Banijay and Zodiak Media unite their complementary catalogues and production units. Stéphane Courbit is named Chairman and Marco Bassetti is appointed CEO of the new Banijay Group. Leading formats and shows include Versailles, The Secret Life of Four Year Olds, Temptation Island, Popstars, Beat Your Host, 71 Degrees North, Keeping up with the Kardashians, Fort Boyard, Making of the Mob, Underbelly, Wife Swap, Wild Things, Being Human, Location Location Location and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and more.
VF Corp. said it’s “exploring strategic alternatives” for its roughly $550 million Licensed Sports Group business, VF’s LSG business, which includes the Majestic brand, supplies apparel and fanware through licensing agreements with U.S. and international professional sports leagues, colleges and universities, and lifestyle brands. This review of does not include the Image division of VF Imagewear, which produces workwear.
Joanne Olds of The Buffalo Works and Suzanne Cruise of SCCS joined forces to create a larger full service licensing agency. While The Buffalo Works will be able to focus more fully on the branding and product development, SCCS, will continue to focus on traditional art licensing opportunities.
Paint and coatings giant Sherwin-Williams has agreed to acquire Valspar, another global coatings supplier and a major player in finishing products for furniture, for $11.3 billion.
Playboy Enterprises is unlikely to get $500 million for the company, after Hugh Hefner and Rizvi Traverse Management, the private equity firm that owns a majority stake in the company, decided to weigh bids. Assets include the money-losing monthly magazine, a profitable licensing operation and the LA-based Playboy Mansion.
FilmTrack, a provider of intellectual property and rights management solutions for the media and entertainment industry, has acquired RoyaltyZone, a software provider of licensing and royalties solutions. RoyaltyZone’s software service and staff will be integrated with FilmTrack’s, to provide a more robust end-to-end platform to manage the full spectrum of license agreements, rights, products, and royalties.
Viz Media, publisher, distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, has partnered with United Talent Agency to create a range of live-action programming. Properties include Naruto, One Piece, Tokyo Ghoul, Bleach, Death Note and One-Punch Man.
Iconix posted a steep Q4 loss after writeoffs, reporting a loss of $263 million, or $5.44 a share. Over 90% of the recent impairment is related to the company’s men’s business including Rocawear, Ecko and Ed Hardy, with the balance primarily related to its Royal Velvet brand.