The headline said small, but there was a big picture of Shrek smack dab in the middle of my business section giving me a “what up?” look
. The news, as reported by Benny Evangelista of the San Francisco Chronicle, was the announcement made by Netflix about a multi-year deal signed with DreamWorks Animation to create 300 hours of original programming which will beef up their family offerings and maybe keep the fans of the no longer available “Dora the Explorer” and “SpongeBob Squarepants” from leaving.
It looks to me like DreamWorks CEO, Jeffrey Katzenberg is embracing the realities of the audience for his studio’s characters and stories — It is no longer a “tent pole movie with ancillary toys and books available at Target / Walmart” world. And distributing via television, while still viable (cereal and McDonald ads and all), the reality is that much viewing is done on-the-go. Whether it is a different room in the house or outside of the home (OOH), making content available via a variety of popular touchpoints is a really smart move.
A WiFi-enabled iPad or iPod Touch will take you far in the world of engrossing entertainment for small children.
The move for DreamWorks is brilliant IF and only if, they can deliver story-telling magic. What looks particularly promising is that now via Netflix, there is an excellent outlet for the Classic Media library of shows DreamWorks bought last year: Rocky and Bullwinkle, Fractured Fairy Tales, Underdog, George of the Jungle, and, the friendliest ghost you know — Casper.
Chalk this up as a win-win for DreamWorks and Netflix.
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Some classic Rocky and Bullwinkle for your enjoyment which I found searching YouTube. No doubt, accessing via Netflix will be a better experience from the simplicity of locating and viewing content, to the quality of image received.
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