can pull a vast majority of Boomerang viewers while they adjust to shows such as Thomas And Friends and Batwheels.

Regular Nick: Games Presents One Of The Most Irritating Creations To Have Ever Existed On A Gameboy, Pink Panther Pinkadelic Pursuit

• Travel to the far reaches of the galaxy, including: outer-space, an exciting & dangerous underwater world & even medieval times
• Bowling balls, pink spray paint, a fire extinguisher and a giant magnet are just a few of the wild and wacky gadgets at your disposal;
• Use many disguises to hide from your enemies while you perform dangerously impossible tasks.

Review: for first timers, this game screams all kinds of confusion I don't want to get into detail but you find yourself getting lost inbetween levels and having to become an Albert Einstein to solve the simplest math equation. Anyone wishing to play this game would need to have the same intelligence complex as Albert Einstein.

As for the graphics, that gets 9/10 why leave the 10% simple the graphics are distracting and often you get lost by repeated designs.

Download Now

Development Alert: As Expected, The Home Channel Is In Glorious High Definition, Rolls Out An On-Air Look

The Home Channel, South Africa’s favourite design and décor TV destination, is getting a makeover all of its own.

But it’s not just a fresh new look for the well-loved brand.

From this week the channel will also be upgraded to full HD on DStv 176.

“HD is going to make a big difference to our viewers and advertisers,” said channel head Michael Porter.

“Décor and design is all about the detail. Now our viewers can experience the most stunning homes, gardens and renovations as if they were there.”

The revamped branding, from Mauritius-based designers Aestetika Studios, blends everyday home images with rich tones and bold colours to create warmth and a sense of familiarity.

The key content pillars of décor, gardening, food, DIY, property and health are colour-coded to help viewers navigate their way.

 To celebrate the relaunch, a slate of new show and new episodes of old favourites will roll out from June.

Escape to the Chateau  — A maverick British couple with two young children give up their life in the UK to take on the renovation of a neglected 45-room French chateau.

Impossible Builds — From sub-aquatic homes to futuristic towers, complex construction projects stand tall as a testament to cutting-edge technology and vision.

Design For You — Pilani Bubu and her guests give you the best practical décor and design tips you can use in your own home.

Property Brothers: Forever Home — Twins Jonathan and Drew Scott help families transform their houses into forever homes where they can put down roots for life.  

Dream Home Makeovers with Sophie Robinson  — Interior designer Sophie Robinson helps homeowners overcome their design doubts and dilemmas.

The Gardener —  A firm favourite with viewers, Tanya Visser has the greenest fingers around and she’ll get you gardening successfully in no time.

Finest Homes  — A show that takes you on a tour of some of the most magnificent homes in South Africa.

The Home Channel, owned by Arena Broadcast, started as a weekends-only channel in 2005. Due to its popularity it expanded to a full 24/7 service in 2007.

“We are delighted by the success and longevity of the channel,” said Arena Broadcast head Vernon Matzopoulos, “and we hope to inspire and delight new generations of homeowners for years to come”.

SpongeBob SquarePants: Here Lies Squidward's Hopes And Dreams

When I was younger I always thought that Squidward was a grumpy and mean character because of the way he always talks to his "friends". But as I got older I realise that Squidward wasn't that mean after all - it was SpongeBob.

You see countless scenes where he arrives or works at The Krusty Krab. He is annoyed at all of it when you get older working at jobs you don't like to pay the bills. You can almost relate to him in a way.

It's kind of absurd that us humans have to work our entire lives for money only to then just die. Us humans chase money almost like we're gonna bring it into the next life with us.

I order the food, you cook the food, then the customer gets the food. We do that for 40 years and then we die, sounds like pretty good deal to me. What do you say?, Squidward.

You start to sympathize with him, his character shows that he's tired of it all and the only time you ever see Squidward happy is when he's on vacation or away from people.

The reason Squidward is so mean to SpongeBob and Patrick is because they never leave him alone. Sure these two are very kind and caring individuals in a way but I understand Squidward's frustration with them. You gave to admit these two are very intolerable.

I understand Squidward as I too was an annoying individual as a child so I know what it takes to be an annoying person. It doesn't mean someone is a bad person because they are annoying.

They just treat SpongeBob like a brother to Squidward. He doesn't take no as an answer or know when to stop. He's basically can get on your nerves after a long day.

There's also a scene where Squidward arrives to a tombstone where it's filled with broken dreams.

It goes to show you that a lot of people have dreams that they haven't been able to achieve. This goes to show you that you should be able to chase your dreams don't end up like Squidward and work for a job you hate, grind for your dreams, it will take them but keep grinding and you'll get there.