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STAMFORD, February 13: According to alternative media research firm PQ Media, spending on branded-entertainment marketing grew 14.7 percent to a high of $22.3 billion in 2007, and is projected to expand another 13.9 percent in 2008 to $25.41 billion. The …

ATLANTA, February 13: Bakugan, the hit anime series that has been successful in Japan and Canada, is making its U.S. debut on Cartoon Network on February 24 at 9 p.m. Furthermore, Cartoon Network Enterprises (CNE) has been appointed as the …

LOS ANGELES/NEW YORK, February 13: After voting overwhelmingly to end the strike yesterday, the members of the Writers Guild of America were able to return to work today, as the networks scramble to salvage what’s left of the current season. …

VANCOUVER, February 13: Aly Jetha and Shabnam Rezaei have launched the Canadian-based animation studio Big Bad Boo Studios, and have tapped industry veteran Glen Kennedy, who has worked for Cartoon Network and Walt Disney Television, among others, as the company’s …

WASHINGTON, February 13: Steven Spielberg is ending his stint as artistic advisor for the opening and closing ceremonies of this year’s Olympic Games in Beijing, after failed attempts to convince the Chinese government to play a greater role in ending …

JAKARTA/NEW YORK, February 13: A new children’s series from Sesame Workshop, titled Jalan Sesama, will premiere next week on the Indonesian channel Trans7. Produced by nonprofit educational organization Sesame Workshop in association with Jakarta-based Creative Indigo Production, Jalan Sesama features …

LOS ANGELES, February 13: Joel Surnow, the executive producer and co-creator of FOX’s 24, is leaving the Emmy Award-winning drama ahead of his contract expiring in April. According to published reports, Surnow is taking advantage of the series’ postponement—a result …

NEW YORK/ATLANTA, February 13: Independent children’s animation producer Animation Collective has licensed its preschool series Ellen’s Acres to Boomerang Latin America. The 52×11-minute comedy features a 5-year-old girl named Ellen, her feather duster, her radial tire, the hotel she owns …

REDMOND, February 13: Microsoft Corporation has released the results of a new online survey that found American teenagers between 7th and 10th grades are less likely to illegally download content from the Internet when they know the laws for downloading …

TORONTO, February 13: Canadian production outfit Fresh TV is in development with TELETOON Canada and Nelvana, with a grant from the Canadian Television Fund, to develop a live-action feature film based on the hit series 6Teen. Tom McGillis and Jennifer …