TMNT – Viacom buy out – GoGreenMachine.Org

Playmates Official Press Release Re: the Buyout

PLAYMATES TOYS SECURES MASTER GLOBAL TOY RIGHTS FOR TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES WITH NICKELODEON

COSTA MESA – Oct. 29, 2009 – Playmates Toys is proud to announce its new global master toy agreement for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with Nickelodeon & Viacom Consumer Products (NVCP). The long-term partnership allows Playmates Toys to continue its phenomenally successful, 20-year tradition with the Turtles brand, which has generated $2 billion (at retail). This new alliance also lets Playmates Toys execute on its strategy to maximize global toy rights in partnership with renowned brands that leverage entertainment across multiple-media platforms worldwide.

“We are very excited about our new partnership with Nickelodeon, which broadens the scope of creative inspiration for Playmates,” said Lou Novak, President, Playmates Toys. “We are proud to continue our long-standing commitment of making innovative, fun toys based on the beloved Turtles that have entertained generations of kids around the world.”

“Our partnership with Playmates Toys adds another layer of excitement for us as we build upon the Turtles’ great, funny stories and characters which have withstood the test of time,” said Leigh Anne Brodsky, President, Nickelodeon & Viacom Consumer Products. “The characters have resonated around the world for 25 years, and the toys based on them are part of pop culture and continue to be relevant to today’s kids.”

About Playmates Toys

For over 40 years, Playmates Toys Inc. has been among the most well respected and innovative marketing and distribution companies in the global toy industry with a proven history in the creation of innovative and imaginative products as well as the development and management of profitable, long-term brand franchises. Key current and past brands include Paramount Studios/CBS STAR TREK, Warner Bros. TERMINATOR: SALVATION, Nickelodeon’s TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES, 4Kids Entertainment’s YU-GI-OH! & DINOSAUR KING, Nickelodeon’s iCARLY & H2O: Just Add Water, DISNEY Princess, DISNEY FAIRIES and Hallmark’s RAINBOW BRITE. From its offices in Hong Kong, China and the United States, Playmates designs, develops markets and distributes its products in over 60 countries worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.playmatestoys.com Playmates Toys Inc. (HKSE-0869)

About Nickelodeon & Viacom Consumer Products

Nickelodeon & Viacom Consumer Products manages the world’s third largest licensing business, representing leading properties such as SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer, and managing merchandising for Nick Jr., Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTVN International, and Spike TV.

Nickelodeon, now in its 30th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books, magazines and feature films. Nickelodeon’s U.S. television network is seen in more than 99 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 15 consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B).
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UPDATE: For those of you who asked, Playmates stated to us via e-mail that a new contract has been signed between Playmates and Nick. This is NOT simply an agreement to honor the remainder of the original contract. The amount of time the new contract is valid for was not disclosed at the time of questioning.

Dooney’s Statement

We seem to be in the business of collecting Viacom Buyout statements from various artists as of late. Click the Pic for Dooney’s statement! (Also, I love this picture)

No New Books Under the “18” Clause Anytime Soon (Probably)

As you probably know. Peter requested a clause in the sale contract of the TMNT that allows Mirage to publish 18 issues of TMNT a year. Today on his blog, Pete talks about the need to distance himself from the Turtles, and when/if we may see books published under the clause.

It seems, paradoxically, that it has been both a really short time and a very long time since the deal with Nickelodeon was finalized and announced, but in reality it’s only been about a week. In that time, I — and the folks at Mirage — have gone through a lot of different thoughts and feelings, but the one thing that seems to be common to all is that it is going to take some significant time to come to grips with all of the changes that this sale has wrought.

I was just chatting with Jim Lawson about this, and realized that it has been a very long time — not the whole twenty-five years of the Turtles’ existence, but definitely the greater portion of that time — since I was NOT the person (or one of two people, when Kevin was my partner in Mirage) who was responsible for the Turtles and their “empire”. It’s been so long that I don’t even remember what it felt like to not have that responsibility. And now I don’t have that responsibility, and I realize that it is a very strange feeling… not a bad one, but a strange one. It’s going to take some time to get used to it again.

One thing that is becoming clear to me is that, right now, I need to really step back from Turtle stuff. I am feeling strongly that I need to distance myself from the TMNT to truly grasp what has happened, and become accustomed to it.
With that in mind, I have to say that it is likely that any new TMNT comics coming from me/Mirage (under the “reserved rights” clause negotiated in the sale) are probably not going to be seen anytime soon. Although I do have the right to publish up to eighteen issues of TMNT comics per year, it is highly unlikely that I will do that right away. In all honesty, the idea of doing ANY new Turtle stuff right now leaves me cold.

I need to get away from it.

During the negotiation, I asked for those “reserved rights” because, on some very basic, gut level, after putting so much of my life into the TMNT property over twenty-five years, I wanted to walk away from it with roughly the same deal with which I walked into it — the freedom to do some TMNT comics. But I also have the freedom to NOT do them.

I can’t guarantee when — or even if — Mirage will produce new TMNT comics again. It is most likely that the next TMNT comic thing I work on will be the conclusion of TMNT Volume 4, but at this moment I can’t even guarantee when — or if — I will do that. It’s too soon to make those plans. — PL