LICENSING CHARACTERS AND CLIPS FOR ADVERTISING

Timelines vary depending on the rights holder, the usage, the creative and complexity of the campaign, and the number of stakeholders involved. Bringing Born Licensing in early helps avoid delays, because we know the right people to speak to. We can also usually tell you upfront whether your timelines are feasible.

A wide range. We license famous characters, film and TV clips, animation, toys and games, famous icons, video games, viral videos, publishing properties and celebrity estates. Characters can be brought in through costumes, celebrity talent, existing assets or custom animation. If there's a piece of popular culture you'd like your campaign to borrow, it's worth asking us whether it can be licensed.

You can approach a rights holder directly, but it's often slower and harder to navigate without the right relationships. A specialist agent knows who to speak to, what's realistic, and how to negotiate terms that work, which saves time and reduces the risk of a campaign stalling. As appointed agents for major rights holders and a partner to nearly every other, Born Licensing can usually move faster and open doors that are hard to open cold.

For the many rights holders we represent as appointed agents, including Universal, Hasbro, Sesame Workshop and Sanrio, we don't charge clearance fees. For IP we don't represent, clearance fees may apply, and we'll always tell you exactly where you stand from the first conversation.

No. The fact that content is publicly available online doesn't mean it's free to use. Most entertainment content remains protected by copyright and requires permission from the relevant rights holders.

If you're expecting the audience to make a connection with an existing IP, the likelihood is you'll need a license. Rights holders are extremely protective of their IP, and you wouldn't want to risk a costly legal battle. We're not lawyers and can't provide legal advice, but we'd always recommend not taking the risk.

Licensing a character for advertising means getting permission from the rights holder to use an existing piece of intellectual property, a famous character, a film or TV clip, a video game or an icon, in a campaign. It's different from the consumer-product licensing most people know, where a character goes onto merchandise; here you're borrowing the character's recognition and fanbase for an ad. In practice it involves identifying the right IP, securing the licence, negotiating commercial terms and managing the rights holder's approvals. Born Licensing does exactly this, and only this, working with agencies and brands to secure the IP they want and run the whole process end to end.

No. Licenses come with specific terms and conditions. Rights holders define how the IP can be used, where it can appear and for how long, and they approve all creative before it goes live. Born Licensing can guide you through the process from start to finish.

Typically the maximum term a rights holder will allow is 12 months, and the fee will reflect that usage. License agreements usually include options to renew, letting brands extend the term if needed. Renewal fees are often based on the original license fee, usually with an agreed 10% uplift, though this can depend on the rights holder.

The short answer is everything. Rights holders typically require approval of initial concepts, scripts, storyboards, work-in-progress edits, final edits, social content, cutdowns, static assets and media executions, to make sure the IP is represented appropriately and authentically. Wherever you're using or referencing the IP, the rights holder will want to review and approve it. Born Licensing are experts in managing this resource-heavy approval process efficiently.

Typically they'll want details on the brand and campaign objective, the creative concept, the territories, the target live date and term length, the media channels, and the list of deliverables. The more complete the brief, the faster we can get you an answer.