CBC, BBC Studios – Americas

CBC has acquired the rights to Ariana Grande: Live in London from BBC Studios – Americas. The one-hour concert special will stream exclusively on CBC’s recently relaunched OTT platform Gem, beginning Dec. 21. The deal was negotiated by Brad Horvath, director of content sales at BBC Studios – Americas and Jenna Bourdeau, CBC’s senior director of acquisitions. Ariana Grande: Live in London gives viewers an inside look into the life of Grande with discussions about her career and performances of her greatest hits.

eOne

Peppa Pig is poised to get even bigger in China, thanks to a new retail partnership between Entertainment One (eOne) and Alibaba’s e-commerce platform Tmall. The character will be featured in Tmall’s Super Brand Day promotion on Jan. 8, with prime placement on the site’s homepage, exclusive product offerings and special discounts all designed to drive sales for the brand in the lead-up to Chinese New Year, which is celebrating the Year of the Pig in 2019. This agreement comes on the heels of eOne and Alibaba Pictures announcing plans to co-produce a new Peppa Celebrates Chinese New Year feature film that will premiere in February and mark the character’s first big-screen appearance in Chinese cinemas.

Skyship Entertainment

Toronto’s Skyship Entertainment is collaborating with the Australian preschool musical group The Wiggles on its Super Simple Songs YouTube channel and Super Simple social media platforms. Running Jan. 14 to 18, the partnership will feature contests, a playlist and the release of the new song “The Toilet Song,” which will be sung by The Wiggles and feature animation from Skyship. Additionally, the Jan. 14 episode of Sing Along with Tobee will feature guest appearances by Anthony and Emma from the Wiggles (pictured) while the Jan. 16 episode of Caitie’s Classroom will see Caitie visit Emma and Lachy behind the scenes of The Wiggles’ concert in Toronto.

Earlier this year, Distribution360 added 15 animated shows from Skyship to its portfolio, including Super Simple Songs. The company also recently signed a distribution and merchandising pact with UYoung Culture and Media for its Super Simple-branded preschool library in China. Preschool properties like The Bumble Nums, Carl’s Car Wash, Mr. Monkey, Monkey Mechanic and Sing Along with Tobee were included in the representation deal.

With files from Kidscreen