Waybuloo celebrates first year of success
RDF Rights (RDFR), part of the RDF Media Group, is delighted to announce the continued success of its flagship pre-school series Waybuloo, produced by in-house production company The Foundation.
Since its premiere on CBeebies (UK) in May 2009 and retail launch soon
after, the pre-school property has performed incredibly well across all
platforms.
On-screen, Waybuloo quickly became a hit with pre-schoolers ranking as one of CBeebies’ highest rating show launches of 2009 with three quarters of the target audience tuning into at least one episode of Waybuloo last year (3.5m)*. Viewing figures in 2010 have been just as positive with episodes peaking at over half a million viewers on CBeebies.
The BBC re-commissioned another 50 episodes of the pre school series which goes into production this summer and new episodes are set to premiere on CBeebies later this year.
Waybuloo continues to enjoy international success airing in 78 countries worldwide having been acquired by broadcasters in Ireland (RTE), Australia (ABC), New Zealand (TV NZ), Canada (Treehouse TV), Finland (YLE), Portugal (RTP), Middle East (Al Jazeera’s Children Channel) and the CBeebies channel in Poland, Africa, Asia and India.
At retail Waybuloo has had a phenomenal first year in the UK. According to NPD EPOS retail tracking, Waybuloo was the number one new pre-school property in 2009 and RDF Rights continues to secure new licensing partners with 34 in place to date. New Waybuloo products for 2010 include new ranges in outdoor play, party wear, furniture, footwear and houseware and lighting.
Internationally, RDF Rights has appointed Fisher Price as the global master toy partner and Egmont as the global publisher (excluding North America and Canada). ABC DVD and Egmont books have launched into the ABC shops across Australia and Merchantwise, RDFR’s licensing agent in the territory, are actively discussing potential deals with other partners.
Maria Sze, Brand Director, RDFR: “We are delighted to be marking Waybuloo’s birthday with such a success story, one year on from launch the property is as strong as ever and it doesn’t show any sign of slowing down. We look forward to building on this success to date to expand the brand further both in the UK and internationally.”
Waybuloo is produced by The Foundation, part of the RDF Media Group, and Decode Entertainment for CBeebies.
RDF Rights holds worldwide rights in all media in the property, with the exception of Canada where Decode Enterprises handles broadcast and home entertainment rights, and DHX Licensing represents consumer products rights. Both Decode Enterprises and DHX Licensing are subsidiaries of DHX Media.
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