Alphabet characters spell out video deal

Port Washington, New York-based Eurpsville Entertainment has inked a deal with Sony Wonder to produce educational videos based on its preschool property The Alphabet Eurps. ‘We’re dealing with a character set that everyone knows – the alphabet. So it’s not a typical license that has to have a strong television presence in order to sell merchandise,’ says Eurpsville CEO Michael Kohn. The Eurps line of plush toys and six books, manufactured by Commonwealth Toy and Novelty Co., is currently carried in 800 specialty outlets and enjoyed a 150% sales increase in 2002 over 2000 figures. Kohn hopes to increase distribution to 2,400 stores by the time the first video comes out in early 2004, and the company is still hammering out the release schedule for additional titles.

WBCP braced for UEFA merch kickoff

Warner Bros. Consumer Products will be the worldwide licensing agent for European football championship UEFA Euro 2004, and the company’s European divisions are compiling a toy- and apparel-led program that will include a premium catalog and mascot. Under the terms of the deal, WBCP will be responsible for on-site retail operations for the event, to be held in Portugal from June 12 to July 4, 2004. More than seven billion people tuned in to televised matches during the last UEFA Euro in 2000.

Limited Too broadens brand reach with bear-sized fashions

Girls apparel retailer Limited Too is hoping to entrench its brand in other areas of tween life – starting with their teddies. The chain has inked a deal to manufacture six bear-sized versions of its most popular fashion SKUs each season, and starting next month, the bear-togs will be available in Build-a-Bear’s 109 U.S. locations. But bear clothes are just the beginning; Limited Too is also seeking to out-license its brand name in categories like eyewear, home décor and bedding over the next 12 to 18 months.

Scholastic gets animated with DreamWorks book deal

DreamWorks has appointed book publisher Scholastic as the primary publishing licensee for five of its upcoming animated films. Beginning with Shrek 2 in 2004, Scholastic will publish novelizations, coloring & activity books, picture books and storybooks in most English-language territories. The publisher also nabbed Spanish-language rights in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Latin America.