PBS Business and Daisy Whitney's upfront report

PBS Kids names Happy Kid Toy Group as its master toy licensee to launch a new line of preschool-targeted educational toys. Under the multi-year licensing deal the new PBS Kids toy line will debut in 2011 at a range of retailers (e.g. including specialty stores, catalogue, internet, department stores and major mass retailers). The line will feature craft and activity sets, science sets and role-play games and will be packaged with information for about play ideas for parents/caregivers interaction. PBS will invest the revenue earned from the project into the creation of the next generation of educational content for kids. Additionally, PBS Kids and Happy Kid Toy Group worked with Big Boing to help create an educational experience that delivers on the PBS KIDS promise through toys.

Kids Upfront 2010: Networks, Agencies Cautiously Optimistic
By Daisy Whitney

Advertisers, agencies and networks are holding their breath for budgets to come in for the kids upfront. Why? Because the kids business usually unfolds first and could set the tone for the big ad selling season that's about to begin.

Everyone in the business wants to know the same thing will ad dollars be up over last year?

That's the looming unknown. But kids networks have reason to be cautiously optimistic as their upfront selling season begins. The big kids networks have seen double digit ad spending increases in the fourth quarter and into the first quarter as well, giving them hope that the upfront season may lift over last year's bleak one. Plus, one of the stalwart categories in the kids market family movies has enjoyed a terrific year and studios will likely spend more money this year, buoying the kids market.

Still, the market may be complicated this year by the coming addition of new players. Later this year, Discovery is expected to launch "The Hub" to 60 million homes in place of Discovery Kids. That network is a joint venture between Discovery and Hasbro. The ownership of the company presents unanswered questions for the industry such as how much Hasbro advertising will run on the channel and whether Hasbro will still spend as much on other networks. Discovery is keeping quiet on those specifics for now and doesn't plan on holding an upfront presentation, but will start individual meetings with advertisers and agencies in the near future, the network said.

However, ad buyers and kids networks say they aren't expecting the presence of new entrants to impact the upfront much. What's more, toys should remain a strong category for everyone, experts say.

While the market probably won't move in earnest for at least several more weeks, Disney and Nickelodeon have already presented their new programming slates to advertisers and Cartoon will take its turn next month. The early deals they're able to strike could set a tone for the rest of networks that follow.

Advertising Begins Rebound

"We started to see positive signs in the kids category back in October," said Jim Perry, executive VP of 360 brand sales at Nickelodeon. "That seemed to be a turning point when we started to see more movie studios and toy companies up their scatter spending." The network finished the fourth quarter of 2009 up 20% in scatter spending. Growth has continued into the first quarter, he said.

Though Disney Channel doesn't write scatter deals, revenue was up in double digits year to year for the fourth quarter, said Michelle Scarola, senior VP TV ad sales at Disney Media Sales and Marketing.

The fourth quarter is the true litmus test for the kids market since that's the time when advertisers want to tout their new goods and when parents spend the most money on kids. The strength in the toy and movie categories during the fourth quarter and on onto this year has been coupled with new spending from non-endemic kids advertisers. Dell, Hewlett Packard and Kodak have started to market printers and computers on kids networks, Perry said.

Still, the memory of the recession is far too fresh for networks or agencies to make bold predictions on spending. While kids networks enjoyed a strong holiday ad season, the circumspect nature of the recovery may keep spending tepid for some time. "The economy has stabilized but I wouldn't suggest it's back to where it was two years ago," said Jackie Kulesza, senior VP video activation director at Starcom. Plus there are ongoing regulatory issues surrounding kids advertising, she added. "There are a lot of factors that play into kids marketplace. There are discussions outside of our advertising world in Washington about this space and it continues to be a concern from a regulatory perspective. This administration might be bringing a different tone," she said.

Another ongoing challenge in the kids market is pricing. Demand is so strong for holiday buys, but advertisers and networks need to work out the right pricing for pre-holiday ad buys, she said. "It's a challenge for us and the vendors to figure out the demand in other times of the year," Kulesza said.

In terms of timing, she suspects the kids market will likely start to move closer to the adult market. "The kids upfront usually moves commensurate with the regular upfront," added John O'Hara, executive VP and general sales manager of Cartoon Network.

However, when the selling actually begins is anyone's guess and the kids market has the potential to move earlier.

O'Hara expects the market should rise in the toy, quick service restaurant and entertainment categories. "The toy business had a better fourth quarter than was anticipated so there's reason to believe that will sustain and movies are strong as well. The marketplace went through a lot last year and I am confident there will be growth in spending that will reflect the stronger demand," he said. "We will see a different demand scenario that will lead to stronger pricing in the marketplace versus last year."

Also, some deal-making will happen sooner and that's because multiplatform buys are critical to reaching kids who are so facile with digital viewing. Those deals take longer to put together so they occur year round, Scarola said.

New and Returning Shows

During its presentation, Disney focused on original movies and series as well as its hit animated show "Phineas and Ferb," which launched two years ago and has been a ratings juggernaut that attracts both boys and girls.

Meanwhile, Nickelodeon touted its sixteen returning shows and five new shows, including a live action series headlined by rising teen star Victoria Justice. Perry said the first quarter is on pace to be the most watched quarter in the network's 30-year history.

During its presentation next month, look for Cartoon to focus on its scripted live-action drama series, such as "Unnatural History" and "Tower Prep," and to continue to build on the success of its "Ben 10" franchise. The series has posted double digit ratings gains in kid demos in the fourth quarter, Cartoon Network said.


Other Players

In addition to the three networks, 4Kids Entertainment is another sizable player with its five-hour programming block on the CW. 4Kids will be presenting to agencies and clients over the coming weeks, focusing on its reach via broadcast, said Dan Barnathan, president 4Kids entertainment ad sales, marketing and promotion.

The other broadcasters will also play a role in the kids upfront via their Saturday morning kids lineups. That includes NBC's Saturday morning block programmed by Qubo, CBS's "Cookie Jar," and the kids block on ABC programmed via Disney. Fox no longer programs kids showing on Saturday mornings, due to competition from cable.

SyFy is also developing a kids programming block, but has not announced details or a timeframe.

Starcom's Kulesza also pointed out that marketers are also spending money in digital venues entirely separate from the upfront. "Certainly money will get more spread out as kids use media differently and use digital properties," she said.