Acamar Films

What Acamar Films does

Acamar Films is an independent creative studio headquartered in Camden, London, that produces and licenses the international award-winning animated preschool series Bing. Founded around 2000 after author Ted Dewan conceived the character, with production kick-off in 2003 and broadcast premiere on BBC CBeebies in June 2014, the company has built Bing into a globally distributed property airing in 141+ territories, accumulating over one billion streams on BBC iPlayer, and selling more than 5.4 million books through its publishing partner HarperCollins. The studio serves preschool children aged 0-6, their parents and caregivers, and a network of B2B partners including national broadcasters, streaming platforms, consumer product manufacturers, and live-experience operators.

The core production technology is CGI animation developed in partnership with Brown Bag Films, an Academy Award-nominated Dublin studio, using proprietary character designs for Bing and Flop that translate Ted Dewan's original book illustrations into animated form. Acamar has built a substantial distribution infrastructure including 65+ localized YouTube channels spanning 33 languages across 130+ territories, generating 1.5 million hours of daily viewing and approximately 9.7 billion cumulative views. Beyond the 104-episode Bing series, the product portfolio includes the Bing: Watch, Play, Learn mobile app, licensed consumer products (toys via Golden Bear, books via HarperCollins, apparel, food & beverage, stationery, and outdoor products via Sambro and others), and live experiential activations including the Bing's Birthday UK theatre tour, zoo partnerships, theme park installations, and cruise-ship and ski-resort programs. In February 2026, the company extended its digital footprint with the launch of Again! Again!, a curated public service values preschool channel on YouTube that operates a revenue-sharing model for third-party producers.

Acamar's business model is overwhelmingly B2B licensing rather than direct-to-consumer. Revenue streams include broadcast and streaming licensing fees (BBC, Rai, France Télévisions, NPO, MBC, Kixi, Azteca 7, eToonz), consumer product royalties from toys, publishing, apparel, food & beverage and experiential categories, YouTube advertising revenue across its global channel network, and licensing income from live experiences. The company does not sell direct-to-consumer; consumer-facing products are priced, sold, and fulfilled by licensees. Acamar remains privately held with no disclosed institutional funding rounds or external investors identified in the public record, and is led by CEO Mikael Shields, supported by COO/CFO Tim Ricketts (appointed August 2025) and Chairman Sir Peter Bazalgette (appointed November 2025).

Name

Acamar Films

Legal name

Acamar Films Limited

Website

https://acamarfilms.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Acamar Films is an independent London-based animation studio that produces and globally licenses the preschool series Bing across 141+ territories, monetizing through broadcast licensing, consumer product royalties, a 65+ channel YouTube network, and live experiences for preschool children and families.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Animation and Preschool Content

NAICS

Motion Picture and Video Distribution (512120), Motion Picture and Video Distribution (51212), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210), Broadcasting and Content Providers (516)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812), Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Distribution (7822)

akta.pro primary industry

Children’s/Educational Program Syndication (MPABAMAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Finished Program Sales & Window Licensing (Domestic/International) (MPABANAB), Branded Content & Sponsorship Licensing (Integrations, Product Placement) (MPABANAH)

Keywords

• Animated preschool series
• Children's content licensing
• Broadcast distribution rights
• Consumer products licensing
• Live entertainment experiences

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Broadcast Licensing: Licensing of Bing animated series to national broadcasters including BBC, Rai, France Télévisions, NPO, MBC, and others across 141+ territories. Revenue from broadcast fees and content licensing agreements.
2. Consumer Products Licensing: Licensing of Bing brand to consumer product manufacturers across toys (Golden Bear, Sambro), publishing (HarperCollins), apparel, food & beverage, and experiential categories. Royalty income from licensees.
3. YouTube Channel Network: 65+ YouTube channels across 33 languages in 130+ territories generating advertising revenue. 1.5 million hours of viewing daily across network.
4. Live Experience Licensing: Licensing fees from theme park activations (Gulliver's), zoo partnerships, cruise ships (Costa), ski resorts, and live theatre shows (Fierylight).

