Global TV & Streaming News Bytes

India and Singapore-based animation studio Cosmos-Maya has secured three key digital distribution deals which will bring its content to 120 platforms around the world, including Amazon Fire TV, Apple iTunes, Hulu, Roku and Vudu.

U.S.-based OTT.Studio has picked up four Cosmos-Maya titles, Vir The Robot Boy, Motu Patlu, Tik Tak Tail and Chacha Bhatija for its own Cartoon Plus channel, which sits on both Roku and Amazon Fire TV.

Cosmos-Maya has secured a far-reaching agreement with Binge! Networks which sees the same four original titles air on over 100 platforms across North America and globally (excluding Indian and the Indian subcontinent).

In addition, Cosmos-Maya’s own digital channel WowKidz is available on Roku and Amazon Fire TV under the terms of the Binge! Networks agreement. WowKidz airs animated shows from around the world as well as Cosmos-Maya original series, giving children 24/7 streaming access to popular kids’ programs.

Dubbed episodes of anime series Jujutsu Kaisen will be added to the curated Crunchyroll Collection on HBO Max on December 4. Subtitled episodes of the supernatural series will still be available exclusively on Crunchyroll. Jujutsu Kaisen is set in a world where the negative feelings that humans feel become Curses that lurk in our everyday lives. The Curses run rampant throughout the world, capable of leading people to terrible misfortune and even death. What’s more, the Curses can only be exorcised by another Curse.

Yuji Itadori is a boy with tremendous physical strength, though he lives a completely ordinary high school life. One day, to save a classmate who has been attacked by Curses, he eats the finger of the Double-Faced Specter, taking the Curse into his own soul. From then on, he shares one body with the Double-Faced Specter. Guided by the most powerful of sorcerers, Gojo Satoru, Itadori is admitted to the Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School, an organization that fights the Curses… and thus begins the heroic tale of a boy who became a Curse to exorcise a Curse, a life from which he could never turn back.

Emmy & Gooroo

Jetpack Distribution announced a range of deals across Asia for top shows in its catalog. The new agreements will land hit shows on screens across the region this year and beyond, highlighting the growing significance of the region for global distribution.

India’s ETV Network has acquired the pay TV rights for seasons two of children’s animated comedy series Kitty Is Not a Cat and The Sisters. (Closed July 2020).

Celestial Tiger Entertainment’s Miao Mi has picked up the pay TV & digital rights in various Asian countries for the Chinese preschool animated series Emmy & Gooroo.

Malaysia’s Astro have bought the video on demand rights for Emmy & Gooroo (closed May 2020).

Indonesia’s Mola TV has taken in the subscription video on demand rights for Emmy & Gooroo, comedy animation Wolf and live-action series The Baby Club (closed June 2020).

Vietnamese agent B Company has taken in all the rights for live-action series Katy (closed August 2020).

Chinese entertainment and educational content provider Leadjoy have acquired the VOD rights for preschool animated series Boj (closed May 2020).

Astroboy

Indie digital media and entertainment co. DMR has launched three of its digital linear channels — RetroCrush (classic anime), Cocoro (family content) and Midnight Pulp (“all things strange” / genre) on The Roku Channel. These new outlets will bring old school animation and family favorite toons to viewers including launch titles like:

RetroCrush –

The Princess and the Pilot – A pilot, despite being advised not to, bonds with a princess when he is tasked with escorting the royal subject overseas and across enemy territory to reunite her with her future husband.

Fuse: Memoirs of the Hunter Girl – In Edo-period Japan, a girl moves from the countryside to the big city to help her brother hunt fuse − human-dog hybrids rumored to kill people and feed on their souls − for a huge bounty. But what happens when she befriends one of her targets?

Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie – Bison, the ruthless leader of the international terrorist organization Shadowlaw, has been desperately searching for the greatest fighter on the planet for years. He finds it in Ryu, a young wanderer who never stays in one place long enough for Bison to find him.

Cocoro –

Pororo Cyberspace Adventure – In this Pororo the Little Penguin adventure, Pororo must tap into his video game abilities to save a princess.

Kung Food – Animated series of the adventures of martial arts master foods.

Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog – Animated series based on the classic video game.

Leo & Tig

Two seasons of popular animated series Leo & Tig will become a cornerstone of new Indian kid’s entertainment channel Gubbare. The series is produced by Paravoz Studio for Digital Television Russia. Episodes will air in Hindi on the IN10 Mediat Network channel every day at 9 a.m., noon and 8 p.m.

The series depicts the adventures of a small, restless leopard named Leo and his best friend Tig the tiger. Every day, they explore their amazing neighborhood in the Far East, learning about the world around them, embracing kindness, friendship and the importance of mutual co-existence in nature. In the second season, Leo and Tig meet Lily the monkey. Together they travel around the world, making new friends along the way learning about new customs and traditions of the world. Along with entertaining the kids, the show gives insight into the rare animal species of the world.

Indian viewers have already been introduced to Leo and Tig through the Russian Animated Film Festival in Chennai and the International Children and Film Festival in Mumbai, which offered young participants the chance to meet the animated series duo for the first time.

Om Nom Stories

ZeptoLab has secured a partnership with Nine Network to expand the Om Nom brand in Australia. The free-to-air network will offer Om Nom Stories (seasons 1-16) and its TV channel and AVOD platform. Meanwhile, WP Brands (a leading brand licensing agency in Australia) will take care of the merchandising strategy. In Australia, Om Nom Stories has long been available on YouTube, Amazon Prime and Roku. In addition to this, ZeptoLab has far-reaching plans to cover free TV, Cable TV, VOD and licensing in the region.

Om Nom Stories is an animated series of 3’30” episodes (seven hours to date plus 24 hours of additional content) aimed at young kids and enjoyed by all ages. The entertaining and educational series has garnered worldwide acclaim. The series has accrued 20 billion views across 86 YouTube channels, has been picked up by 12 TV and 40 VOD channels and is distributed on 70 platforms in eight regions.

Koka Kitoumbou

Ivorian studio AFRIKATOON announces a new production, quite different from its usual offerings: a new 13-episode series titled Koka Kitoumbou which transports viewers ages 3 and up into a fantastic universe rich in magic (and sweets). The series aims to promote positive values such as love, tolerance, honesty and hard work.

Koka Kitoumbou follows the adventures of little 10-year-old Malisha and Rikitou, her woollen doll, who both face many trials and tribulations in search of the “Koka Kitoumbou stone,” a magical and powerful stone which gives its possessor the ability to transform everything they touch into confectionery of all kind.

Team S.T.E.A.M.

Winsing Animation will be highlighting its hit shows and new properties at ATF (Asia Television Forum) from December 1-4. The studio will be promoting established hits GG Bond and GOGOBUS, along with new titles Team S.T.E.A.M.!. Meanwhile, Winsing will introduce next year’s titles to buyers at the online fair, such as GG Bond Series 17, GOGOBUS Seasons 7-10, Metalions and Team S.T.E.A.M.! Seasons 3-4.

Source: Mercedes Milligan/AnimationMagazine