Genius Brands International Issues Shareholder Letter

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., May 13, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Genius Brands International, Inc. “Genius Brands” (NASDAQ: GNUS), the global brand management company that creates and licenses multimedia entertainment content for children, released a letter to shareholders from Chairman & CEO Andy Heyward. The complete letter follows.

Dear Friends and Shareholders:

Genius Brands International’s news last week regarding the launch of our new KARTOON CHANNEL!, which is available in over 100 million U.S. television households and across 200 million mobile devices, is a turning point in the life of our company, at a turning point in time of our economy.

Kartoon Channel! is what we like to call a ‘Netflix for kids’, except it is free.  There is no subscription fee.  It is fully ad-supported.   It is a pure cartoon play, with no ‘natural predators’, and what one of our board members described as an "economic vaccine for COVID-19."

During these times, when kids are home from school and viewing is dramatically increasing, Kartoon Channel! provides a parent friendly schedule grounded with core animated programs that have learning and curriculums, as well as entertainment value, in them, e.g. Warren Buffett's Secret Millionaires Club (financial literacy), Thomas Edison's Secret Lab (STEM), Young Martha and Friends (creativity--cooking, gardening, crafts, DIY).

In addition, Kartoon Channel! has acquired a large (almost 4,000 episodes!) and carefully curated number of animated programs ranging from Archie’s Weird Mysteries to Minecraft; Journey to the End, to Gummy Bear and Friends, that are safe, fun, and without violence, negative stereotypes, or objectionable language.

Though we can't compare ourselves to linear cable channels, it should be noted that when Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network all went on the air, they started with a 10 million order of magnitude subscribers.  Kartoon Channel! is an 'on-demand' channel which means like Netflix, we offer a menu of offerings and the viewer then determines which program he or she chooses to watch. Having said the above, when Kartoon Channel! goes live on June 15, it will be available in over 100 million U.S. television households, and over 200 million mobile devices. All free to the viewer.  All ad-supported.(with the exception of a small tranche of platforms, where the viewer can elect an SVOD option with no commercials)  If you have Amazon Prime, you can see it.  If you have Apple TV, you can see it. If you have Comcast, Cox, or DISH and Sling TV, you can see it.  I cannot recall any children’s channel ever starting with such complete distribution, on Day 1, and let alone, at a time when the demand could not possibly be higher.  Those of us with young kids (as I do) have seen this more clearly than anyone.  Kids are staying home and viewing the same shows over and over, but hungry for something different. Parents are searching for new content, often looking for ways to enrich their kids from home with something fresh and original.