Here’s some eye-catching news from the international kids TV distribution space: Cake is set to buy rival Jetpack.
No financial details was forthcoming today, but Cake released a statement noting “it is in advanced negotiations” to acquire its rival’s brand. More news will come “within the coming weeks,” the company added, and it’s not yet clear if the deal is only for Jetpack’s assets or the entire company.
Both Cake and Jetpack are based in London and operate in the same space, primarily selling animated content globally. Cake is known for shows such as Total Drama Island, Angelo Rules and Angry Birds: Summer Madness, while Jetpack sells the likes of Clangers.
“Since Jetpack launched, they have always been a competitor who we have admired,” said Cake CEO Ed Galton. “Combined operations will deliver an even better kids and family distribution solution for this market.”
Jetpack was launched back in 2014 by former Disney exec Dominic Gardiner. It keeps a tight ship with just a few sales staff, who shop series such as the BBC’s Clangers and others including Chuggington, Dennis & Gnasher Unleashed, Moe & Friends, Snow Black, Kids on the Block, Tiny World and Spookley.
Cake, meanwhile, has a catalog of more than 1,600 hours of animated and live-action kids content, and alongside its main office in London, has bases in Berlin, LA and Toronto.
The company has become very active on the development and production front, as the economics in the global kids TV biz demand distributors making bold, early bets to secure distribution rights and get titles in production.
Shows produced to date include Angry Birds: Summer Madness for Netflix; Supa Team 4 with Triggerfish Animation, also for Netflix; Angelo Rules with TeamTO for France Télévisions, Canal+ and Super RTL; Space Chickens in Space with Anima Estudios for Disney EMEA; Pablo with Paper Owl for CBeebies; Mush-Mush & The Mushables with La Cabane and Thuristar for Boomerang and most recently, Nikhil & Jay with King Banana TV and Paper Owl Films premiering on CBeebies later this year. Another 13 are in development.
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