Character Regulatory News (CCT)

28 Sep 2007 07:06

Character Group PLC28 September 2007 Issued by Citigate Dewe Rogerson, Birmingham Date: Friday, 28 September 2007 Embargoed: 7.00am The Character Group PLC ("Group") CHARACTER SEALS MULTI-YEAR PARTNERSHIP WITH ENTERTAINMENT RIGHTS Character Options Appointed Master Toy Licensee For Postman Pat in the UK and Eire(R) The Character Group is pleased to announce that its principal tradingsubsidiary, Character Options Limited ("Character Options"), has been appointedas Master Toy Licensee for Postman Pat(R) by Entertainment Rights Plc ("ER"),the UK's leading global media group specialising in the ownership of children'sand family programming, characters and brands. The agreement between Character Options and ER covers the UK and Eire. The rangeof products to be produced under licence includes toys, playsets, plush andcollectables. Under the terms of the deal, Character Options will begindeveloping new product lines for Postman Pat(R), with new product appearing withretailers late 2008 to coincide with the brand new TV series which airs onCBeebies and BBC TWO. Jon Diver, Joint Managing Director of Character Group said: "Postman Pat(R) is an iconic brand with an established heritage which hascontinually delighted pre-schoolers for over 25 years. "Character Options' plan is to produce a comprehensive range at a new scale tothat previously seen in the market, including characters from the classic andnew series. The range will be heavily promoted from the first week we ship inearly 2009. We believe that this licence will become an important brand withinour portfolio, and a Top-5 pre-school property." Richard King, Executive Chairman at Character commented: "We are very pleased to be awarded this licence and look forward to launching afull toy range that will match the success of this iconic character. "The Group will continue to focus on delivering toys and related products thatnot only meet the demand of the consumer but also have been manufactured orsourced to the highest standards and therefore adhering to the Group's and UKand international bodies' strict guidelines." Claire Shaw, Director of Consumer Products, Entertainment Rights Plc, added: "In the new BBC series for Postman Pat(R), we are taking the much loved and wellknown characters of the show into a dynamic new environment. The show has anexpanded diverse cast, a fleet of new vehicles, a new town and dynamic, fastpaced storylines, which provides an excellent basis from which to developinnovative new toy products. "Character Options has an incredibly strong pedigree in exploiting children'stelevision shows and we are confident they will take Postman Pat to anotherlevel within the pre-school toy category." Entertainment Rights has 80 episodes of Postman Pat(R) in its catalogue which isexclusively licensed to the BBC and the brand new series (26x15 minutesepisodes) sees Postman Pat(R) in a new job as he takes on a promotion as Head ofSpecial Delivery Service (SDS). Whilst maintaining the brand integrity of theclassic character, the new Postman Pat(R) will have a higher energy approach.Postman Pat(R) is one of the top rating pre-school shows airing on CBeebies andis an established core BBC character. Enquiries:Richard King, Chairman Fiona Tooley, DirectorKiran Shah, Group Finance Director & Joint MD Keith Gabriel, Senior Account ManagerThe Character Group plc Citigate Dewe RogersonTel: +44 (0) 20 8949 5898 Tel: +44 (0) 121 455 8370Mobile: +44 (0) 7836 250150 (RK) Mobile: +44 (0) 7785 703523 (FMT)www.thecharacter.com Nominated Adviser:Philip DaviesCharles Stanley SecuritiesTel: +44 (0) 20 7149 6000 Notes to Editors: AIM listed, The Character Group Plc (Ticker: CCT.L) designs, develops, marketsand distributes toys and games, principally to the UK market although it has anincreasing exposure to the international market. The Group operates mainly in the United Kingdom and China, and has offices inLondon, Oldham, Hong Kong and Shenzhen, China. It employs around 225 peopleworldwide. Revenues are generated from a mix of product ranges with over 70% designed anddeveloped in-house either under the Group's own brand or under licences with thebalance being derived from third-party distribution. Products are now sold inover 30 countries. Notable product lines within the Character portfolio are Doctor Who, Scooby Doo,Disney Princess, Peppa Pig, Barney, Gr8 Gear, Wow Wee Robotics (includingRobosapien). For a more comprehensive view of the product portfolio, visitwww.character-online.com. About Entertainment Rights: Entertainment Rights Plc ("ER") is the UK's leading global media groupspecialising in the ownership of high quality children's and family programming,characters and brands. ER owns or controls the rights to many global characters including Basil Brush(R), Postman Pat(R), Jess the CatTM, Little Red TractorTM, Rupert Bear(R),He-Man and the Masters of the Universe(R), Fat Albert and the Cosby kidsTM,She-Ra(R), Jim Jam & SunnyTM, Ghostbusters, The Lone Ranger, Lassie, Rudolph theRed-Nosed Reindeer, Casper the Friendly Ghost, Felix the Cat and theaward-winning Veggie Tales ER's annual revenues have increased from £1.8m in 1999 to £29.7m in 2006, thelast reported financial year. Interim Results for the six months ended 30 June2007 were announced yesterday and reflect revenues up 196% to £17.3m. Visit www.entertainmentrights.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange