Saban Re-Brands Transmedia Brands with $500M in Capital

Just when you thought IP/patent libraries and protection only covered technology – with allusions to Nathan Myhrvold’s Intellectual Ventures and its patent aggregating history – Haim Saban’s capital group has jumped into the brand valuation business, and it’s a rather ingenious play.

With enough capital to carve out real brands and bring them to life via transmedia (i.e., across all media), Saban is creating value separate from the media/technology base that most look at for in IP.

His recent “Power Rangers” buy-back from Disney allows his team to reinvigorate brands that, in this case, Disney bought from Saban.

Via the NYT: Elie Dekel, a former licensing and merchandising executive at 20th Century Fox who is leading the Saban Brands effort, said he would seek to restore the “Power Rangers” to a place of pop culture ubiquity. The company, which would not divulge any potential acquisitions, will have to move fast as other companies aggressively mine the branding and licensing turf. The Iconix Brand Group, for instance, has become a force in this arena, recently snapping up the Peanuts franchise from E.W. Scripps for about $175 million in cash.

Myhrvold’s play is much more exploring/brainstorming ideas that are 5-10 years into the future; to streamline, fine tune and amalgamate them; clearinghouse them in a library, then market enable them.

Whereas, Saban wants to rebirth the licensing and exploitation of the brands (i.e., to rebrand brands) in the short and long term.

In either case, the IP valuations could quickly show a good ROI multiple, and fit well into a world of ever changing distribution. Why own the distribution channel, when you can own the IP? Aggregate enough great IP and you can launch your own channel(s) even, cable or otherwise, as Oprah is “Discovering.”

Talking to a successful brand franchise entrepreneur like Scott Ehrlich, CEO of Agility Studios – who owns the IP on “The LXD” or “League of Extraordinary Dancers” – it’s not so much being the show runner producing the original content, but the “business runner” who creates transmedia (on and offline) opportunities for IP exploitation. He who runs the franchising controls the revenue.

In sum, Disney has ruled the roost in Hollywood around creating powerful brands in family, animation and sports. With the Marvel Entertainment acquisition, they let go of a lesser brand in “Power Rangers” to focus their efforts.

With Saban’s new brand treasure chest, he can leverage their transmedia licensing to pick up brands, hit their ultimates, then become a brand factory that can be selective on distribution in a new age of ubiquitous social marketing and branding. Smart, early play: Disney-in-a-box via a venture fund.

Full dive from the Saban Capital site:

Saban Brands applies a transmedia brand management approach to enhancing and extending its Brands in markets worldwide and to consumers of all ages. Saban Brands provides full service brand management, marketing, promotion and strategic business development for the Company’s intellectual properties and brands.

• Strategy and business development uniquely suited to each Brand
• Retail development, sales, promotion and marketing
• Specialized brand extensions including interactive, location-based entertainment, live events, and tours.
• Direct-to-consumer initiatives including eCommerce
• Creative design and development for Brands, licensees, retailers and manufacturers.
• Comprehensive trademark and copyright management and enforcement

Via Deadline.com: “The formation of Saban Brands enables us to utilize our extensive experience to create and grow compelling global properties that reach into every aspect of consumers’ lives through strategic and far-reaching licensing partnerships. As media and consumer options become increasingly fragmented and proliferated, our underlying thesis is that properties that resonate with consumers today will only become more meaningful over time,” said Haim Saban, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Saban Capital Group. “We are committing significant investment capital to Saban Brands and have great confidence in Elie and his executive team as they build a leading global intellectual property company.”

More Myhrvold background:

• View his Intellectual Ventures’ “What We Do” sketch – excellent flow chart for patent creation-aggregation.
• Myhrvold on pro-social malaria bug-zapper invention at TED 2010: