Toonz Taps Mukun Cairae to Head New Division

Toonz Media Group has appointed Mukun Cairae as president of its new platform business unit, Toonz Media Networks.

Toonz Media Networks will supervise the launch of the media group’s new linear TV channels in the kids’ markets of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Middle East and North Africa. Cairae will provide strategic leadership to the new division as it seeks to expand to more territories in the coming years.

Cairae noted that, apart from the market potential, each of these regions was identified by Toonz based on the scope for revenue capturing and effective content repurposing in order to make content relevant and adaptable to local markets. As part of this, Toonz’s content will be dubbed into multiple languages such as Bahasa Indonesia, Bahasa Maleyu, Arabic, Urdu, Thai, French and Swahili.

P. Jayakumar, CEO of Toonz Media Group, said: “I think this is the right time for Toonz to focus more on platform entertainment. The content industry is booming around the world and demand for kids’ content, especially, is unprecedented. We have consolidated our position as a leading kids’ and family entertainment company in the last 20-plus years, with a diverse portfolio of businesses ranging from animation production to emerging technologies. So, venturing into the platform business space is a natural progression for Toonz.”

Cairae said: “The idea is to monetize Toonz’s content in various geographies across the globe, especially in the emerging markets, via our in-house content delivery platforms. Toonz will partner with telcos as well as digital platforms to launch channels in these geographies. This includes both linear and on-demand channels. For on-demand platforms, we will start off with the Middle East market.”

Toonz Media Networks will also be actively pursuing content partnerships in these regions to co-create premium content, including esports, to engage the tweens and teens demographic.