New MENA Licensing Agent for Arabic Sesame Street

LONDON: Sesame Workshop and Bidaya Media have appointed Arabian Licensing Company as the licensing agent for Iftah Ya Simsim, the Arabic-language version of Sesame Street, in the UAE, GCC and the Middle East.

Arabian Licensing Company will develop a full-scale licensing program featuring a range of products and retail promotions for Iftah Ya Simsim. The agreement includes the use of domestic characters for MENA markets and global characters for international markets. Iftah Ya Simsim premiered on SpaceToon TV and across eight broadcast stations in September. It is locally produced, with content developed according to the curriculum prepared by the Arab Bureau of Education for the Gulf States.

“We are proud to represent Iftah Ya Simsim, which is part of the global Sesame Street family that provides engaging educational content to enrich the lives of children around the world,” said Fayez Weiss Al-Sabbagh, the chairman of Arabian Licensing Company. “The charming characters and excellent writing and performances are sure to enjoy a very strong response among licensees, retailers and consumers alike.”

The original Iftah Ya Simsim ran from 1970 to 1990 and was the first children's educational TV program of its kind in the Arab world. Bidaya Media is a joint venture between Sesame Workshop and the Abu Dhabi-based investment and development company Mubadala Development.