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Acamar Films is an independent creative studio that produces the international award-winning animated preschool TV series "Bing." The company licenses the Bing intellectual property across broadcast (BBC, Rai, France Télévisions, MBC), streaming platforms, a global YouTube network of 65+ localized channels, consumer products (toys, books, apparel), mobile apps, and live experiential activations such as theatre shows, zoo partnerships, and theme park installations. Revenue is generated primarily through B2B licensing arrangements with broadcasters, consumer product manufacturers, and distribution partners across 141+ territories.

Product overview

Acamar Films is an independent creative studio producing the international award-winning animated preschool series Bing. The core offering centers on the Bing animated TV series (78-104 episodes across multiple seasons), distributed globally through a network of 65+ localized YouTube channels and broadcast partnerships. The product portfolio extends to the Bing: Watch, Play, Learn mobile app, licensed consumer products including toys (Golden Bear), books (HarperCollins), and apparel/lifestyle products, live experiential activations including the Bing's Birthday theatre show and zoo/theme park partnerships, and the newly launched Again! Again! public service values YouTube channel.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Again! Again!: A new global public service values channel on YouTube showcasing high-quality character and narrative-driven pre-school programming, launched February 2026.

Products and services

• Bing Animated TV Series
• Bing YouTube Channels
• Bing: Watch, Play, Learn App
• Bing Publishing (HarperCollins)
• Bing Toys (Golden Bear)
• Bing Licensing Program
• Again! Again!
• Bing's Birthday Live Show

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1 billion streams on BBC iPlayer as of January 2024, making Bing one of the most popular series on the platform across all genres.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• WildBrain: Canadian publicly-listed children's entertainment company and owner of multiple globally distributed preschool franchises (Peppa Pig, In the Night Garden, Teletubbies) with a comparable licensing, consumer products, and YouTube distribution model to Acamar.
• Aardman Animations: Independent UK animation studio producing premium globally-licensed children's IP (Shaun the Sheep, Morph) with broadcast distribution and consumer products licensing — same independent, award-winning, animation-led model as Acamar.
• Studio 100: Belgian-headquartered independent children's entertainment group producing and licensing preschool franchises (Maya the Bee, Heidi, Blinky Bill) across broadcast, consumer products, and live experiences across Europe and globally.
• Blue Zoo Animation Studio: Independent UK-based animation studio producing preschool content (Q Pootle 5, Numberblocks) for major broadcasters including BBC, with a comparable production-and-licensing model anchored in CBeebies-grade commissions.
• Coolabi Group: UK-based independent children's IP and licensing company (Clothilde, Warrior Cats); Tim Ricketts was Coolabi's COO&CFO before joining Acamar, and the firms share an industry-vertical, geographic, and business model.

Broad incumbents

• Entertainment One (Hasbro): Was the owner of Peppa Pig before acquisition by Hasbro; now sits inside Hasbro's broader portfolio and represents the scaled, parent-company-owned incumbent version of what Acamar aspires to in preschool IP.
• Hit Entertainment (Mattel): Home of established preschool franchises Thomas & Friends, Bob the Builder, Fireman Sam; now part of Mattel, illustrating how incumbent IP portfolios are absorbed by larger toy/entertainment companies.
• Moonbug Entertainment: Digital-first global children's entertainment company (CoComelon, Little Baby Bum) built around YouTube and streaming; the broader-portfolio, digital-native equivalent competing directly for preschool attention and licensing dollars.
• Banijay Kids & Family (Zodiak Kids): Global children's content production and distribution business within Banijay Group operating across broadcast distribution, licensing, and consumer products; a much larger portfolio incumbent competing for the same international broadcast slots.

Emerging players

• Karrot Entertainment: UK-based independent children's animation producer (Peppa Pig, Topsy and Tim heritage) operating in adjacent preschool IP production and licensing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/acamarfilms
• Facebookfacebook.com/acamarfilms
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/acamarfilms

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Acamar Films