WildBrain & emoji Pact for emojitown IP

The emoji company has inked a content and licensing partnership with WildBrain to launch emojitown, a brand-new digital-first series and consumer-products extension of emoji.

Under the partnership, WildBrain’s AVOD network and digital studio WildBrain Spark and the emoji company are co-developing and co-producing the emojitown series, aimed at teens and young adults. WildBrain Spark, which holds exclusive global distribution rights to the show, will premiere emojitown on YouTube with a dedicated channel launching at the end of May.

The initial rollout will feature the first four episodes of the show, followed by additional episodes rolling out weekly. WildBrain Spark and the emoji company have created emojitown for AVOD audiences and are supporting the series with digital marketing, paid-media campaigns and dedicated social media strategies. WildBrain Spark will also exclusively handle branded content opportunities and advertising sales for emojitown on YouTube.

Further, WildBrain’s global licensing agency WildBrain CPLG will handle worldwide licensing and merchandising rights for emojitown. WildBrain CPLG will work with emoji company and licensees to develop emojitown products across key categories for teens and young adults.

Marco Huesges, founder and CEO of emoji company, said: “This is a significant development for the emoji brand, bringing our globally recognizable icons into the digital-content space. With their preeminent reputation on digital platforms, including YouTube, and their deep understanding of licensing and brand amplification, WildBrain Spark and WildBrain CPLG are the ideal collaborators for our push into new content creation and consumer products for the teen and young adult audience. Together, we will take this hugely exciting step in the evolution of emoji.”

Maarten Weck, executive VP and managing director of WildBrain CPLG, said: “Building on our strong relationship with the emoji company, this expanded partnership combines the strengths of the much-loved emoji brand with our creative and collaborative capabilities across consumer products licensing, digital-content production and AVOD management.”

Rachel Taylor, commercial director of WildBrain Spark, added: “With its universal appeal, the emoji brand is ideal for the creation of an animated digital-first content offering, and our creative team has produced a funny, wry and edgy series, underpinned by bespoke data and insights drawn from our premium YouTube network. We’re delighted that the emoji company saw us as the right partner to co-develop and launch this extension of its brand for today’s digital-savvy audience of modern teens.”