New series premieres this April on CBeebies

Zodiak Kids, Zodiak Media Group’s children’s production and distribution arm, is delighted to announce the premiere of the third series of Waybuloo - the hugely successful BBC pre-school series. New episodes of Waybuloo will start in the CBeebies Bedtime Hour from 4th April at 6pm. Waybuloo, a unique mix of animation and live action, is a highly innovative approach to pre-school programming focusing on children’s emotions. It transports children to Nara, a live-action world inhabited by adorable animated characters called Piplings who embody a range of emotions such as Love, Wisdom, Happiness and Harmony. Join the loveable Piplings, Nok Tok, De Li, Lau Lau and Yojojo, for more new and surprising adventures as they explore the beautiful land of Nara on a journey to happiness. The magical new series introduces children to the Piplings’ exciting homes, each spectacularly decorated to their individual personalities, and stories that reflect their caring and sharing nature.

Waybuloo has been a huge hit in the UK it is the number one show among 4-6 year olds across all of its timeslots (*January-March 2011) and has increased its audience share by 60% year-on-year (*January-March 2011 versus January - March 2010). *Source: BARB

At retail the brand has been just as successful. Fisher Price, the master toy licence holder has sold nearly 1 million units and Waybuloo was the number one plush license in 2010. (Source: NPD EPOS retail tracking 2010). Master publisher, Egmont, has achieved record book sales for the pre-school brand resulting in revenues of over £1.1m and plan to roll-out another 12 new titles this year, while 2entertain’s DVD sales have doubled year-on-year (2009 – 2010).

Independent research found that Waybuloo was in the top five brands targeted at boys and girls and over 50% of those sampled wanted to see more Waybuloo merchandise.(Source: Brand Trends, KidzBlobal, February 2011 Girls and boys 0-2.)

Internationally, Waybuloo has also had phenomenal success; it currently airs in over 80 countries worldwide. Internationally, licensing programmes are beginning to roll out in Australia and New Zealand. Other key categories will roll out late 2011.

Maria Sze, Brand Director, Zodiak Kids “Waybuloo continues to be a phenomenal hit both on and off screen. We are delighted that there is still a huge appetite for the television series and the brand at retail. The continued scheduling of it to air on CBeebies and on BBC Two confirms how well the series has been received by children. Retail response continues to exceed all expectations and we are excited to be working with new licensees this year to launch more products to build on the success to date.”

Waybuloo launched on CBeebies, the BBC’s UK Children’s digital channel, in May 2009. It quickly became a hit with pre-schoolers ranking as one of the highest rating show launches of 2009 and resulted in the BBC commissioning another 50 episodes, bringing the total number to 150. The series went into the popular CBeebies Bedtime Hour slot in September 2009, where it consistently rates well.

Online fans can log onto the dedicated website Waybuloo.com, launched by Zodiak Rights.

Waybuloo is produced by The Foundation, part of Zodiak Kids and Decode Entertainment for the BBC.

Zodiak Rights holds worldwide rights in all media for the property, with the exception of Canada where Decode Enterprises handles broadcast and home entertainment rights, and DHX Licensing represents consumer products rights. Both Decode Enterprises and DHX Licensing are subsidiaries of DHX Media.