From innovative partnerships like the one announced yesterday with Mandai X to inking deals to represent well-known IP like Doraemon and Voltron and helping producers get shows like Pablo: Next Level off the ground, CAKE is using a range of strategies to navigate the complexities of the kids’ market, CEO Ed Galton says on a new episode of ScreenMDM Talks.
“It has been a difficult few years for everyone in the business,” Galton says. “We’ve seen a major contraction in the industry, in the kid space specifically. Part of it is a result of the audience moving away from traditional linear broadcast, traditional channel watching. You’ve seen Netflix go from buying everything to now having enough data under their belt that they can be much choosier. Same with all the other streamers. The competitive nature of the streaming wars is not what it once was.”
That has impacted everyone, Galton says, but CAKE has been somewhat insulated because it’s been able to limit overhead costs, never overextend itself with a full-scale animation production infrastructure, and stay firmly focused on where the business is going.
“Branded content is obviously a big thing,” Galton says. “I’m not talking about heritage brands like big IP. Broadcasters or platforms are still looking for an easy marketing campaign. But what we’re seeing is companies that are brands in themselves leaning into creating more content.”
Of note, CAKE is working with fast-food chain Chick-fil-A, which has an app, Chick-fil-A Play, delivering kids’ and family content. “They brought us in to work with them, and we’re assisting on some content strategy stuff, and we’re helping them sell some of the content that they’ve produced.”
In a similar vein, CAKE yesterday revealed an alignment with Mandai X, a division of the Mandai Wildlife Group in Singapore, on a new kids’ animated series, Ranger Buddies.
Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube (embedded player below).
As for the traditional models of cobbling together budgets, CAKE continues to operate in that space, working with BBC Children’s & Education and Paper Owl Films to bring back the beloved Pablo character in Pablo: Next Level in an older-skewing show.
“The BBC came to us and said, ‘We love Pablo, but what would it be like if Pablo were older? How would he deal with the world now that he’s an older kid and he’s out in school?”
CAKE brought Crayola in as a partner to help put the financing together and manage L&M rights on Pablo: Next Level, which arrived in September. CAKE is handling distribution.
“We’re trying to explain to our buyers that although it has the same name, it’s not the same show. It is a different client base; it is a different audience. It’s much more elevated; it’s a little bit edgier; the jokes are more advanced.”
CAKE has also been growing its distribution catalog, aligning with TV Asahi to take on the rights to the anime classic Doraemon in the U.S., Canada, ANZ, and most of EMEA. The genre is becoming increasingly important to streamers and broadcasters alike, Galton notes.
“We were particularly interested in Doraemon because it’s one of the OGs of anime, it’s a great series, and it’s a lot of fun to watch. There is some work to do on some of the storytelling that we have to adjust and figure out. But there’s a large library of content that we’re now looking at in trying to figure out the best episodes that we can put into a series that we will now redub into English and bring out to market.”
CAKE also recently boarded the international distribution rights to the animated series in the iconic Voltron franchise. The deal with World Events Productions (WEP), covering 280 episodes across multiple series, came out of Galton’s childhood love for the brand and his relationship with WEP’s Bob Koplar. With a big-budget live-action feature with Henry Cavill due to be released by Prime Video next year, Galton says he expects to lean into increased interest in the heritage IP.
Galton also weighed in on CAKE’s YouTube business, led by Popcorn Digital, which has helped several IP owners scale their reach on the platform and is making digital-first content, and its investment in KidsKnowBest, the data-driven insights and influencer strategy agency founded by Joel Silverman.
“Data is really important now,” Galton says. “And having that at our fingertips, we feel, gives us an advantage in the marketplace. We want to know what kids are up to, what they’re interested in, what they’re looking at, what they’re not looking at, what the trends are, where their eyeballs are going, where their interests are going. Aligning with Joel and his business helps us get that information. We’re also developing content alongside KidsKnowBest.”
