By Connie Thiessen
WildBrain has signed an agreement to sell its 41 per cent stake in Peanuts’ IP to Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) and Sony Pictures Entertainment for CDN $630 million cash.
Ownership rights and management of the Peanuts brand are handled by Peanuts Worldwide LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Peanuts Holdings. The family of the comic strip’s creator Charles Schulz, retain a 20 per cent stake. The transaction is subject to certain closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.
WildBrain acquired 80 per cent of Peanuts and 100 per cent of Strawberry Shortcake for $448 million in 2017, selling 39 per cent of its stake in Peanuts to Sony a year later for $236 million. The company’s EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) directly attributable to its Peanuts ownership stake was $27 million in fiscal 2025.
WildBrain says net proceeds from the transaction will fully pay down the company’s line of credit, leaving it with a more than $40 million cash surplus. The children’s entertainment provider says that will allow it to grow its other wholly owned franchises, including Strawberry Shortcake and Teletubbies; expand its premium digital content network and ad footprint across YouTube, FAST channels, and AVOD (advertising-based video On demand); and invest in emerging technologies to drive efficiencies; and evaluate opportunities for share buybacks and “disciplined bolt-on acquisitions.”
Under the agreement, WildBrain will continue to act as Peanuts’ licensing agent through WildBrain CPLG for consumer products in Europe, the Middle East, China, and Asia Pacific (excluding Japan, Australia and New Zealand). WildBrain will also serve as the exclusive production studio for new Peanuts content—including a previously-announced feature film—under a partnership with Apple TV, which was recently renewed through 2030. It will additionally continue to distribute WildBrain-produced Peanuts content and manage the Snoopy YouTube channel.
“Over the past several years, we’ve successfully executed a strategy to drive growth for our own and partner entertainment properties, harnessing our capabilities across franchise management and consumer products licensing, content distribution on our premium digital network, and production at our studio,” Josh Scherba, president and CEO of WildBrain, said in a company announcement. “The strength of this platform has been proven by the growth in revenue we’ve driven for Peanuts, achieving a record high for the brand in fiscal 2025. Selling our stake in Peanuts crystallizes the brand’s value, eliminating our debt and providing capital flexibility to reinvest in high-growth, high-margin opportunities, especially for IP that we own outright, such as Strawberry Shortcake, Teletubbies and others in our deep portfolio, such as Degrassi, Inspector Gadget and more.”
WildBrain also noted that by simplifying its business earlier this year with the closure of its broadcast television channels in Canada, it has “unburdened it from ownership restrictions under Canadian broadcast regulations, providing greater strategic flexibility and opportunities for the company as it optimizes long-term shareholder value.”
